Floor coverings - Lab & Office - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Jester
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 11:49:06 am
content: I'm planning to set up a new home office/lab space. The space available is quite limited at ~ 25' x 12'. I will need to accommodate three different work type spaces:1) Desk area for PC and instruments, possibly a small meeting table.2) Workshop area to accommodate a bench-top CNC mill (700lb not tiny) and a small lathe3) Storage for components, projects etc.Epoxy floor in the workshop area appeals to me for durability and ease of cleanup, however I prefer something less industrial looking for the office area.Thoughts, suggestions, ideas?

author: capt bullshot
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 12:30:29 pm
content: Here (tm) they've used "Kugelgarn" (from a Swiss company).https://www.fabromont.ch/de/produkte/kugelgarn/Very robust, and eats SMD parts ;-)Don't know if something similar is avaliabe at your side of the pond.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 12:46:36 pm
content: Carpet tile over more of the same epoxy finish? (short pile, single neutral colour, so it doesn't 'hide' dropped small parts and components) If you spill anything nasty in the 'clean' section, being able to replace a tile or two*rather than having to attempt cleanup then deal with the remaining damage is worth a *LOT*. The EEVBLOG Lab has just been re-done in carpet tile after the flood - If its good enough for Dave . . . .* As we found out when one of the shop cats got into the bin and ate the remains of the boss's Falafel dinner then had a bad case of the squits, a metre inside the front door, which we discovered 9AM Monday morning half an hour before an important client meeting. Boss was tearing his hair in horror, till I said I'd sort it. "I'll need a bin bag, spare tiles, a flat steel scraper to lift the tiles, spray glue, and a can of air freshener and in five minutes you wont know it ever happened!"

author: Brumby
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 12:47:06 pm
content: Carpet tiles for the office, maybe? Just use a timber edge to keep them in place for the transition to a hard floor - or cover the hard floor with a floating timber one for something more up market, that will keep all the floor at one level.The carpet tiles would allow you to lift one or two of them and tap out any SMD components that have fallen. The fun part would be separating the SMDs from dirt and sand grains.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 12:50:15 pm
content: You can get screw-down metal edge strips for the transition. That's more robust than stripwood if you ever need to roll furniture or other small wheeled trolleys over the transition. Caulk under the workshop side of the edge strip so spills near the door don't wick into the office carpet tile.

author: soldar
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 06:34:28 pm
content: I never liked carpet for anything and much less work space. Maybe laminated wood for the office part?

author: aargee
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 11:05:30 pm
content: Whatever floor cover you use - choose your colour/pattern carefully! Especially if you want to see and retrieve dropped small parts.Black or dark grey (and close tight weave for carpet). I have found this works well, uniform colour, no speckle patterns, colour is a balance between seeing the dirt (and dropped parts) vs aesthetics.A light beige would work best but hey, that's too far into the wrong aesthetics camp for me.Carpet also works well in stopping the bounce and ricochet of dropped parts into un-observable parts of the workshop.

author: Psi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2019, 12:34:38 am
content: Quote from: Ian.M on April 15, 2019, 12:46:36 pm+1