Have you thought about rubber flooring over the cement? Some nice, easy options there.

No, I hadn't given it any thought; I don't think I have ever heard of it! I will check it out, thanks so much for the idea! I hate making such big decisions...

Stain/epoxy on the cement will make for a cold, and possibly damp place. If it is really a space you are going to get good use out of, then invest in a floor heating system. The technology has come a long way and the install is fairly straight-forward.They come in electrical and warm water driven heating systems. Then you can buy tile that looks like wood and put that over it. Also the heated floor will have the added benefit of warming the air in the room and make the basement more of a year round gathering spot. Good luck.

Thanks! We have thought about this, but have kind of put it on the back burner due to the cost:( It is my husband's 1st choice, though!

We are planning to finish the basement this Spring and we will do tile that looks like wood. Basements are always prone to flooding, so you want something that can withstand that. With all the sump pumps and back-up pumps and generator, things can go wrong. It's enough to happen once. The cheapest way would be to just stain the concrete. I wouldn't use carpeting. You can use rugs to soften the look and the sound.

We are having our basement redone after a burst pipe. Since it ruined all our carpet we decided to go back with Trafficmaster Allure Ultra interlocking vinyl plank flooring. We are going with an oak finish to match the hardwood upstairs. It is a floating floor and so if we ever have a water problem again it won't be ruined. They started the install today. When it's done I'll post some pictures.

Here is what it looks like.

That sounds cool. What is the backing? Is it like a laminate flooring? I can't wait to see the pictures. Thanks for the suggestion!

Hi Jesakaper,

The vinyl planks are a floating floor (click together) that are normally 100% vinyl. The high end products are vinyl through and through and require underpad to keep the noise down and the floor soft(er) underfoot. These 100% vinyl planks are water proof.

The lower cost (less than $4/sf) vinyl planks are often made up of vinyl top layer and then "filler" midsections...like MDF/HDF or ply of some sort. These lower grade products are NOT water proof NOR water resistant.

Any other sort of floating floor (laminate, engineered hardwood, cork, etc) will have this middle layer of MDF or HDF (many engineered hardwoods are made up of either plywood or HDF). This means they are susceptible to water.

A cork floating floor can be site finished to seal the seams against surface spills, but a flood will ruin this type of flooring.

I've seen many people will polished cement LOVE the look of it...but hate the "pain" on their feet/knees/ears after 3 years. This is about as long as they can stand the polished cement before they can save up enough money to lay a new floor. Many of those floors have been covered by a cork floating floor....because the body became so tired the owner wanted to go in the opposite direction...soft, quiet, comfortable, warm.

Just a little FYI on polished cement.