Best way to paint field-stone basement walls?

We bought a circa 1890s home with a basement made from field stone below grade, and brick above grade. The floor is poured cement, and although uneven, is in pretty good shape. The basement doesn't get standing water, but does get moist spots in places after hard/sustained rain. I just had the entire basement repointed inside and out (overall about 90% of the field stone joints needed new mortar), and would like to spruce up the inside with paint and also keep masonry dust down to a minimum. Doing a cursory search online, I'm daunted with the number of options... I have no idea what the best product is or application method for my needs. Here's what I hope to achieve:

- seal the new mortar joints
- brighten up the basement walls and floor
- keep masonry/cement floor dust down to a minimum
- increase the general cleanliness

And these are the obstacles that I see:

- field stone joints can be pretty deep and convoluted, so rollering is not an option. See these pics for an idea (these were taken after all the chiseling and old mortar removal but BEFORE re-pointing and cleaning up):





- most sections of the field stone and brick areas had been treated over the years with various coatings (most of which had been removed during the repointing). The areas that still have coatings are in pretty good shape (little to no separating).

So what would people here recommend? Do a base application of a penetrant to seal the masonry, then paint on top? Or use a dry-lok type of paint directly over it? And are there any products that can be applied with a sprayer?

Lastly, what should I do about the floor? It's never been painted. Again, should I seal with a penetrant first, then paint with a floor paint? Should I go for an epoxy-type paint for durability?

I've read up a little on the difference between penetrants and films, and I seem to be leaning toward penetrants, to seal the masonry from within and provide a substrate for paint to adhere to. I worry that film-based coatings won't last as long and would have a greater tendency to separate (but I could be wrong). I'm also going to put more consideration into anything that is sprayable as opposed to brush-on.

Any advice would be appreciated... I really have no idea how I should proceed. Thanks!

 

That is the best 1890 rubble stone foundation I have seen!!!!!!!!!! I might seal it, maybe repoint it, but why hide such a piece of Americana. Most I see are falling into the basement or worse.

As to the floor........if you need to, apply a self etching concrete paint/stain. They usually have an acid mix to etch while you paint.

 

Thanks, Just Bill. That's my wife's sentiment as well-- leave it all exposed to see. I sort of agree, it's nice to see the cleanly re-pointed natural field stone. The only drawback there is that you can still see the evidence of previous coatings, as many of the stones are still white or partially white. If I could have afforded it, I would have had them sand blasted before repointing. But at least the repointing is nice, so I will probably leave it "natural". What sealant would you recommend for the walls? I am leaning towards Behr's low lustre masonry sealer. I do want some sort of sealer, even if clear, because I want to eliminate masonry dust.

What's your opinion regarding the vapor-permeable versus vapor-impermeable waterproofers? Does applying a coating of vapor-impermeable sealer reduce the life of the mortar by trapping moisture behind it? The Behr sealer that I'm interested in is vapor-impermeable. I do like that it dries clear to a hard finish.

I had about five masons come to give estimates for the repointing, and they all mentioned that the foundation was remarkably straight and tight, and with no bulging. The foundation was one of the selling points, and the house itself has no signs of settling/sagging. All the interior doors shut pretty much as they did in 1890!