Winery Floor Walkthrough Checklist: What to Look For in 10 Minutes

By Pablo Figueroa · October 28, 2026 · 3 min read

You can learn a lot about a winery floor by walking it with a phone camera and a plan for what to look at. None of the checks below needs equipment. None is a test. Each one tells you where to look harder and what to ask a flooring provider before you accept a quote.

What should you look at first?

Start at the edges, not the middle of the room. Walk the perimeter and every drain, then cross the field.

What are the four signs to look for in the cellar?

Dark patches that return after the floor dries. Note where they are and whether they come back after the same wash cycle.

White crust or powder along the wall edge. It marks where something has been moving or drying. It is a prompt to test, not proof of the cause.

Blisters, soft spots or lifted edges in an existing coating. Photograph them with the date.

Water standing an hour after the last wash. Record the location from a safe, dry area; do not leave loose tape where it could create a trip hazard. A floor that holds water has a slope or drain question to answer. Do not wait an hour to address an immediate slip hazard: OSHA’s walking-working surface requirements call for maintained drainage in wet processes and correction or guarding of hazardous conditions.

What should you check at drains?

The edge of every drain: does the coating meet the frame cleanly, or is it cracked, lifting or worn through? Do the channel joints look sealed? Have operators noticed the frame moving during normal use? Do not deliberately drive over a suspected loose drain frame to test it; keep traffic away and arrange an inspection.

What should you check where the floor meets the wall?

Is there a floor-to-wall cove, and how high does it run? Where does it stop: at doors, columns, tank skirts and equipment legs? Look at every end of the cove. A seam that picks up where the curve left off is where wash water collects.

What should you check on joints and traffic lanes?

Joints with chipped edges, joint filler that has opened or pulled away, and wear in the lanes where forklifts and pallet jacks run.

What should you do with what you find?

Write it down, with the date and the location, and take photographs. Then send it with your floor plan and your cleaning program to a provider who will tell you what to test first. In a cellar, slab moisture testing is often an important next step before choosing a coating, with the test performed at service conditions. ASTM F2170 describes in-situ relative humidity testing and notes that results apply only to the time and locations tested. Visual signs alone do not diagnose moisture or determine whether a coating is suitable.

For the cellar slab in detail, see Part 3 of The Floor Front, our LinkedIn newsletter, on testing the slab in the room it will live in. Visit DTI on LinkedIn for newsletter posts and updates.

For a more detailed review, read DTI’s zone-by-zone winery floor assessment guide and explore our winery flooring services.

Found something on your walk? Request a free floor-condition assessment or call (209) 879-9674.

Image: AI-generated illustration of winery floor, drain and cove inspection details, not a documented DTI project.