Paining floors is never a good idea and painting a bathroom floor is a really bad one IMO

I think you could use a regular latex paint, as long as you coat with at least 2 coats of poly.

It's going to be really slippery when wet.

Since a bathroom is small - the cost to tile it would be minimal.

Toxic? Where do you find paint that is toxic?
There has been no lead in paint since before 1978.
Even oil paints today have very low VOC levels. Putting gas in your car or just sitting in the car while at the station probably exposes her to more aromatic solvents.
Please don't confuse smell with toxins. The baby will be fine.

"Toxic? Where do you find paint that is toxic?
There has been no lead in paint since before 1978.
Even oil paints today have very low VOC levels. Putting gas in your car or just sitting in the car while at the station probably exposes her to more aromatic solvents.
Please don't confuse smell with toxins. The baby will be fine."

All true

But this?
"I think you could use a regular latex paint, as long as you coat with at least 2 coats of poly."

NOT so true

Hi,
Don't know if you've already decided on anything, but a couple of thoughts for you.
Though you certainly could paint and a porch paint might be your best bet, there is something to consider. The cracks between the boards will not and should not be filled by the paint so water will be able to get in between the boards where they will not be sealed. This could conceivably, depending on the ventilation, create pockets of mold and/or rot that would give you big problems later. Nowadays, they are showing us more and more dangers from mold. I would imagine that would be a big concern as a new parent.
Some of the earlier comments are very valid as I'm sure you know. No one mentioned the true curing time of latex paint - it really would be days before it should handle any real traffic and abuse.
Hope this helps and congratulations!
Ging

Thanks for all of your advice and suggestions. We have left over floor boards from the putting hardwood in the rest of the house, so this project isn't costing much more than paint.

This is more of a short term solution as we weren't ready for the permanence and increased cost and time of raising the floor height, putting down radiant heating and tiling. We are three years into a renovation that was supposed to be limited to pulling out the old carpet. The house is better for it but we have other higher priority projects to finish before we can turn our attention to tiling the bathroom floors.
I'm far from an environmentalist or worry wort, but being a first time father to be makes me think about these things.

Thanks again.

I would use sticky tile before painting. That stuff is really cheap and if you install it tight, it looks like sheet vinyl. All you need is a utility knife.

I would use sticky tile before painting. That stuff is really cheap and if you install it tight, it looks like sheet vinyl. All you need is a utility knife.

there you go