Remodel Basement

I recently moved from a house with a completely remodeled basement to a unfinished basement. I don't have the funds for a complete remodel, but would like to do some things. I am planning on painting the floor, but unsure about painting the cinder block walls. At my previous house the Damming Effect occurred and the paint was pealing. It was likely done 10-20 years ago( the Old house was built in 1932 and the new house in 1986). However there have been some remediation that occurred with the new house with french drains that were not at the old house. I am not sure if that factors in. Does anybody have experience? 

Before you do anything else you should determine humidly levels and if there's any water intrusion.  If you're confident that there's no actual intrusion you should tape plastic to the walls and the floor and see how much if any condensation forms between the plastic and the surface.

Radon test. Its 1000% easier to install a mitigation system without walls and ceilings in the way.

In reply to Appleseed :

It actually has that because of a Radon issue.

For cheap and easy, you can always just let the moisture do its thing and work around it. On the floor, invest in these: 

Ideally, you will have a floor drain to allow any water that come up to drain back out, but even without, the water stays under the floor until it evaporates. Then you put indoor/outdoor carpet over it and you have a nice dry floor. For the walls, if they are dry even temporarily, paint with UGL Drylok. 
 

This will seal up porous walls and keep them dry. All of this assumes that you don't have serious, persistent water intrusion and that you are making the space livable on a budget. 

A dehumidifier did wonders in my basement.

In reply to pinchvalve (Forum Supporter) :

Keep in mind, drylok doesn't work on latex paint. If the homes previous owner was a cheap bastard like mine was, you should test any existing paint before going with drylok. It's great stuff on raw block though.

Appleseed said:

A dehumidifier did wonders in my basement.

This. It worked so well I had a dehumidifier unit added to our basement HVAC system. Uses a little less power than the standalone unit, but now dries all the basement rooms. Still uses power though, so budget that in.

Has anybody used Vinyl wall planks or wall papering?

Paint the walls with drylock then hang pictures etc. For the ceiling you could use sheets with painted tack strips at each joist. Easy to make patterns etc and should be cheap.

Unpopular opinion: Unfinished basements are better than finished basements. Area rug and a recliner and TV, but then the rest of the basement is still good for shooting archery or hockey pucks, a workshop, storage, etc.

Unfinished basements are better than halfass finished basements or out of date geezer basements.

I wouldnt do anything permanent (paint, flooring, etc) if it wasnt part of my final plan.  It sure was "nice" of the previous owner of my house to paint the block walls with 85 coats of latex paint and install some poorly laid down lick n stick tiles