Questions about basement finish - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

Danno6102 · 05-18-2009, 11:39 AM

I'm going to start my first basement finish for a friend of mine & wanted to make sure I have the detail right before I finished my estimate for him. Basement is dry, no excessive moisture issues. Concrete foundation wall full height to bottom of joist/sill plate.

I was going to glue 3/4" foam board directly to the foundation wall. Foam board seams to be taped & all other joints caulked. A 1" gap from foam board to studs, unfaced R-13 fiberglass insulation, drywall. This is basically the same detail shown in this Building Sciences article here. Figure #3.

http://www.buildingscience.com/docum...ent-insulation

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Dan

**genecarp** · 05-18-2009, 11:43 AM

Dan, there are several ways to go, the method you describe seems fine, the only other thing i would consider would be to DRYLOCK the foundation first. The basement may be dry, but unless the exterior was waterproofed correctly, moisture in the form of humidity, may still be a factor. G

neolitic · 05-18-2009, 11:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by genecarp

Dan, there are several ways to go, the method you describe seems fine, the only other thing i would consider would be to DRYLOCK the foundation first. The basement may be dry, but unless the exterior was waterproofed correctly, moisture in the form of humidity, may still be a factor. G

X2.

Plus, I run a continuous bead
of PL under my treated sole plate.

strathd · 05-18-2009, 12:03 PM

On my own basement I used metal z studs 2' layout. 1" blueboard in between studs. 5/8 drywall screwed to z of metal stud. I built the house so it was waterproofed correctly. 12 years ago with no problems.

nailkiller1 · 05-18-2009, 12:14 PM

I do 1 1/2 or 2"foil back rigid foam glued to the foundation
tape all joints foam any gaps or trouble spots
build 2x4 wall in front no more insulation
there is not always room for this application though

naptown CR · 05-18-2009, 12:37 PM

before finishing any basement it is adviseable to do a moisture test which consists of duct taping 2' squares of 6mil poly to the floor and walls in various places. leave in place for a few days or at least till after a rain. pull the plastic and check for condensation. If there is some you will have to do something with the walls or floor. The reason is that many times the amount of moisture coming through the wall is minimal and will evaporate before it shows as a damp spot. Once you close off the walls with foam or anything the airflow is stopped and the moisture will start to build in the cavity. If it's dry I just frame 1" in front of the concrete wall and r-15 in the cavity.