Winemaking area

[Wade E]

They are going to dig down to the bottom of the footings and install
10" drain pipes which dump into an industrial sump pump with an alarm
on it. Then they are going to coat all walls with a slurry that bonds
to it and is supposed to saturate into the walls and become
inpenetrable. Then they are going to sray all the walls down with a
mold resistant spray. All work is guaranteed for the life of us and the
next owner(transferrable). And yes I have gutters wth extended down
spouts away from the house. I did alot when we first moved in to try
and remedy this and believe me it helped alot but just not enough.

After the walls already being sprayed down as listed above, I
really dont have any ideas besides plastic sheathing the walls. Anyone
got any ideas and do I need to go any further. I know framing and
woodworking but not alot about mold resisting. A whole new world for me
as I never had to deal with this before. Windows I cant really do
anything with as their 33 x 13 1/2 and I am replacing them but they are
not egress size and nothing I can really do as the grade of the land
limits me but I have a walk-out basement.

Edited by: wade

 

[jobe05]

I wish I could be of more help with mold education, but don't know. I do know of several instances of others dealing with it, with varying advise and results. For instance when my brother inlaw had mold in his house, a professional recommended he tear out the sheetrock and insulation, clean and soak with a diluted clorine based cleaner, then reinsulate and use a plastic bearier. He did and the mold came back with a vengance........ who ever told him to use a plastic bearier forgot to tell him to put the plastic on the outside of the studs (outside walls, behind the sheeting and siding) and it sweat and molded within days, actually making the problem worse than the original problem. My daughter just baught a house in NY that Had a severe mold issue, mind you, this is a brand new home only 1 year old. She hire a contractor that for $30 grand came in and removed all the walls contents (insulation, plastic sheetrock) and put back new after treating the area (Chemically) using no plastic, and they have had no problem. So the moral of the story could be that each instance is different, what worked for one person, may or may not work in your case. But I would ask all the questions that I could before you do anything.

 

[Wade E]

As Im not finishing my whole basement and only covering up about 1/2 of
the existing walls I shouldnt be to bad off with what was already done
and the plastic sheathing. If I hear anything else I will take it into
consideration. I have to go pick up the new basement windows tommorow
and will ask the guy I deal with at the local lumber store who used to
be a contractor before he opened this facility that is growing like
Georges store in leaps and bounds. Anyone else have any ideas I would
love to hear them.

 

[NorthernWinos]

When we built our last house the basement was all below ground level....when we had the basement walls up we had the outside of the cement blocks plastered with cement, then painted tar on it....it had a drain tile around the outside walls below the footing level and it drained into a sump with a sump pump....Inside we had hung a plastic sheet next to the cement blocks, framed with 2X4's, fiberglass and sheetrock. Had very little problem with mold, only in a sauna room near the shower....and in the root cellar far bottomcorner.....never any flooding, even in heavy rains in heavy clay soil...the sump pump failed once in 15 years and was replaced...the overflow went into a floor drain, out a pipeand down a hill with gravity flow.


This house is 1/2 in the ground and the front half is at grade...we put a tile around the outside of the footing with gravity flow down a hill....no sump pump. We painted the outside of the cement blocks with a product called Dry-Lock [think that's the name] You could find it at Home Depot .....after we painted that on the outside we also painted 2 coats of a tar product, just to be sure....a little overkill. Then inside when we sheetrocked we hung a sheet of plastic against the cement blocks, framedand put up fiberglass insulation that comes with plastic on both sides...like it is in a bag...no chance of it ever getting damp...there is no sign of any moisture down there...but one whole front side of thedownstairs is above soil level....We have 12 inch cement blocks and 6 inch framed walls...it is very cozy down there in the heated area....We have hot water heat in the floor in the living area with tile...the other half of the basement is cement floor in the furnace room, laundry room and the root cellar/wine cellar. The root/wine cellarhas insulated 2X4 walls, no heat ducts..it stays about 62-67...winter and summer, even with a wood furnace in the adjoining room....Yeah!!! for insulation.


Sounds like they treated your walls right...did they use use the Dry-Lock product???? Nowhang plastic sheeting over the walls, frame with your 2X4's or 2X6'sand use the fiberglass that comes with the plastic around it....it's a nice product to work with if you get itchy from working with fiberglass.


Good luck with your project...sounds like it is moving along nicely...

 

[Wade E]

Ive never seen the insulation with the plastic but will look for it.

 

[NorthernWinos]

BTW...Very Important!!!!! Start running a dehumidifier right away...that cement is full of water ...as is the stuff the painted on your walls....keep the dehumidifier running all summer...you'll be amazed how much moisture you'll get out of there..... We ran 2 of them downstairs when we first moved in and was still building.Edited by: Northern Winos

 

[Wade E]

Good tip NW.

 

[NorthernWinos]

Also, run some fans and heaters..try to get it as dry as you can before you start covering up the walls...are you using treated lumber for the sill [base] of the walls??? At least what comes in contact with the floor.

 

[Wade E]

Yes pressure treated 2 x 4's for sill plates and I have been running
fans and a kerosene and ceramic heater for the past few days.

 

[NorthernWinos]

I found a piece of that insulation...It is called Comfort-Therm made by Johns-Manville...


http://www.specjm.com/poly-encapsulated.phpEdited by: Northern Winos

 

[grapeman]

The main purpose for the plastic on the insulation is to protect the installer. I contains the micro-particles of insulation and makes it safer and more comfrotable for the installer. Hence the name Comfort-Therm. Sounds like you have a good game plan in place for the installation and construction. Before you know it, you will be using the space and wonder how you ever got along without it.

 

[Wade E]

Well I bought the lumber for the winemaking area as this is going to be
the area I do 1st. Im going to use water resistant sheetrock which is
also mildew and mold resistant. A few $'s more a sheet but gives me pc
of mind and Im not 1 to 1/2 ass something. Im also going to use self
leveling cement on the floor cause whats existing is pretty bumpy and
will not except any type of flooring except rug and that would not be
to good in the winemaking area. Probably go with linoleum in there or
cheap industrial tiles of the such (nothing that would break like
ceramic). Dont know what Im going to do with the ceiling though as I
need to access pipes above but never seen anyone nor done a drop ceiling and dont know how involved it is.

 

[grapeman]

Wade, you can do a drop ceiling easily. They are a piece of cake. All you need is a pair of tinsnips to cut the tracking, ruler, level, hammer and a couple other simple tools. The hardest part is laying out square and level grid and pop the panels in place. Takes about a day to do a good size room. Ask your building supply place for instructions and they will give easy to follow instructions to you. Go For It.

 

[jobe05]

I agree with Appleman ......... Well...... except for the level thingy...... never used one myself......... (just kidding)


They are rather easy to put up wade, once you get the outside channel put up, the rest is like laying out floor tile, find the center of the room and put the center "T" one foot to the right, and another one foot to the left, then every 2 feet from there. The smaller 2 foot "T"s snap right into place.


Actually, if you know someone with a laser level I hear they work great for this. Other wise I just measure up from the floor to get room heigth, Adjust center "T"s with a wire wraped around a nail in the joist.


Edit: Also makes lighting easy to install.Edited by: jobe05

 

[Wade E]

I actually have a laser that is mounted on a pole or tripod as I used
to install custom cabinets for a living before I got into stairs. The
pole laser is really nice as you can set it in the middle of the room
and put it at any height you want. I used it today to start framing the
wine area. Got to go to home depot to pick up self leveling cement and
a few switches and outlets. Good thing I know alot about electricity as
I have alot of electrical work to do also. Plumbing is not my thingh
though! Dont need any of that.

 

[jobe05]

Plumbing is not my thingh though! Dont need any of that.

Sigh.....................

YOU MAKE WINE!!!!! You don't need to know how to do plumbing, you just need to know someone who knows plumbing........ and likes wine

Your not going to want a sink down there? A big Laundry tub type sink? Your gonna wish you'd had........... For a drain, you could drain your sink to a bucket with a sump in it, then sump it to your septic or sewer line.


I wonder what all that yeast does to my septic system anyways............

 

[Wade E]

I will eventually put a Utility sink on the other side where my shop is
as the washer and dryer will go upstairs in my sons old room behind
louvered doors. That is where the sink will go as it has hot and cold
water, a drain and its one door away. Until then I can keep waliking
epties upstairs to wash.

 

[NorthernWinos]

How about some photos from the ground up?????

 

[Wade E]

Will keep the pictures coming as I finish each stage.

 

[Wade E]

Okay I got all the framing in today and put down self leveling concrete
floor primer (milky looking stuff). Have to let it dry 4 hours so thats
as far as I can go today. Maybe I can get the concrete down tommorow after work.

Edited by: wade