Our Basement Renovation Starts With Long-term Waterproofing
Basement remodeling can add lots of additional living space to your home but beware; basement water leakage could put a real damper on your hopes if not correctly corrected.
There are 2 conditions you need to address for a dry basement, actual water leakage, and condensation. Water leakage is a pretty apparent issue to homeowners but lots of are unaware of the problems that high humidity can cause to a completed basement.
Humidity Problems
Because a basement is below ground, it will be naturally cooler than the floors above ground. When warmer air from upstairs or outdoors goes into the basement, it diminishes in volume as it cools. This shrinking or “condensing” of the air volume leads to higher humidity. Everything permeable in your basement will soak up the additional wetness in the air and cause a nasty smell. Dehumidifiers are home appliances which mechanically remove the undesirable additional humidity from your basement. A good dehumidifier is a should if you plan on redesigning your basement. Even a basement that does not leak will gain from utilizing a dehumidifier.
Water Leak
Without doubt, water leakage into the basement need to be completely corrected before you start your remodeling project. Start by remedying apparent sources of the issue; broken or non-existent gutter, downspouts emptying next to the structure, ground outside sloping towards the home, uncovered underground windows, and so on
. After you tire all preventative procedures outside, attempt to determine areas inside where you are experiencing the leakage. If a corner of the basement appears to be a particular issue, again, look outside at your gutter downspouts. If you see cracks in the walls dripping, a few of these can be repaired with hydraulic cement or crack injection. If water appears to be can be found in from a separated area, installing a sump pump below floor level can reduce the water table and underground hydrostatic pressure in that area. If you are not sure or your problems appear to be widespread, it may be best to hire a structure inspector, engineer or other professional to help you determine and solve your issue. There are a variety of services readily available to solve your leakage problems. These include; outside excavating, re-parging your walls, interior or exterior drain systems, interior cove systems, grout or epoxy injection and others. Most of these options will require a professional.
Basement Renovation Starts
If you can spare the additional space, 2X6s are even much better because they allow room for more insulation. Never, under any circumstances, nail furring strips onto the walls. Permeating the structure will jeopardize its barrier versus water.
Use construction adhesive rather than nails or screws to adhere your bottom wall plate to the floor. It’s ok to nail the upper wall plates into the upper floor joists.
Don’t glue down your basement carpet. Carpet is something that is going to break and eventually need to be replaced. Glued down carpets creates a real issue in the future when trying to remove it. Inform your carpet installer to use construction adhesive to install the carpet tack strips around the border. Do not allow them to drive nails into the cement floor.
Summary
With some common sense, construction strategy, a dependable waterproofing system, and humidity control, and a good waterproofing company like Jacks Waterproofing NSW, you can take pleasure in a lot of additional living space by redesigning your basement in Clovelly.