JHZR2
Staff member
We live in a 1920's house, and it has parging (screen nailed to the wall with a concrete layer spread on it, perhaps also called rough coat) on all walls in the basement. It is a beautiful job, smooth and nice rounded edges everywhere, very nice. But it is showing age in some areas.
It is just fine in most spots, but there are a few where it is coming off the wall and a few others where the concrete has fallen away. I can see efflorescence on the concrete in spots where the parting has fallen away/been removed.
The basement is not finished, so it is used as a real basement, for storage, a shop, exercise space, etc. Radon is not an issue, but we have a fairly high water table around here. The basement has a drainage system around the outer walls, and there is never standing water on the floor, we do not get leaks.
We do see a decent amount of seepage, regardless of how we manage the runoff from our roof. A combination of good sandy/loamy soil (great for vegetables), with a high water table I suppose creates just enough hydrostatic pressure to allow the walls to seep.
I don't think the basement is a candidate for finishing, because the height is just a bit too low (would necessitate a
So, it seems that the options are to remove and re-do the parging/roughcoat, or to directly apply a system of interlocking, foil faced insulating boards (thermawall I think it is called). The insulating boards is the lower cost option, though Im sure there are issues/considerations with that, as well as re-parging the walls.
Looking through places like Fine Homebuilding and other sources, it seems that insulation of basement walls is a good thing to do, and there are a few options.
But Im looking for the experience and advice of the collective here. If it were your home, how would you deal with it? Money isn't a real issue, best practice is more important to me... But it seems like the foam board option is both less expensive (by a factor of two) and more modern "best practice".
Thoughts or opinions???
Thanks!
It is just fine in most spots, but there are a few where it is coming off the wall and a few others where the concrete has fallen away. I can see efflorescence on the concrete in spots where the parting has fallen away/been removed.
The basement is not finished, so it is used as a real basement, for storage, a shop, exercise space, etc. Radon is not an issue, but we have a fairly high water table around here. The basement has a drainage system around the outer walls, and there is never standing water on the floor, we do not get leaks.
We do see a decent amount of seepage, regardless of how we manage the runoff from our roof. A combination of good sandy/loamy soil (great for vegetables), with a high water table I suppose creates just enough hydrostatic pressure to allow the walls to seep.
I don't think the basement is a candidate for finishing, because the height is just a bit too low (would necessitate a
So, it seems that the options are to remove and re-do the parging/roughcoat, or to directly apply a system of interlocking, foil faced insulating boards (thermawall I think it is called). The insulating boards is the lower cost option, though Im sure there are issues/considerations with that, as well as re-parging the walls.
Looking through places like Fine Homebuilding and other sources, it seems that insulation of basement walls is a good thing to do, and there are a few options.
But Im looking for the experience and advice of the collective here. If it were your home, how would you deal with it? Money isn't a real issue, best practice is more important to me... But it seems like the foam board option is both less expensive (by a factor of two) and more modern "best practice".
Thoughts or opinions???
Thanks!