Basement/shop insulation suggestions!

There is supposed to be a vapor barrier of some sort under the slab and on the outside of the walls of a basement.

If you put insulation on the inside with moisture wicking through the basement walls, you need to consider the proper way to control the moisture that collects on the back side of the insulation or you may create a major mold problem
 
rockcity said:
There is supposed to be a vapor barrier of some sort under the slab and on the outside of the walls of a basement.

If you put insulation on the inside with moisture wicking through the basement walls, you need to consider the proper way to control the moisture that collects on the back side of the insulation or you may create a major mold problem
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Supposed to be - but on a lot of older houses there isn't much (although based on the style here I'm guessing this isn't an old house).

A useful trick is to tape a big clear piece of plastic to teh slab and let it stay there for awhile. Look for moisture on the underside.
 
Actually now that I look at it, based on the door frames it looks like the joists are fairly high off the slab. A lore more overhead room to work with than a lot of basements (mine is only 7'4.5" total... ugh)
 
x2 on removing insulation on the ceiling. I would leave/replace it on the ceiling above your "garage" space, and inside the walls of your garage space. You may want to temp control it, but i like being able to isolate those fumes from the house.

It doesnt appear that the HVAC can be lifted much, but could be rerouted along the walls, if you wanted to spend the $$ and time.

The plumbing should be able to be raised, but need to understand where it is coming from.

Once that is complete, you could spray/paint it like many resturant/industrial spaces are these days, or put up some type of ceiling.

Cant tell from any of the pictures, but is the block wall exposed?
 
Yes it's exposed wall! I was hoping the hvac was movable its lowest thing down here ceilings in basement are 9' hvac and plumbing lowest point is 6'7"! I was wonderin about mold if I frame and insulate the walls how would that work with foam board insulation?
 
As far as I know it was poured on gravel with vap barrier no moisture
In the basement at all. The house is 15years old also!
 
I kinda like the idea of spraying ceiling instead of drop ceiling if I can get everything up and together bc right now I've got hvac and plumbing down low on both walls in hallway area
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this is the "hallway"! Both sides low and hvac is directly run with doorway to shop was hoping I could just raise the main duct up then reconnect the rest I gotta look into smaller duct work for the big bend going in wall bc I can't live with that shit lol
 
Please don't put smaller ductwork in place if larger ductwork at the sake of conelvenience. Then you are no better than the dude that created you current issues.
 
No I didn't technically mean smaller I'm not positive what my options are on the huge round piece going through my wall I was assuming there were more living space friendly pieces I could use!
 
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This is the piece I would like smaller or if I could just cut it and lift it up!? Not sure how it would affect the flow in theory it seems it would be same thing just less distance for air to travel through?
 
C.Berry said:
Yes it's exposed wall! I was hoping the hvac was movable its lowest thing down here ceilings in basement are 9' hvac and plumbing lowest point is 6'7"! I was wonderin about mold if I frame and insulate the walls how would that work with foam board insulation?
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Re: the foam board, you put the foam board flush against the wall, the boards have a tobgue/groove setup so they conenct together, and you tape that seam.
You then put the wall in FRONT of the foam board. The result is a wall that is 6" thick instead of 4".
The thing about 2"+ foam is that it's an insulator, but the theory is that across the 2" it creates a temperature gradient (b/c the wall will be cooler than the inside) where the outside of the foam is cold but the inside is warm, but sine it's sort of a long, slow transition you won't get condensation buildup due to the temp differential like happens with thin materials w/ different temps on either side.
Before doing all that you want to seal the walls really well with a water sealant. Drilock is the most common but there are better products.
 
^ ok gonna start on ceiling and work my way down to walls they will probably be last after hvac and plumbing! In my hvac problem it seems like most of the duct could be lifted 7" is there a reason it's as low as it is?
 
One reason is the installers made it easier to connect and seal the joints if there is 7 " above the ducts while working off a ladder. Also little coordination between plumbers , electricians, and HVAC folks cause poor use of space. We are in crawlspaces alot and its crazy the way utilities are installed. There is a priority for drains. Be carefull on a/c ducts not run flex ducts at extremely sharp turns and no back to back elbows. Two smaller ducts can replace one larger duct. If the space is not conditioned 24/7 I would plan on installing a dehumidifier with permanent drain to keep things dry.
 
Yeah I think electric, plumbing, and hvac was all done same day so they spread out from each other as far as possible... Lol just my luck the main duct is only like 15" from where it comes out of floor from upstairs so that shouldn't be a issue it'll stay one bend to main as far as I can tell! I'm sure that'll change when I get up in there
 
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Thanks fellas def motivation having a lil foresight on how to approach this mess! Got one room plastic down and insulation hung right I decided to leave it in joist for now till I have the walls foam boarded then I'm tearing it down to paint it all! ran out of tigers tooth to hold a few pieces but it'll do for now!
 
paradisePWoffrd said:
x2 on removing insulation on the ceiling. I would leave/replace it on the ceiling above your "garage" space, and inside the walls of your garage space. You may want to temp control it, but i like being able to isolate those fumes from the house.

It doesnt appear that the HVAC can be lifted much, but could be rerouted along the walls, if you wanted to spend the $$ and time.

The plumbing should be able to be raised, but need to understand where it is coming from.

Once that is complete, you could spray/paint it like many resturant/industrial spaces are these days, or put up some type of ceiling.

Cant tell from any of the pictures, but is the block wall exposed?
Click to expand...
Appreciate the idea of painted joist for industrial look the woman went for it and it'll save me a huge headache bc drop ceiling is a pain by yourself to hang!!
 
C.Berry said:
Appreciate the idea of painted joist for industrial look the woman went for it and it'll save me a huge headache bc drop ceiling is a pain by yourself to hang!!
Click to expand...
Absolutely. Most commercial spaces are painted these days, even drop ceilings. Have her start paying more attention when you're out and shell find a color she likes.

Heres an example of a tan on the ceiling of a restaurant.

e812132911a9aac1131a947f48b6ccd6.jpg
 
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