Insulating Interior Concrete Basement Walls

The short answer is no you generally do not want a vapor barrier on the walls of a finished basement.

Insulating interior concrete basement walls.

When insulating concrete basement walls a good idea because concrete basement walls are often cold use rigid foam board insulation if the insulation will come into direct contact with the. The most important concern to address before insulating your basement is moisture. Basements are a challenge because of high moisture levels and cooler temperatures. On the interior the best insulation to place against the concrete or block is rigid foam without any facing such as foil or plastic sheeting.

Any of the following insulation materials are acceptable for this purpose. Closed cell spray polyurethane foam or either xps eps or polyisocyanurate rigid foam. That is why insulating your basements walls is necessary especially when you live in areas that have very cold climate. I ve written several articles on insulating basement walls and evolved some of my methods over time.

Basement walls made out of concrete stone concrete bloc and other masonry foundation materials have very minimal insulating properties and cause approximately 20 of heat loss in a home. David caruso springfield pa. However special care should be used when insulating concrete or block masonry basement walls. How to insulate basement walls.

To ensure there s no dampness seeping through the walls conduct a simple test using plastic sheeting and duct tape. The best way to insulate the interior side of a basement wall is with foam insulation that is adhered to or sprayed directly on the concrete. Insulating basement walls in cold climates is a great way to keep your home warmer and drier. Tape a small piece of plastic sheeting to a bare concrete wall with an impermeable duct tape border and wait 48 hours.

And there is no effective way to fill the voids in an existing concrete block wall. Insulating a basement properly is rather challenging in cold climates. Learn how to insulate and frame the walls and ceilings build soffits frame partition walls and frame around obstructions. Introduction turn your unfinished basement into beautiful functional living space.

Best methods for insulating basement walls. In this article i d like to discuss how to insulate basement walls in cold climates. Basements provide for a very challenging insulation problem. The place to control vapor migration is on the exterior of the basement wall in the form of waterproofing or damproofing.