ᐅ Can you glue drywall directly onto concrete?

Hello,
Can I directly glue drywall panels onto the interior walls of a basement that is about 1 meter (3 feet) underground and made entirely of poured concrete?
Later, bedrooms and a children's room will be located there.
Could there be problems with condensation?
The rooms have windows.
I might also install a ventilation system.

Best regards

Hello,
I would install a humidity meter. If the humidity is too high, I would avoid gypsum-based materials. It is better to use lime-cement plaster instead.

Yes, why drywall? I would only use it if necessary.

garfunkel schrieb:
Yes, why drywall? I would only use it if necessary.

I think that if I glue drywall to the concrete, there will still be some air insulation between the concrete and the drywall.
The adhesive is applied only at certain points on the boards.
And I can install the drywall myself, which saves costs.

You probably shouldn’t rely on insulation with air gaps. Does that even work? I don’t think so; you really need some kind of insulating material in there.

But then you can’t use adhesive anymore...

As far as I know, adhesive is mostly intended as a simple solution for uneven walls and similar issues often found in older buildings.

Also, it seems like you would only apply a single layer of drywall? In that case, it would be difficult to hang anything on the walls afterwards.

Except for possible cost savings, I don’t see many advantages. Maybe it would make sense if there’s a cavity for installations behind, but those are usually already integrated in concrete walls, right?

Have you ever tried plastering yourself? Concrete walls are usually quite flat, so just attach plaster guides and start.

It’s not that difficult, maybe you have a room where you can practice?

I actually doubt that it’s much easier to glue various drywall boards straight onto the wall than it is to plaster them.

Or put differently, I trust people who feel confident enough to do this kind of work are capable of plastering as well.

(Some practice doesn’t hurt, I admit.)

garfunkel schrieb:
You probably shouldn’t rely on insulation with an air gap. Does that even work? I don’t think so—there needs to be actual insulating material in there. But then you can’t glue anything anymore...

As far as I know, gluing is mainly meant as a simple solution for uneven walls and similar issues you often find in older buildings. Also, I assume you’d only be installing a single layer of drywall? Then it would be difficult to hang anything on the walls again.

Apart from a possible cost saving, I don’t see many benefits. Those might exist if you want installation cavities behind, but you’d probably have those already built into concrete walls, right?

Have you tried plastering yourself yet? Concrete walls are usually quite flat, just attach plaster guides and you’re good to go. It’s not that difficult, maybe you have a room where you could practice? I honestly doubt that gluing drywall panels to the wall is much easier than plastering them. Or put another way, I trust people who are confident enough to do that kind of work can also plaster. (A bit of practice never hurts, though.)

Thermal insulation using air gaps does work; it’s used in window panes, for example. I think the wall will feel warmer with gypsum boards than if I plaster the concrete because the gypsum boards only have point contact, reducing the cold transfer from the concrete into the room.

Plastering is not an option either since I won’t have all rooms finished by the time I move in. My plan is to complete the rooms gradually when I have the time and budget again.