ᐅ Single-family house without a basement – creating additional usable space elsewhere
Created on: 26 Mar 2018 14:43
E
EnnoBecker
Hello everyone,
We are building our single-family house without a basement with the following specifications:
Gable roof with a 45° pitch
Knee wall 1m (3.3 ft)
Living area: 148 m² (1,593 sq ft)
House dimensions: 8.95m x 11.32m (29.4 ft x 37.2 ft)
We want to compensate for the lack of storage space from the missing basement through the following measures:
I have questions regarding the following points:
1 - Attic:
This is a cold roof, meaning the floor between the upper floor and attic is insulated with mineral wool and has a vapor barrier in between.
The goal is to create more storage space. The attic is not intended to be used as living space.
For this purpose, I want to use tongue-and-groove boards, as these are vapor permeable compared to OSB panels and therefore prevent issues with rising moisture from the upper floor.
Questions:
The attached picture is provided as an example.
2 - Garage
The garage is planned to be 3.45m (11.3 ft) wide and 9m (29.5 ft) long. Inside the garage, a partition wall will be installed to separate the parking space from a storage area. Do you have recommendations for manufacturers or personal experience with this?
Thank you for your help.
Best regards,
Enno
We are building our single-family house without a basement with the following specifications:
Gable roof with a 45° pitch
Knee wall 1m (3.3 ft)
Living area: 148 m² (1,593 sq ft)
House dimensions: 8.95m x 11.32m (29.4 ft x 37.2 ft)
We want to compensate for the lack of storage space from the missing basement through the following measures:
- Make the attic accessible
- Build an extended single garage
- Build a spacious garden shed
I have questions regarding the following points:
1 - Attic:
This is a cold roof, meaning the floor between the upper floor and attic is insulated with mineral wool and has a vapor barrier in between.
The goal is to create more storage space. The attic is not intended to be used as living space.
For this purpose, I want to use tongue-and-groove boards, as these are vapor permeable compared to OSB panels and therefore prevent issues with rising moisture from the upper floor.
Questions:
- So far, a pull-down attic ladder is planned. My wife prefers a fixed space-saving staircase with a railing for easier access. In my view, this should be no problem as long as the access hatch to the attic remains insulated. Are there suitable solutions for this?
- We would also like to dry wet laundry in the attic. In our case, is this unproblematic? I believe the evaporated moisture could easily escape.
- What do you think, how much effectively usable floor area would this create?
- Do you have any personal experience with this?
The attached picture is provided as an example.
2 - Garage
The garage is planned to be 3.45m (11.3 ft) wide and 9m (29.5 ft) long. Inside the garage, a partition wall will be installed to separate the parking space from a storage area. Do you have recommendations for manufacturers or personal experience with this?
Thank you for your help.
Best regards,
Enno
C
Caspar202028 Mar 2018 18:48The most important thing for us is that it works very well and is significantly more practical than cold storage tanks.
K
Knallkörper28 Mar 2018 18:52Caspar2020 schrieb:
That’s why there is a vapor barrier on the upper floor side facing the room.That’s clear, although I think you mean a vapor retarder. It reduces moisture transport but doesn’t completely prevent it. Do you know how the vapor retarder in the attic connects to the one in the ceiling below?
We also store all kinds of things in our attic; who wants to waste 54 m² (580 ft²)? In your case, I would at least monitor the humidity over a longer period. A hygrometer with a max value memory for about $12 from Amazon is enough.
C
Caspar202028 Mar 2018 19:29Knallkörper schrieb:
That’s clear, even though you probably mean "vapor retarder."The one in the attic is a vapor barrier according to the building specifications. I assume the architect knows what he’s writing. The one in the upper floor ceiling looks pretty much the same.
Knallkörper schrieb:
Do you know how the vapor retarder in the attic is connected to the one in the intermediate ceiling?No.
Knallkörper schrieb:
If I were you, I’d at least monitor the moisture over a longer period. A hygrometer with a max-value memory for about 12 euros from Amazon is enough.The house has been standing since 1997. I just put my hygrometer up. In the attic I have 37% humidity, in the living room 34%.
At the moment the covering of the rafter rod is a bit loose. At least there is a small puddle under the rod when it rains. That’s our only problem area with the attic.
An unventilated, unheated attic space above an insulated ceiling works fine without constant ventilation. As always, it helps to use common sense. If it’s -5°C (23°F) outside, someone has just taken a shower on the upper floor, and you then open the attic hatch, you will naturally get some warm, moist air rising up. But if you’ve thoroughly ventilated downstairs beforehand, what moisture should still move upwards? If necessary, you can also ventilate the attic itself if there are windows installed. Since the temperature differences between inside and outside in the attic are smaller than in the rest of the house, this also reduces the risk of mold. Condensation moisture has less chance to form.
However, you need to be careful not to transport too much moisture upwards!
If I were renting out my house, I wouldn’t insulate the attic. You never know if the tenants will be diligent. For owner-occupied homes, in my opinion, this approach is acceptable.
However, you need to be careful not to transport too much moisture upwards!
If I were renting out my house, I wouldn’t insulate the attic. You never know if the tenants will be diligent. For owner-occupied homes, in my opinion, this approach is acceptable.
K
Knallkörper28 Mar 2018 20:24Nordmann schrieb:
First, ventilate thoroughly at the bottom; then what else should come up?No matter how much you ventilate, you can’t make the air in your bathroom so dry that it wouldn’t condense at minus 5°C (23°F). That’s just physics.
Similar topics