ᐅ Basement insulation without ceiling installation

Hello,
I am planning the following:

To eliminate the cold floors on the ground floor, I want to insulate the basement (house built in 1974, mid-terrace, fully basemented).

Insulating the ceiling is not practical because all the door frames only leave about 3cm (1 inch) of space to the ceiling.

Here is my idea:

Add a batten framework on the inside of the walls, fit mineral wool (rock wool) insulation between the battens, and then cover it with OSB or drywall panels.

What do you think?

(The previous owner already did this in one room, but used old fiberglass insulation. I had to remove it due to health risks (harmful to the lungs). I found no mold or moisture issues.)

Should/can I do the same with the floor? (Existing tiles, vapor barrier, battens, mineral wool in between, and thicker OSB panels on top?)

(I would prefer to avoid using PU foam or other plastics, as they are likely to cause moisture problems.)

Thanks for your help!

I can’t say much about the technical implementation – but will the basement really get warmer just because it is insulated? My bed doesn’t get warmer than the bedroom either, unless I’m lying in it...

What I mean is this: If the basement is not heated (which I assume), the insulation might delay it from cooling down a bit (but also from warming up). In the long run, however, the temperature will be the same and the cold floor as well.

Well, the walls and floor in the basement are already cold. The basement is not going to be heated, and I thought my plan could work passively so that the basement doesn’t get too cold. We already have cold feet on the ground floor...

Does anyone have any ideas or tips?

Please correct me if I’m wrong. But my basic understanding of physics tells me that this plan wouldn’t significantly affect the floor temperature on the ground floor.

The prerequisite would be that the basement becomes warmer than before. However, heat mainly comes from heating systems (since sunlight rarely reaches the basement). Heat from the ground floor heating rarely moves downward; it tends to rise.

I estimate that the soil beneath the basement remains close to the average annual temperature—around 10-12°C (50-54°F)—with fluctuations of only about 3-4°C (5-7°F), and these changes happen very slowly. Insulation is effective at reducing rapid temperature changes (such as day versus night), which is why it works well above ground. But even then, insulation does not change the fact that heating is needed in winter (and possibly cooling in summer). So, if you want to maintain a temperature different from the environment over the long term, energy must be consumed.

The basement does not experience rapid temperature changes, nor do you plan to add energy. Therefore, this approach will only cost you time, living space, and may create a potential mold problem.

Since you’re asking for other suggestions: one could try to better insulate the ground floor floor towards the basement ceiling to keep heat in the ground floor area. That way, the floor would stay closer in temperature to the air in the ground floor, rather than being as cold as the basement ceiling.

Hmm... I kind of expected that. It would have been too good to be true.

So I have no choice but to insulate the ground floor ceiling from below. Although the vibration area around the basement exit door is causing some issues. The door leaf has only about 4cm (1.5 inches) of space to the ceiling.

It’s not unpleasant that the basement itself is cold. But the resulting cold floor on the ground floor is especially uncomfortable in winter.

Can you recommend something? Which insulation material would be best for the ceiling?

Thanks and regards

What type of flooring do you have on the ground floor?