ᐅ Basement: Reducing window wells / Ventilation of the rooms?
Created on: 26 Feb 2018 08:27
B
Bernd2378B
Bernd237826 Feb 2018 08:27Good morning everyone,
my name is Bernd and this summer we are starting the construction of a basement single-family house (timber frame construction). We have just received our soil report and unfortunately need a “white tank” waterproofing system due to accumulating and pressing groundwater and poor soil permeability.
As a result, we have to drain the water collected in the light wells separately using a pump system.
The basement is divided into a hallway and four more or less equally sized rooms (about 22 m2 (236 ft2) per room).
Now to my question:
On the left side, the basement is partially exposed, so we plan to have two of the four rooms with windows and therefore without light wells (drainage of the light wells is still necessary). These will be the heating/laundry room and a hobby room. The other two rooms will serve as a storage room and possibly a workshop.
Because of the “white tank” issue, I would like to omit the originally planned light wells for the workshop and storage room (these two light wells would hardly bring any light anyway, since they are on the north side and partly blocked by the carport).
Now my question about ventilation: Is it common to have rooms without ventilation options? We do have a ventilation system in the house, but from what I have read in some posts, it doesn’t make sense to include the basement rooms in it due to the temperature difference. The basement is insulated with 100 mm (4 inches) of insulation but is generally not planned to be heated.
I appreciate any opinions.
Bernd
my name is Bernd and this summer we are starting the construction of a basement single-family house (timber frame construction). We have just received our soil report and unfortunately need a “white tank” waterproofing system due to accumulating and pressing groundwater and poor soil permeability.
As a result, we have to drain the water collected in the light wells separately using a pump system.
The basement is divided into a hallway and four more or less equally sized rooms (about 22 m2 (236 ft2) per room).
Now to my question:
On the left side, the basement is partially exposed, so we plan to have two of the four rooms with windows and therefore without light wells (drainage of the light wells is still necessary). These will be the heating/laundry room and a hobby room. The other two rooms will serve as a storage room and possibly a workshop.
Because of the “white tank” issue, I would like to omit the originally planned light wells for the workshop and storage room (these two light wells would hardly bring any light anyway, since they are on the north side and partly blocked by the carport).
Now my question about ventilation: Is it common to have rooms without ventilation options? We do have a ventilation system in the house, but from what I have read in some posts, it doesn’t make sense to include the basement rooms in it due to the temperature difference. The basement is insulated with 100 mm (4 inches) of insulation but is generally not planned to be heated.
I appreciate any opinions.
Bernd
Hello,
we also have a waterproof concrete basement and have omitted basement windows in two of the rooms, instead connecting them to the mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery. One of the rooms is the utility room, which is already warm, and the other is a large storage room. The storage room does have heating set to 21°C (70°F), but whenever I check the valve, it’s closed. So it’s hardly heated at all.
A basement rarely gets really cold anymore, even without heating.
Regarding your question: I would definitely connect the rooms to the mechanical ventilation system; without windows, you will otherwise have problems with the basements. Whether you should also heat them is another issue. I would always do it—you never know what you might want to use the space for someday. Around 18°C (64°F) is fine for storage, but not if you want to use it as, for example, an office, hobby room, or workshop.
You don’t need underfloor heating; using oversized radiators connected to the regular heating circuit will get you pretty far. This wouldn’t be standard design and won’t make the room feel super cozy, but it should be enough to raise the temperature from 18°C to about 21°C.
Best regards,
Andreas
we also have a waterproof concrete basement and have omitted basement windows in two of the rooms, instead connecting them to the mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery. One of the rooms is the utility room, which is already warm, and the other is a large storage room. The storage room does have heating set to 21°C (70°F), but whenever I check the valve, it’s closed. So it’s hardly heated at all.
A basement rarely gets really cold anymore, even without heating.
Regarding your question: I would definitely connect the rooms to the mechanical ventilation system; without windows, you will otherwise have problems with the basements. Whether you should also heat them is another issue. I would always do it—you never know what you might want to use the space for someday. Around 18°C (64°F) is fine for storage, but not if you want to use it as, for example, an office, hobby room, or workshop.
You don’t need underfloor heating; using oversized radiators connected to the regular heating circuit will get you pretty far. This wouldn’t be standard design and won’t make the room feel super cozy, but it should be enough to raise the temperature from 18°C to about 21°C.
Best regards,
Andreas
We have also connected our basement rooms to the mechanical ventilation system. The ventilation can be minimized, but in my opinion, a small amount of air movement and exchange is definitely necessary with airtight building envelopes. Otherwise, the storage room can quickly develop mold...
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