ᐅ Building a House in Winter: Water in the Basement – Concerns About Mold
Created on: 29 Dec 2022 12:27
W
WulffenHello everyone,
We have been building a solid masonry house since mid-September.
So far, the basement (waterproof concrete shell), ground floor, and upper floor (the ceiling is in place) are completed as shell construction.
The ceiling has now been covered with a protective foil – no windows have been installed yet.
During the construction, there were occasional heavy snowfalls. The melted snow ran down through the stairwell into the basement.
I would estimate that about 3cm (1 inch) of water has been standing throughout the entire basement for the past 1.5 months.
The construction company said this is normal and that the water will be pumped out at the end.
However, the basement’s interior walls are brickwork, not concrete.
After reading online, I have become quite concerned that the high moisture might have already caused mold in the basement or that it is starting to penetrate the masonry.
Therefore, I have three questions and hope to benefit from your experience.
Is it really normal to leave water standing in the basement for such a long time? I plan to pump it out myself tomorrow.
Should the windows be sealed off, since moisture obviously spreads to the upper floors as well, or would that prevent proper air circulation?
Does the attached picture show mold growing on the masonry?
I am really worried that we might already be too late, and that the mold could endanger both our health and the structural integrity of the walls.
I would greatly appreciate your feedback!
Best regards!
We have been building a solid masonry house since mid-September.
So far, the basement (waterproof concrete shell), ground floor, and upper floor (the ceiling is in place) are completed as shell construction.
The ceiling has now been covered with a protective foil – no windows have been installed yet.
During the construction, there were occasional heavy snowfalls. The melted snow ran down through the stairwell into the basement.
I would estimate that about 3cm (1 inch) of water has been standing throughout the entire basement for the past 1.5 months.
The construction company said this is normal and that the water will be pumped out at the end.
However, the basement’s interior walls are brickwork, not concrete.
After reading online, I have become quite concerned that the high moisture might have already caused mold in the basement or that it is starting to penetrate the masonry.
Therefore, I have three questions and hope to benefit from your experience.
Is it really normal to leave water standing in the basement for such a long time? I plan to pump it out myself tomorrow.
Should the windows be sealed off, since moisture obviously spreads to the upper floors as well, or would that prevent proper air circulation?
Does the attached picture show mold growing on the masonry?
I am really worried that we might already be too late, and that the mold could endanger both our health and the structural integrity of the walls.
I would greatly appreciate your feedback!
Best regards!
schubert7929 Dec 2022 14:40So the water has been rising through the masonry of the interior walls for three months now?
schubert79 schrieb:
So the water has been rising up through the masonry of the interior walls for 3 months now?I would say for about 1.5 to 2 months.schubert79 schrieb:
So the water has been rising up through the masonry of the interior walls for 3 months?I just checked again. There has been water in the basement for about 1 to 1.5 months now.Similar topics