ᐅ Garage in the basement: Looking for solutions to insulation challenges
Created on: 21 Mar 2024 13:57
E
ed_2022
Hello everyone,
For our construction project, we integrated our garage into the basement. To avoid including the garage (because of the garage door and related elements) within the building envelope of the house, we decided together with our energy consultant to use the interior wall between the garage and living area as part of the thermal envelope and to add insulation on top of the masonry.
Our shell contractor pointed out that insulation materials are usually quite soft. This means we wouldn’t be able to hang shelves on these walls, and the insulation could quickly get damaged if we lean bicycles or other items against it.
According to the energy consultant, we won’t be able to avoid having insulation there. Alternatively, we could use a more rigid insulation board. However, its U-value is relatively close to the limit, and I am unsure whether that really solves the problem.
Other ideas I have are either to install drywall/plasterboard in front of the insulation or to build an additional 10cm (4 inch) masonry wall in front of it.
How do you evaluate these solutions, and do you have any alternative suggestions?
For our construction project, we integrated our garage into the basement. To avoid including the garage (because of the garage door and related elements) within the building envelope of the house, we decided together with our energy consultant to use the interior wall between the garage and living area as part of the thermal envelope and to add insulation on top of the masonry.
Our shell contractor pointed out that insulation materials are usually quite soft. This means we wouldn’t be able to hang shelves on these walls, and the insulation could quickly get damaged if we lean bicycles or other items against it.
According to the energy consultant, we won’t be able to avoid having insulation there. Alternatively, we could use a more rigid insulation board. However, its U-value is relatively close to the limit, and I am unsure whether that really solves the problem.
Other ideas I have are either to install drywall/plasterboard in front of the insulation or to build an additional 10cm (4 inch) masonry wall in front of it.
How do you evaluate these solutions, and do you have any alternative suggestions?
When it comes to insulation, no matter how pressure-resistant it is, you can at most hang a lamp or house number on it—nothing heavier. Also, nothing that is subjected to constant shear forces. Insulation anchors are not designed for that.
One option is to attach shelves or other brackets through the insulation to the wall behind it. You can either prepare mounting aids (e.g., from Dosteba) where the fixing points are planned, or do it afterwards using, for example, Fischer TherMax anchors. Of course, this still creates a weak spot in the insulation layer, but that can usually be neglected if the installation is inside a garage.
Otherwise, drywall construction is also possible, but you lose interior space.
One option is to attach shelves or other brackets through the insulation to the wall behind it. You can either prepare mounting aids (e.g., from Dosteba) where the fixing points are planned, or do it afterwards using, for example, Fischer TherMax anchors. Of course, this still creates a weak spot in the insulation layer, but that can usually be neglected if the installation is inside a garage.
Otherwise, drywall construction is also possible, but you lose interior space.
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