ᐅ Installing interior insulation in a basement intended for use as living space
Created on: 1 Dec 2024 10:24
P
Phil-85Hello everyone,
I have a question that’s been on my mind. We have a basement room that is basically living space but is currently not used as such. The room is still in the shell stage. The interior walls were never plastered, the screed and underfloor heating are installed in the room. The room is heated but currently only used as a storage space. There are two windows, one of which is a light well. The house was built in 1982 and the upper floors are made of Poroton brick (30cm) (12 inches), while the entire basement structure is made of calcium silicate brick (30cm) (12 inches), with concrete ceilings. The exterior of the house is plastered, but there is no thermal insulation applied. The basement is dry and shows no signs of dampness, mold, or similar issues. The basement is mostly below ground level and is coated all around with a bituminous coating. Beyond that are hollow core blocks and in front of and above them there is gravel (see image 1).
The room is partially located below ground as shown in (image 2). The problem is that since no insulation is applied, the calcium silicate brick becomes very cold and a lot of heat is lost. Since we now want to renovate the room and use it as living space, we are considering installing interior insulation. Unfortunately, exterior insulation is not possible at this location because the house was built with an offset. The windows of the stairwell are directly adjacent to the wall where the basement room is located, leaving only about 1 cm (0.4 inches) of space between them. That would not be enough for exterior insulation. Removing the windows is also not an option, as the stairwell would then be dark.
My question is: does it make sense to attach interior insulation (calcium silicate boards) only to the areas of the calcium silicate brick where there is no soil contact? Since the walls in contact with the soil are noticeably warmer, or should the entire room be lined with the boards? Or would you have another suggestion?
I have a question that’s been on my mind. We have a basement room that is basically living space but is currently not used as such. The room is still in the shell stage. The interior walls were never plastered, the screed and underfloor heating are installed in the room. The room is heated but currently only used as a storage space. There are two windows, one of which is a light well. The house was built in 1982 and the upper floors are made of Poroton brick (30cm) (12 inches), while the entire basement structure is made of calcium silicate brick (30cm) (12 inches), with concrete ceilings. The exterior of the house is plastered, but there is no thermal insulation applied. The basement is dry and shows no signs of dampness, mold, or similar issues. The basement is mostly below ground level and is coated all around with a bituminous coating. Beyond that are hollow core blocks and in front of and above them there is gravel (see image 1).
The room is partially located below ground as shown in (image 2). The problem is that since no insulation is applied, the calcium silicate brick becomes very cold and a lot of heat is lost. Since we now want to renovate the room and use it as living space, we are considering installing interior insulation. Unfortunately, exterior insulation is not possible at this location because the house was built with an offset. The windows of the stairwell are directly adjacent to the wall where the basement room is located, leaving only about 1 cm (0.4 inches) of space between them. That would not be enough for exterior insulation. Removing the windows is also not an option, as the stairwell would then be dark.
My question is: does it make sense to attach interior insulation (calcium silicate boards) only to the areas of the calcium silicate brick where there is no soil contact? Since the walls in contact with the soil are noticeably warmer, or should the entire room be lined with the boards? Or would you have another suggestion?
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