ᐅ Old Floorboards Sealed Off with Vapor Barrier – Moisture Issues?
Created on: 18 Dec 2024 11:02
M
momo321Good morning,
my renovation was almost 2 years ago.
By chance, I came across a post last week that has made me a bit concerned.
The house is from 1960, with a basement and two floors.
The structure from basement to ground floor to upper floor is as follows:
Basement to ground floor: concrete ceiling, old plank flooring, new OSB boards, vapor barrier, new click vinyl flooring.
Ground floor to upper floor: Fermacell boards, mineral wool insulation, old intermediate ceiling with wooden beams, old wooden planks, new OSB boards, Aquastop impact sound insulation (not vapor-permeable), new click vinyl flooring.
This means I have effectively sealed the wood airtight, so it can no longer breathe or release moisture, etc... and it could happen that the planks, and more seriously the beams of the intermediate ceiling, rot or decay.
Is it really necessary to remove the entire floor and the vapor barrier, and is this actually a real risk?
Thank you in advance and best regards
my renovation was almost 2 years ago.
By chance, I came across a post last week that has made me a bit concerned.
The house is from 1960, with a basement and two floors.
The structure from basement to ground floor to upper floor is as follows:
Basement to ground floor: concrete ceiling, old plank flooring, new OSB boards, vapor barrier, new click vinyl flooring.
Ground floor to upper floor: Fermacell boards, mineral wool insulation, old intermediate ceiling with wooden beams, old wooden planks, new OSB boards, Aquastop impact sound insulation (not vapor-permeable), new click vinyl flooring.
This means I have effectively sealed the wood airtight, so it can no longer breathe or release moisture, etc... and it could happen that the planks, and more seriously the beams of the intermediate ceiling, rot or decay.
Is it really necessary to remove the entire floor and the vapor barrier, and is this actually a real risk?
Thank you in advance and best regards
Hello questioner,
Whether the structure from basement to ground floor poses a "risk" cannot really be predicted in advance.
However, I agree with you that this setup—a basement concrete slab ceiling with a wooden plank and wood-based panel construction including a vapor retarder on top—is unfortunate.
Both a plank floor and an OSB (oriented strand board) subfloor need to be installed with ventilation behind them. This means: no vapor retarder on top if the underside (as is probably the case here) cannot be ventilated either.
Whether this construction causes problems depends on the amount of rising water vapor.
It would be problematic if the basement had a so-called natural floor (compacted clay or similar) or if it is connected to outside air (constant drafts, high humidity, for example due to low temperatures).
Personally, I would not recommend undertaking considerable work now to remove the vapor retarder because of the significant effort involved.
Unfortunately, the best course of action now is to "wait and hope."
------------------------
Regards, KlaRa
Whether the structure from basement to ground floor poses a "risk" cannot really be predicted in advance.
However, I agree with you that this setup—a basement concrete slab ceiling with a wooden plank and wood-based panel construction including a vapor retarder on top—is unfortunate.
Both a plank floor and an OSB (oriented strand board) subfloor need to be installed with ventilation behind them. This means: no vapor retarder on top if the underside (as is probably the case here) cannot be ventilated either.
Whether this construction causes problems depends on the amount of rising water vapor.
It would be problematic if the basement had a so-called natural floor (compacted clay or similar) or if it is connected to outside air (constant drafts, high humidity, for example due to low temperatures).
Personally, I would not recommend undertaking considerable work now to remove the vapor retarder because of the significant effort involved.
Unfortunately, the best course of action now is to "wait and hope."
------------------------
Regards, KlaRa
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