Insulate Existing Exterior Above Grade Concrete Basement Walls

1 3 inches two layers 1 5 inch each of expanded polystyrene in contact with the concrete.

Insulate existing exterior above grade concrete basement walls. Heavily insulating basement wall our basement has concrete walls and is uninsulated. Ideally you want to have rigid foam insulation in a basement against all the outside walls and the floor a minimum of two inches on the walls and one inch on the floor. Insulation is vital for concrete basement walls the basement hold the house s furnace water heaters laundry machines and essential utilities. Your only option is to cover the inside of the exterior walls with a continuous layer of insulation as though you were insulating a basement wall.

It may look easy to go buy some packs of rigid insulation panels down at the local hardware store and screw them to your walls but unless you understand how your existing walls are built and how they work in terms of keeping. Because they are naturally located below ground level basements are mostly cool and damp. We would like to add a foot of insulation on the interior. All rigid foam insulation.

Between the back of the studs and the concrete wall. Tape a small piece of plastic sheeting to a bare concrete wall with an impermeable duct tape border and wait 48 hours. Do not use fiberglass. The gap will be filled later with spray foam.

Also avoid polyiso insulation and other water sensitive materials. Basement walls made out of concrete stone concrete bloc and other masonry foundation materials have very minimal insulating properties and cause approximately 20 of heat loss in a home. Install an aluminum coil stock or sheet metal protective cover for the rigid insulating sheathing. The idea is to insulate with.

The most important concern to address before insulating your basement is moisture. Adding extra insulation to the exterior walls of an older home when renovating or remodeling is a great way of improving a home s walls thermal performance and reducing energy use while reducing heating bills carbon footprint and improving a building s comfort level. To ensure there s no dampness seeping through the walls conduct a simple test using plastic sheeting and duct tape. If you plan to insulate your basement walls with spray foam the best approach is to frame your 2 4 walls before the foam is sprayed leaving a gap of 1 1 2 in.

Materials procedures if your basement walls are flat concrete you may use rigid polystyrene foam extruded polystyrene xls or expanded polystyrene eps close cell spray polyurethane or mineral wool to insulate the exterior of the walls.