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Pouring new basement floor slab

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11-29-04, 04:25 PM

emsluis

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Pouring new basement floor slab

I have a problem with humidity in my basement, I run a de-humidifier continuously and it just barely keeps up with it. Recently I dropped a heavy tool on the basement floor and it made a hole in the slab. I was surprised at how easily it went through the slab and investigated furterh. As it turns out the current slab is only about 1 inch thick.

I am thinking of having a new slab poured, say 3 inches thick. Does anyone have any experience doing this? Do you think this will help the humidity problem? Is it OK to pour the new slab over the old floor without removing it?

Thanks,
Ed.

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11-29-04, 04:37 PM

Ed Imeduc

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Location: Mountain Williams Missouri

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Id take it out. Run a drain pipe next to the footing all around the basment to one corner and put in a well that you can put in a sump pump later if need be. level it off down there. can put small gravel if you want then a 6 mil poly down over it and bring in the concrete for a good 3 1/2" floor down there.

ED

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Basements, Attics and Crawl Spaces
Crawlspace odor control

E

edabal on Nov 22, 2004

My 10 year old Indiana house has a vented (unheated) crawlspace with 5 automatic vents. The earth is covered with plastic wrap that is not sealed against the walls or columns. The sub-floor has no insulation and the walls have 1” rigid foam insulation. A sump pump is installed at the lowest corner. This year, we started to get a musty and sour odor in the living space above the crawlspace for the first time. Our carpet is kept clean, we have no pets and no smokers. I had an expert examine it for mold and I was told it was dry and clean -- I checked it out myself and found nothing other than the unpleasant earthly smell. The expert recommended laying down a new plastic wrap which he recommended to be sealed tightly against the walls. He said the small gaps in the plastic wrap on the earth are causing water to evaporate and cause all this smell. I find this hard to believe, will a tightly sealed wrap solve this problem? Regardless, I have decided to lay down a new wrap according to the instructions he gave me. I still have a lot of questions though. - Should I keep the old plastic wrap and place the new one over it, or should I remove the old and install the new plastic wrap in its place? - Should I remove the rigid foam insulation on the walls to place the wraps on the walls behind them and then put them back on the wrap? - If that doesn’t stop the odor, will placing a plastic wrap directly on the sub-floors help control the odor from seeping into the living space? A friend noted this could be a recipe for mold on the sub-floors since it might trap moisture there. I appreciate any insights into this.
Basements, Attics and Crawl Spaces
Mold. Mold. Mold.

J

jonkovach on Nov 29, 2004

I have mold in my basement! This is a new discovery. Ugh. Is there something I need to do to get rid of it? I have heard clorox works? I will be cleaning and painting dry-lock type stuff.... so whatever I need to do to get rid of this mold, so be it. Will putting a de-humidifyer in there help keep the mold from growing? Any other suggestions are really appreciated. Thanks- Moldy in Pittsburgh

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