Mold / Discussions

The builder on this 15 year old home ran the heat runs in the exterior joist space, he then insulated against the rim joist and under the heat runs, then wrapped from the mud sill to the underside of the plywood on the interior of the first joist and sealed the poly to the plywood with acoustical caulk, we will now spr...

...moldy and how to build basement walls that will stay dry At this point it sounds like the damage is done, but you may be able to buy yourself some time before doing a major renovation by letting it air out a little. Is the basement finished and furnished? I ask because the solutions aren’t particularly aesthetically ap...

I bought my house about a year ago and I recently took out 4 of the exisiting basement walls. 3 of which where exterior and 1 was just dividing the finished area and utilites. I found mold behind the wood paneling, sheetrock, 2x4 wood studs, and fiberglass insulation. The old walls were just about touching the block wa...

...mold and mildew. 

...mold When you see Rockwool on basement walls, any moisture in the concrete can move right through it, as long as it is not stopped by an interior vapor barrier. That is also why you should never put an interior vapor barrier on basement walls, since the source of moisture that could damage the walls is not humidity in ...

we are thinking of upgrading our cottage. Currently it is off the ground at various heights, from 6" to 3 ft. Supported by cement blocks at various locations under the cottage and some around its perimeter.  In order to install a master bedroom and ensuing plumbing needs to be installed in this crawl space. Also we are...

...Mold in basements didn't mention anything about footing protection. What is your suggestion about preventing moisture from  getting into the concrete wall from footing? thanks! Great question, and yes, moisture from the ground will be absorbed through the footing of a basement foundation if it isn’t protected. There is...

I build a second story addition on 100 yr old double brick bungalow 3 years ago. In the second summer the second floor bedrooms start to have a musty smell, particular smell coming through outlets. We cut a square into the dry wall, pushed back the insulation, cut through the vapor barrier and found mould on the exteri...

Our cottage is on concrete piers. The cottage crawlspace is uneven ranging from 30-36 inches. Exterior of crawlspace surrounded by pressure treated plywood skirting which has multiple vents. The dirt floor is well covered with heavy guage plastic. There is pink batt insulation between joists. The cottage crawlspace is ...

...moldy. What can i do to stop this?   We get a lot of questions about how to fix crawlspace floors that are humid and moldy. The following page will help you come up with a solution - How to fix a dirt floor crawlspace and prevent mold We aren’t big fans of crawlspaces for many reasons, and a big one is the height. It i...

...moldy as quickly as possible. Either way, if you are getting mold and you have a stud wall with batt insulation against concrete then I don’t see a whole lot of alternatives beyond removing it and redoing it. here is a page that will help – How to renovate basements so they don’t go moldy Apart from that, the other iss...

...mold resistant. He put special draining paper on it and put gravel up against it but it already smells like mold. It is just framed. Is it possible to finish the project in a way where I won't have mold issues? Thanks  Basements can easily be built to remain mold-free, but sadly that is not usually how they are built, ...

...mold forming. Here is our page all about how to insulate a crawl space –  Crawlspaces are very rare as part of a new home construction nowadays in USA & Canada. If you've got one here's how to fix it. The condensation under your vapor barrier can be a little disconcerting to look at sometimes and it may seem like s...

I bought  a duplex that was built in 1978 in Indiana.  It gets moisture on ceiling so bad during winter when temps drop below 20 degrees that it will run down the walls & look like its raining. Contractor says there’s enough insulation in the attic. There’s wood siding on 3 sides & brick on the front of the hou...

...Mold in the entire home, has new windows and new insulation in the attic. I have started the insulation in the floor joist from the crawlspace. I would like to know the correct way to insulate my crawl space regarding vapour barrier and what to do around vents and plumping pipes when installing.   There are a couple of...

Since the recent cold snap our double glazed windows are running with water, every morning it's all over the window sills, running down the wall - in the bathroom it's even making a puddle on the floor tiles. Now I noticed the seals at the bottom of our windows are starting to get what looks like a black mold - should ...

...mold due to condensation inside walls, the only way to do that would be strip the walls and rebuild them properly. Here is a page that I think you (and perhaps your contractor) should read  -  Why basements are moldy - how to fix & prevent mold in homes We would love to help, and I think you could really stand for ...

...mold or other problems in the winter? No, its quite the contrary. Heating a crawlspace will prevent mold. But heating a dirt floor crawlspace without taking any steps towards insulating the crawlspace and creating an air seal is going to cost dearly, so there are a few things I would do first to prevent heat loss, air ...