I have a house built in 1911. Up graded several times. The original basement was cinderblock at the structural points and filled in a some point with more cinderblock. The Floor is dirt. I'm near the water and in gets raw/cold. It currently has fiberglass insulation but the floor in the main living area is still very cold. Should I Ridgid insulate over batting, Insulate exterior walls, put down something on the dirt? The only access is a 1' x 2' opening. The furnaice is in the high point but it sloopes to about 2' at the back. Also how do you handle Water, Gas, Heating ducts( forced Hot Air ), and various other mechanicals? I would like to do this myself as quotes I have gotten are all over the place.
Answer:
Crawl space is a major source of mildew but that can be corrected. First, all insulation has to be removed from the crawl space ceiling - house floor. The whole dirt floor, with all its irregularities, has then to be covered with an impermeable material (6mm polyethylene, an old swimming pool liner, etc.). This has to be firmly and permanently sealed to the existing, well-applied perimeter wall vapour barrier – which should be covering insulation rated at least R-20. It also has to be taped to all perforating structural components (plumbing, support posts, etc.). That looks after the crawl space for most of the year. The vents (minimum two on adjoining walls allowing for 1 sq. ft. of vent for every 500 sq. ft. of floor space) on the walls have then to be adjusted so they can be opened and closed from the outside. This will negate the need for anyone to crawl around down there for seasonal adjustment of ventilation.
Courtesy of Ren Molnar, Construction Consultant at HomeFocus.com. I can also be reached at (613) 748-3003 and Home Focus phone-in is broadcast live 8 to 10 A.M. (Ottawa, Ont. time) on Saturdays on www.cfra.com.
