I am finishing the basement in my raised ranch. The top part of the walls are studded, the lower part is just insulation on cement. I do not want to frame the bottom of the wall all of the way up to where the studs start. I would like to frame the bottom 3 feet. Afterwards I'd like to drywall the top part of the wall and just let the drywall go down past where the studs end until it reaches my bottom wall. This will result in about 8 inches of drywall that will be up against the cement wall (with only the vapour barrier separating them). I realize I will lose some heat because of the lack of insulation in this area and I can live with that. What I am worried about is the possibility of condensation in this area because of the lack of insulation. Is my idea practical or am I all wet?
P.S. I once tried to clear a stick out of an outside drain cleanout by burning it out. I poured gasoline onto the stick and on my second attempt a twenty foot flame erupted from the cleanout and all the nieghbours came running out of their houses (with their pants around their ankles)
Answer:
I'd go to the extra effort of at least insulating that 8" gap and then making sure the VB goes down to within 6"of the floor. I want insulation to go to within 8" of the floor too.
