I'm in the process of re-finishing the basement in my 65 year old. home. we had purhcased it less than a year ago. Anyhow, we noticed when we were about to tear it apart that the baseboards were damp. We proceeded to tear down the remainder of the panelling and found that the concrete under the tar paper and insulation was moldy. Whatever was painted on the concrete before is now all flaking off. We cannot seem to find the source of water. There is a window above the worst of the moldy area. I have two questions. A) How do we find the source of the water leakage and B) is the mold going to keep coming back regardless of what we do. We have it sprayed with javex and water right now to keep it from travelling through th rest of th house.
Answer:
Actually, you might not have a leak at all. It could very well be that the basement doesn't have sufficient ventilation and therefore, condensation runs rampant. Before you do much more, you should dry the place out. After that, you might consider the following: Humidity in here could (and should) be better controlled. Cold air holds more moisture than warm air and is, therefore, heavier. As air cools, it falls and keeps falling until it reaches the lowest level in the house. It cannot fall beyond the basement floor and that is where it has to be collected and pumped outside before that moisture gets a chance to condense in order to get rid of the moldy, musty odour and/or avoid it in the first place. A booster fan (250 CFM +) is available as a ‘pop in’ unit to fit 4”, 5” or 6” round heating duct. This can be installed in a totally separate duct line that is at least six feet from the nearest heat source. A timer on it will ensure that it operates only during the night (9pm to 9am) so cold, moist air it pumps out is not replaced by air that brings in even more humidity from outside. All joints and seams in the duct are taped and sealed for maximum efficiency and rather than a heating-type grill it should be a return air-type grill. To avoid having to core another hole in the foundation wall, this system can be vented, via a “TY” through the clothes dryer vent. Because none of the doors in the house go all the way to the floor, cold, moist air should find its way to that grill.
