Room features
Each building has a basement room - the space between the floor and the ground. It can have quite comfortable height for the device in it of a room of economic purpose. The height depends on the size of the foundation and the height of the plinth. On average, it is equal to two meters, so not using such a space is simply irrational.
It is known that at a depth the temperature has stable indicators throughout the year, but it is far from optimal. To bring it to normal, you need to insulate the basement. This will not only make it possible to use the basement with profit, but also reduce the cost of heating the building. Insulate the basement in various ways, but the most effective is considered to be external insulation.
With this method, the material is mounted from the outside, thereby preventing the walls from freezing. With internal insulation at the joints of the insulation material and the wall, condensation will form, which will ruin the entire coating. Therefore, it is necessary to do a thorough waterproofing of the entire surface of the walls. Also, the insulation material itself should tolerate moisture well, so foam is an excellent option for these purposes.
Important! If you do not do waterproofing, then any, even moisture-resistant material, will quickly deteriorate.
All the pros and cons of the
material Having made the decision to make the basement insulation with foam, you need to be aware of all the advantages and disadvantages of this material in order to use it with maximum efficiency. First, let's look at the advantages:
- This material is an excellent insulator;
- Very light weight, which gives a minimum load on the foundation and walls;
- Inexpensive in comparison with other materials. This factor is especially important for the warming of the basement, because the area of this room is large, and, therefore, a lot of material will be needed;
- When exposed to moisture does not change its characteristics;
- Material thickness of ten centimeters replaces the brick wall of a meter thick.
Now let's look at the shortcomings:
- If you use foam for exterior insulation, it heats up and emits an unpleasant odor;
- Low fire resistance, lights up almost immediately and when burned, releases hazardous substances;
- This is not the most environmentally friendly insulation.
Important! Polyfoam can be used only in rooms with high fire safety. Taking into account all these characteristics, we can conclude whether the foam is suitable for warming the basement in each specific case.
How to insulate the cellar with foam
For mounting, it is best to use a 25 density foam. At the edges, it is desirable to have quarters that will facilitate tight joining of the sheets, even if the fastening is made minimal. It is mandatory that the first layer should be a waterproofing, which is placed on a previously prepared surface. Foam sheets are fixed with an adhesive compound.
After the entire surface is covered with polystyrene, a cement screed 50 mm thick is made from above. To ensure that the screed has good strength, reinforcement is done with a grid with cells of 5 millimeters. For the screed, you can use cement grade M 100 . Note! Cement screed can be supported on the walls, which will reduce the pressure of the soil on the heater.
After all these works, it is not superfluous to make another layer of waterproofing, since the basement is a very damp room. After that, the finished surface, depending on the purpose of the room, tiles or wall panels.
