basement wall insulation - help me avoid a mistake

[lml999]

thanks for the feedback.

given the layout of our ductwork (one main trunk from the furnace that branches all throughout the house (up and downstairs)), there's no way it could be converted to a zoned system.

the reason i think the temp balance will change is that the downstairs currently gets no warm air directly from the fireplace. it gets no air from anywhere. if i put the thermostat in the basement and set it to 66, the furnace will kick on and start heating (up and downstairs) until the basement reaches that temp. in the process of doing that, it will be using a good amount of the really warm air from the superheated living room with the fireplace as its source. essentially, we'll circulate and mix the air in the house.

if the thermostat stays upstairs, i can't just program it to be 74 degrees (to overcome the natural 73 degrees from the fireplace) and have it try to raise the upstairs temp to that level constantly. even then, the downstairs likely wouldn't be the temp we want.

does that make sense?

I understand. Can you run the HVAC fan without heat on? Otherwise you're going to cook in the upstairs...

 

[iron]

yes, i can run FAN only, but that won't allow me to set and maintain a temp. i think i will do some test runs this weekend if/when temps drop a bit.

 

[maple1]

You don't have any manual dampers in your ductwork anywhere? If you did, you should just be able to move your thermostat downstairs, and close up some of the dampers going to upstairs. (Assuming you have adequate ducting to the downstairs).

Thanks for the additional replies & pics also, looks like what you did is about what I was thinking of doing.

 

[velvetfoot]

looks like what you did is about what I was thinking of doing.

So, you've got a wood boiler, 660 gal of storage, and enough wood in your basement to last the winter....must have a pretty big basement!
However, I did the same thing, with foam and sheetrock on the wall. If you have to cover the foam with sheetrock anyway, you might as finish it. I will say the foam was exposed for what turned out to be years though. I never did anything with the concrete floor and ceiling though. While most of the ceiling stuff was above the joists, there is a steel I-beam that would've have to been dealt with, unless a suspended ceiling was used, then that would've required more work around the windows, yada, yada. Then there's the concrete floor, which still keeps things cool-any insulated covering probably wouldn't work out well when moving any of the 8 pallets of pellets down there..

I will say that once the sheetrock was up and the window and door frames extended (which wasn't that big a deal as I recall), it does look good.

 

[iron]

yes, i can run FAN only, but that won't allow me to set and maintain a temp. i think i will do some test runs this weekend if/when temps drop a bit.

cross-posting:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...t-for-cycling-warm-air-from-fireplace.159822/

 

[jpety]

Hi there,

I see that you've posted this topic/question a few years ago and hopefully, based on your experience, you'll be able to give me some advice. I am also in Seattle, finishing my earthquake retrofit (structural got approved last week). The siding and windows of my house were fully redone last year and we decided to add a Low-E wrap under the cement-based siding to better insulate the house. Now that I am getting ready to insulate my basement (as per city of Seattle requirements) with R-13 EcoTouch Fiberglass, I am wondering if an extra vapor barrier (faced insulation or Visqueen covering the entire ponywall) is needed before placing the OSB/Plywood, or if it will be an issue considering I already have one on the outside of the house (at least it looks like Low-E wrap is considered a vapor barrier).

Thanks in advance.

 

[iron]

the key is to prevent moisture on surfaces where the temperature delta occurs. cold outside air next to heated air inside. i would think that if you have pony walls in front of your plywood walls, they will simply let the heat pass through the drywall until reaching the plywood-covered walls. that's where warm meets cold and condensation would occur. i would tend to think that the plastic covering will just trap the air and make things worse.

what i would do if doing it again and didn't have a newborn at the time:
put 1.5-2" xps on the floor. hire a closed cell spray foam contractor, and spray all your exterior walls to at least 2" thick (multiple passes). all done. might be $2k for the spraying. $1k for the floor foam.

 

[jpety]

Thanks. That's what I'm thinking too. Ultimately, I'm not planning on finishing my basement right away, just finishing the EQ retrofit. I think I'll simply finish the work as I started and then look inside every 3 or 6 months for the next year or so to find out if it works or not.

For floor and foundation, I'm far from being there and I also have a little one at home so we'll see.

Thanks again.

 

[iron]

Thanks. That's what I'm thinking too. Ultimately, I'm not planning on finishing my basement right away, just finishing the EQ retrofit. I think I'll simply finish the work as I started and then look inside every 3 or 6 months for the next year or so to find out if it works or not.

For floor and foundation, I'm far from being there and I also have a little one at home so we'll see.

Thanks again.

if you want me to come over and look some time, let me know. ideally you're north of the city.

 

[jpety]

I'm in Greenwood, so yes, North of Seattle. Where are you at?