How to get rid of dampness in the basement?

Every private homeowner in his house has a basement. As a rule, it is used to store a variety of food products. To ensure that they are always fresh and not exposed to any dangers, you should not allow dampness in the basement. But if it does appear, you need to know how to get rid of the dampness in the basement. This is what you will learn from this article.

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Formation of dampness in the basement

Removal of dampness from the basement must begin with an exact definition of the point of penetration of moisture. Increased moisture and humidity leads to the formation of mold, as well as fungus, which contribute to the spoilage of products stored in it. And even more, if you do not get rid of the dampness in the cellar in a timely manner, the mold will spread through the building materials, inside the house, higher and higher, provoking all the residents of various diseases and gradually destroying the building itself.

Important! Humid air is formed by the capillary way, simply speaking, small drops of water through the cracks get into your earthen floor. Then the moisture evaporates, as a result of which the humidity of the air increases. It must be remembered that sandy rocks contribute to the rise of water much more slowly than clay.

Before starting the fight against dampness in the cellar, it is necessary to determine the reasons for its appearance:

1. One of these reasons may be poor heat-saving and warming of the house. Because of this, in the cool season, moisture will enter the walls of the house, contributing to the formation of unpleasant mold. Often, this phenomenon can be observed in the upper corners, on the walls, because moisture falls into any room from above, or more precisely from the roof.
2. In addition, moisture can enter the cellar due to groundwater.
3. Also, one of the reasons for the appearance of mold can be the lack of waterproofing under the floor.

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Methods for combating dampness

How to remove dampness in a cellar - now we will understand in more detail. To date, there are many ways to fight against humidity in the room.

The dampness can be removed from the cellar in several ways.

Method 1

One of them is thorough concreting of walls and basement floor, as well as the use of liquid roofing and glass roofing.

Method 2

We recommend that you pay attention to the use of an inexpensive way to get rid of dampness. Here you need a polyethylene film, which could be used, to create a high-quality waterproofing. In addition, it will require a shovel, clay and a trowel.

In case the basement is made with clay floor, this clay can be used to speed up the work. To do this, add clay to the layer of waterproofing.

Work is carried out as follows:

• Remove the clay layer approximately 5 cm thick.
• Align the floor surface and lay it in half-folded food polyethylene film.
• Pour clay on top and tamp it thoroughly. Clay can be replaced with concrete.

Important! After the clay layer has dried, the moisture level in the cellar will drop significantly and the air will be much drier.

Method 3

It also happens that humidity rises in the autumn or spring periods. All this is due to precipitation. In such a situation, another method will be effective to get rid of the dampness in the basement:

1. Pour a layer of sand or gravel with a thickness of approximately 10 cm on the floor.
2. If the humidity level is continuously increasing, fill the gravel layer.

Important! This helps reduce the level of groundwater to the point where dampness can not rise to the level of the floor of your cellar.

Method 4

In order to get rid of the dampness in the basement, which appears due to accumulation of condensate, use a special waterproofing plaster.

Important! Using this method allows the walls and the floor to breathe.

In order to do this, purchase a ready-made waterproofing compound. Or do it yourself. It is obtained by mixing the waterproofing additive together with the dry plaster.

How to use - see instructions from the manufacturer of the dry mortar directly on the packaging material.

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What to do when the source of dampness is in the room?

If the dampness in your basement is formed due to the accumulation of condensate, then to eliminate it, perform work on the arrangement of a qualitative ventilation system. As a rule, only 2 pipes are enough for use, namely exhaust and supply air, which must be placed at different corners of the room, at different heights.

Basement pipes

Pipes in the basement require special attention:

1. In large basement rooms, natural ventilation often fails. Therefore, you can make a forced ventilation system by yourself. In this case, we propose a device for controlled ventilation, whereby at certain times it will be possible to set a certain temperature regime in the basement with our own hands.
2. If there are water pipes in the basements, make sure that they are insulated. The best use is the use of expanded polystyrene or any other suitable material.
3. The insulation of pipes should also be carried out, if it is necessary to dry the basement in a short period of time.

Important! The process of dehumidifying the cellar is necessary only after the work to eliminate the source of dampness is completed.

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What to do when the source of dampness is out of the room?

If you have determined that the source of dampness is probably located outside, then consider several options for this problem:

• high groundwater table;
• atmospheric precipitation;
• is a kind of capillary rise of moisture.

The work will depend on the specific source of moisture and dampness, as well as the level of moisture in the walls inside the basement. When the level of humidity and dampness inside the premises is insignificant - no more than 10%, it is enough to do the following with your own hands to get rid of the dampness in the basement:

1. Remove the old plaster, clean and rinse the walls.
2. Treat them with antiseptic drugs.
3. Mount the quality waterproofing layer.
4. Complete the finishing.
5. Dry the basement thoroughly.
   

Now there will be a dry cellar, which will remain so for a long time.

When your walls are damped out completely, you will need to do additional work, which will include the installation of an external quality waterproofing layer. In addition, external work can be divided into:

• preparatory work, namely: cleaning, strengthening the surface, priming;
• installation of a vertical waterproofing layer - absolutely any suitable moisture-repellent materials can be used for this;
• device of high-quality and effective blind area.

Important! In certain circumstances, additional work may be required that will allow you to get rid of moisture inside the building, and also to eliminate the cause of condensation.

If you have even the slightest doubt about the source of dampness or the choice of waterproofing material to eliminate it, consult with specialists about this.

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Basement waterproofing - choice of

technology If the formation of dampness and condensation in your basement is due to the fact that capillary moisture rises, make a quality horizontal waterproofing with your own hands.

In this case, you can use one of the two methods of the insulation layer - using a roll or a waterproofing waterproofing:

1. The roll-on waterproofing is overlapped on the foundation. Materials fully repeat the shape of the surface, and also allow for a high level of isolation of the room. Additional layers do not need to be done, although some hosts prefer to do extra 2-3 layers so that they do not have to worry in the future.
2. Soaking waterproofing is applied to any horizontal and vertical surface. It is often recommended to make several layers to provide a sufficient level of protection against dampness and moisture. Modern mixtures, which are sold as a lubricating waterproofing mixture, penetrate the structure of the material, filling all the cracks, as well as the pores in it, which allows creating high-quality waterproof protection.

We hope that you have gathered from this article all the necessary information in order to get rid of the dampness in the basement of your house. Accordingly - now you do not face mold, fungus and other unpleasant manifestations of excess moisture.