Basement Floor Finishing: Insulation or?
In Fine Homebuilding #169 an article on “No-Mold Finished Basement” demonstrates a technique for finishing a concrete floor by laying down 1″ of EPS board insulation and two layers of 1/2″ plywood (one layer perpendicular to the other). You end up raising floor by nearly 2″, which is a lot when you have low ceilings already. I’ve used that plastic waffle underlayment before with one layer of 3/4″ ply screwed through to the concrete. I guess DriCore is an option too, but I’m skeptical about the 2’x 2′ dimension of the sections. Anybody work with the method described in the FHB article care to compare the pros and cons of the different choices? — Matt
There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root. — Henry David Thoreau
Replies
I used the FHB method and it worked great. It raises the floor less than using 2X4 sleepers on the flat and 3/4" plywood.
I've seen Dri-core used successfully. This is an interesting product that should insulate better than Dri-core: ww.ovrx.com
Billy
Edited 12/13/2007 3:02 pm ET by Billy
ww.ovrx.com takes you to a website where they sell Barricade brand floor and wall panels for basements. Their floor panel is like DriCore <b>with</b> insulation. If DriCore works then this seems like it would work even better. Of course they are still 2 x 2 panels. The method demonstrated in the FHB article seems like a superior method, but like many superior building techniques it looks like it would cost more than my customers are willing to pay. Also, I like the drainage grooves in the DriCore and the Barricade panel. Laying 4 x 8 sheets of EPS board on the concrete, as in the FHB method, looks like it would not allow small amounts of water to migate out from underneath as well. -- Matt There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root. -- Henry David Thoreau