Gluing 6-mil Plastic to Cinder Block
Erich
| Posted in Energy, Heating & Insulation on
I have just lined my crawl space with clear 6-mil plastic. As recommended in the March issue of Fine Homebuilding, I glued the plastic to the foundation wall (up about 1 foot from crawl space floor) with polyurathane liquid nails. The liquid nails stuck fine to the block, but after about a week the plastic just peeled off the wall. I have subsequently tried a number of glues and nothing seems to stick to the 6-mil plastic. Any advice?
Replies
I saw the title to your thread here with wonderment, never having tried to glue poly to anything. Even duct tape is a crap shoot for poly.
The gummiest tube applied substance I have ever used is butyl caulk.
I wonder if it would help for you to attach more poly to the top of the block wall with staples in the sill and cut it long enough to lap over the floor covering and seal it htere with duct tape.
Excellence is its own reward!
Hot glue sticks - they are poly and is about all that will stick to poly (melt into it) except some expensive aerospace type etching stuff.
There was a previous post about this problem.
Firstly, try the proper duct tape - the stuff you get for furnace ducting, not the cloth for closing your windows against bio warfare. The silver stuff sticks better.
As Piff. suggests, get more poly up there, to the sill plate. Then you can staple and glue to the sill plate (Do both)
I've never tried to melt for poly, so I can't say how it works. Give it a try.
At my age, my fingers & knees arrive at work an hour after I do.
Aaron the Handyman
Vancouver, Canada
Try using acoustical sealant. It is non hardening, will stick to most anything dry including yourself. We use it for sealing penetrations in our vapor barriers over insulation. Also, Tyvek tape does a good job of joining poly to poly.
IMO, Don't run the poly up your walls.
You probably don't need it because crawl walls don't usually have that much mositure in 'em; if they do, that misture will migrate up (rising damp) into the framing (or try to) and you should spend you energy fixing the source of that much mositure.
_______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
poly will not last over couple years. it will deterieor. If you must stop moisture just paint the block with drylock.
poly will not last over couple years. it will deterieor. If you must stop moisture just paint the block with drylock.
Other way around in crawl spaces in my area._______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
It's UV rays that deteriorate the poly. Six months is about it in direct sun but I am woreking now on a house that had poly laid on the floor about eight or ten years ago. The only reason it might need replacing is all the foot traffic of my electricians and plumbers down there.
I personally would probably not run it up the walls. Just having it on the ground without a tight edge seal will prevent 95% of moisture evaporation to cause problems. I was adresing the Question of the poster who wanted a tighter seal, assuming he needed it..
Excellence is its own reward!
how about an expensive fix with karnak , and ice/dam shield. never tried the ice/dam shield . but something tells me it might work if some more money can be spent. i guess it all depends on the problem at hand..... my 2¢.
If there is a problem with too much water coming through the foundation, don't treat the symptom inside, treat the problem outside._______________________
"I may have said the same thing before... But my explanation, I am sure, will always be different." Oscar Wilde
point taken , i was thinking more of a condensation problem then permiation perhaps i should of read with more attention of they problem-a faux paux - on my behalf althouh i would of done that on the outside on the outset. with a possible variation with the ice/dam shield. perhaps a bituminous membrane??.....bear
Edited 3/3/2003 8:48:57 PM ET by the bear
I have heard Butyl caulk works, but haven't tried it myself, knowing how nasty the stuff is to work with. usually i go for some mechanical method of holding on. I think Mike's acoustical sealant sounds good to me. The Tyvek tape has definitely worked for me, also.
Hope this helps. Rich.
If you want to put poly up walls do as they said in the recent article (FHB no 153 page98) and use nylon expansion fastners, I think it is over kill in most installation and had some reservation able the method, We have high water tables her in the northwest and often get water raising in the crawl space and the system will not be water tight and will create pooling on top of poly (a problem I have not found changeable, a sump pump only moves water does not reduce water level in most cases )with no place to evaporate except the house. With vents the moisture air will be exhausted through the vent, I prefer to have a sealed floor system with a crawl space.