Just recently worked with metal framing for the first time. Installed some closets in a basement and enclosed some ductwork. Working with metal couldn’t be any easier, you just need tin snips and a drill.
But we were using metal as a request by the homeowner, who was worried about the possibility of moisture / water causing problems had we used wood. My thoughts were just the opposite, wouldn’t metal still rust in this situation? Wouldn’t moisture still wick up and someday cause a problem? If it were my choice, I just would’ve used wood like always. Pressured treated for the bottom plates and then just wood studs for the rest.
BTW, I was just a helper on this job, so in this situation, I keep my mouth shut, my opinions to myself, and do what I’m told (makes life easier)
So any opinions on using metal verses wood for basement walls?
Replies
I kind of like the idea of metal for the basement. Rust? Maybe - once it gets through all the zinc coating. In the meantime, the metal will stay as straight (or crooked) as the day you installed it.
I'm in a finished basement right now, as I write. The humidity here - without any special events like flooding - can vary from 70% to 45% in the course of a days' activities (it's electronically monitored). So, ordinary wood products are most definitely affected.
For example, I can almost 'read' the humidity by how far the panelling 'pops' from the underlying sheetrock during the day. This, btw, is outside St. Louis. Humid, yes, but not the worst - by far.
I agree with you. If it is too wet for wood framing, it's too wet for drywall or other wall coverings, trim, furniture, tools, storage - it's just too wet.
The other argument against using construction materials such as metal framing which do not absorb water is that they reduce the building's capacity to deal with excess moisture giving it no alternative than to condense on surfaces causing more damage. (I think this reasoning comes from the happy folks at BuildingScience)
Hi Mike,
I wouldn't consider metal studs in the basement. If the wire ever gets cut, or if you ever get a flood, then everything gets energized. Zap! I also don't think they are as strong as wood for holding a lot of todays gadgets. I hope you guys also used Romex or any other type of shielded wiring. My basement got flooded about a month ago and I'm glad it was wood in the walls.
FYI, they do have these plastic type inserts (bought seporately) that go in the studs should you decide to run some Romex. The inserts are there to keep the wires from being cut. I've seen them on commercial jobs, but we didn't have any electrical running through our walls on this job.
Called bushings, required by code for Romex in metal.
Metal studs are galvanized, G60 coating is standard.
However I have demo'd commercial spaces about 20 years old that were exposed to water (the maintainance crews regularly hosed down the tiled areas) and the track was nearly gone, along with the bottom of the studs. I think that wood may have failed in the same situation.
I am on the west coast and residential basements are a rarity. When you guys finish out basements back east, are they that wet? I think if you are worried about material rusting, then mold and mildew would be a major issue also.
I think if the habitable space is properly dried in, then either material is suitable.
Mike
Small wheel turn by the fire and rod, big wheel turn by the grace of god.
I dont even use wood in basements anymore. I'm sitting in mine as I type, and its all steel framed except the bearing wall down the middle.
Things I like about it - ease of use, speed of install, straight and flat, no food for bugs, wont hold water . . . wood or steel, neither is good standing in it. I like that I can carry 10 studs down the stairs at one time, and that in a basement, especially, steel makes it tremendously easy to navigate around obstructions with efficiency. You also don't have to mark every stud individually to compensate for variations in floor to ceiling height. Small fluctuations are absorbed in the track.
Our codes allow romex on steel in a residence. I've used the grommets, I've had electricians that used clips that go on the outside (back side) of a wall thats only rocked one side, and I had one that just couldn't stomach the idea and did EMT. I said did you bid for that work and he said you know, I'm not going to sleep if I don't do it. Fair enough.
IMHO, arguing about just the moisture component is a little pointless. Nothing in a basement is going to react well to a flood. I think steel wins the tie only because it wont absorb and hold the moisture.
My typical exterior wall is 1 1/2 rigid insulation, 1 5/8 20ga studs.
Real trucks dont have sparkplugs
One thing we're all dancing around is the moisture issue - ir, more correctly, what to do with moisture.
Basements, by their very nature, are going to have more moisture than the rest of the house. This moisture can come either from the air (if the basement is cooler than the air, the moisture condenses onto the walls) or from the ground - where it seeps through the concrete. (To tell if you have the latter, tape a piece of plastic to the wall and see if you get a wet spot there after a few days. If you do, you have moisture coming in).
Both problems are addressed by the same construction details - though for different reasons. Simply put, you want to 'break' with the walls and floor of the basement.
Here's what I consider a good start: Put in a new floor, raised above the existing floor. I don't care how you do it, though I prefer the method shown in FH some time ago: pressure-treated 2x4's laid flat, foam insulation between, new floor on top. This will not only break the thermal connection with the floor; properly planned, it will still allow moisture to make it's way to the drains. Leave a 1/2" gap at the walls.
When you bulid the walls, leave a similar gap between the walls and framing members. This will allow any moisture seeping through to fall down the floor, where it will make its' way to the drains.
In other words, don't attach the new walls -or insulation - directly to the basement walls. I wouldn't object to using something like stucco screen to raise the floor of the concrete, either.
The next matter is one of humidity control. The house I'm in right now has a dehumidifier just for the basement; it collects about 5 GALLONS of water a day, just from the air. This keeps the humidity down to about 50%.
So what happens when the basement floods? While, up to now I've only been speaking about relatively minor moisture issues, a flood is another issue alltogether. Again, proper planning can reduce your problems.
For example, that raised floor will drain and dry better than one set on the slab would. Materials - like the insulation you use - can be chosen that do not absorb water. Receptacles can be set up higher; no law says they have to be at ankle-level! Carpet can be in distinct pieces, no larger than 4x6ft, that you can roll up and take outside to dry in the sun. You can run ducts and install a big fan to flush the basement with dry air if the need arises. Your 'panelling' can be either sealed T-111, or even a 'hardi' type product. Use tileboard for the lower courses, rather than drywall. Etc.
Thanks Reno, good tips. It's all in the planning, no doubt.
Sound advice.
I went with steel as we have rather humid basements in summer as well and wanted to avoid an issue with wood. We also went with the paperless sheetrock.
A bonus I hadn't considered, though, was that it was SO much easier to get the steel into the basement than wood would have been. SO easy to work with steel.
Indeed, supporting objects can be an issue. In hindsight, I would have liked wall cabinets in the office that won't be viable to mount on the steel track wall.
Have worked on my basement over the last several years and used most of the procedures outlined: rigid styrofoam insulation leaving a gap between walls, steel studs, new sump pump, new gutters outside, large dehumidifier, MR sheetrock. So far, all is great. I agree with the post detailing the ease of working with metal studs in a basement. Worked well for me. One thing I did do. I cut small blocks of TREX or other composite decking and laid that on the slab every 16-24", tapconed those in, then attached the steel track to those. It lifted the track up 3/4 inch and gave a bit more ventilation. I also used the dimpled underlayment (DRY-Core), then a standard foam underlayment, then a flooring product called Swiss-Trax. Nice for basements, in my opinion. Comes in a range of color choices, you can design the overall pattern, and it snaps together. All plastic, seams are really tight. If you ever get water, you can remove whole sections and dry them out, then put back. One of my goals in the remodel was to eliminate materials that absorb moisture.