Advice on shop upgrade project

[Duncan Potter]

Hi All

I'm germinating an idea to rearrange my basement. Currently I have my office, workshop and storage down there.

The idea starts with finishing a new space for the office. Most of the walls are poured concrete. I would like to insulate and drywall over the concrete. I was wondering about sticking foamboard insulation up with liquid nails, then gluing the sheetrock over that. Alternatively, I might screw 2x4s to the walls at 4' centers then do the insulation and sheetrock.

The basement is dry.

Any thought and/or pointers on a job like this?

[keith ouellette]

I would not glue the sheet rock even if the basement is dry. if the extra inches of space are not important the 2x4 (pressure treated of course) is the way I would go. on its face so you would have 1 to 1+1/2 inches of foam board insulation.

If you don't need extra insulation then just use 3/4 in thick to save money.

If you have the money put the wood up with tap cons or at lest a combo of tapcons and concrete nails.

What about a vapor barrier? It may seem dry... You should look into a vapor barier.

[Duane McGuire]

I'd put up 2X2 furring strips and place foam insulation between. That seems more mechanically reliable to me. I did that in a basement bedroom once where I didn't want to use up more floor space with WALL! It worked well.

[Paul Demetropoulos]

Well Duncan,

I think the beginning of your idea is a good one. That is to glue the foam board (you want to use EPS, styrofoam) directly to the wall. There are special adhesives for the board but you can use expanding foam to glue it; you need to keep something pressed against the sheets until the glue sets. You should also tape the seams.

Use the same foam board to insulate the rim joists and expanding foam to seal around the edges. Now you can easiy build a 2x4 wall against the foam, and you won't need to use pressure treated wood except for the sole plate if it contacts a concrete floor.

Nailing furring strips directly to the concrete wall can be problematic. Firstly, if the wall isnt plumb, your inside wall won't be either, and running electric and installing boxes is really a pain. And for a shop a 2x wall makes hanging heavy objects much easier, a big plus.

Lastly, I'd think twice before installing a vapor barrier in basement. Vapor barriers can trap moisture inside walls causing all sorts of problems from rot to mold. Actually, I wouldn't think twice, I just wouldn't.