I'm renovating my basement into a laundry room and I've got these concrete slabs sticking out from two walls, about 30cm high and 20cm deep. The problem is, they're soaking up moisture from the ground and causing mold when the humidity rises, which isn't great because I live in a cold country with low humidity but still have occasional mold issues.
I want to build some custom wood furniture for my laundry machine, including a small table, drawers, and shelves, but I'm worried that the wood will suck up moisture if it touches the concrete slabs directly. I'm looking for advice on how to properly insulate the slabs before I build around them. I've considered using insulation coatings or covering them with tarp and foam blocks, but I'm not quite sure what the best approach is. I really want to get this right to avoid having to redo everything in a few years!
2 Answers
You definitely want to put some type of vapor barrier over those concrete slabs. Ideally, vapor barriers are placed outside the foundation to keep moisture at bay, but for your project, you can just put a barrier where you're building. A product like Redguard is great because you just paint it on and it forms a solid moisture barrier. Plus, since you've got more of a curb-style surface, it should work well!
It might help if you post some photos of the area. Just a heads up: in winter, those concrete slabs can get really cold, leading to condensation forming on them. Also, what’s the condition of the walls in your basement? That could also affect your moisture situation.
The walls are just bare concrete and painted. I’ll try to get some pictures up later!
That sounds awesome! Quick follow-up: considering the rough concrete surface and some paint layers on it, should I sand it down before applying the Redguard or is that too much effort?