Reader Question: Are Vapor Barriers Safe?

This was an interesting question that someone asked me the other day. Every application that I’ve ever used Vapor Barriers in have been safe but I was still startled that I didn’t have a more detailed answer as to “Why they are safe.” I decided to look into it further.
Vapor barriers are inherently safe. There are however, ways of using them and installing them improperly that make them unsafe. The good news is that there are things to look into and look out for when researching a vapor barrier for your basement or construction project.

Vapor Barriers are typically a thin sheet of plastic (composition varies from brand to brand), normally polyethylene, that are placed on basement walls, or on new home walls to minimize the amount of moisture, water, and or air from penetrating into the home.

Being that vapor barriers and diffusers are now considered normal parts of most construction projects (residential and commercial) there are things that have to be considered. Introducing a vapor barrier on the 1st and 2nd floor requires a different list of considerations than those installed on the foundation itself. With the two areas being drastically different in how moisture and liquid water attempt to enter the spaces, the grade of vapor barrier and the way that it’s installed has to be different.

To make sure that you’re using the right Vapor Barrier for your basement moisture control and installing it the right way follow these simple tips:

1.) Find a Vapor Barrier (Not a diffuser) with a PERM rating of .001 or lower. The lower the number the better it can stop moisture from coming through.

2.) Don’t install it on the front of your studs before placing dry wall on top of it. This is the wrong way to do things. Vapor barriers should always be installed directly on the foundation wall.

3.) Make sure the vapor barrier is smooth and that all openings are sealed, taped or caulked closed. This will limit air transfer and will help to make sure that your vapor barrier isn’t allowing any bad things to come with the air from underneath your basement floor.

4.) Run your vapor barrier to an interior drain system like the GrateDrain. If you don’t you’ll end up with pools of water, moisture and condensation along your bottom edge. Connecting your vapor barrier to a drain controls where the moisture/water end up. Channeling it to a drain system fully protects your wall.


And here are a few “common sense” safety tips:

*Keep out of the mouths of children
*Don’t let a child or a person wrap a vapor barrier around their nose or mouth
*Don’t stab pointy, sharp or jagged objects into the vapor barrier, you can puncture it and render it useless.
*Use a Basement Health Contractor to properly install this vapor barrier.
*Don’t install it on the outside of finished studs in the basement.

Deciding to Protect your Basement

Basement repairs of any kind can be some of the toughest choices to make as a homeowner. They aren’t something that is common knowledge, they aren’t something that’s discussed on many DIY television shows, and they are not normally “easy fixes”.

Things like re-pointing foundations, crack repair, waterproofing, foundation correction (ie: piering and wall anchoring) aren’t things that should ever be considered Do-it-yourself projects. They all have potentially hazardous implications if done improperly. It’s always better to let a company carry the liability of a poor job then that of your bank account.

Mold, Radon, Leaks, Cracks, leaking bulkheads, rotted window sills, humidity, moisture and water problems all fall under normal things that many people have to deal with in their basement on a daily basis.

The question is: are you ready to decide to protect your basement and therefore protect your home?

Basement Waterproofing is insurance for Basement Finishing

You might wonder, “What does waterproofing have to do with finishing your basement?” however, waterproofing your basement protects your remodeling investment.

Home improvements of all shapes and sizes cost money and the last thing you want to do is to jeopardize the longevity of that project. Not waterproofing your basement and installing moisture control can have serious long-term effects on your finished product.

A typical basement finishing project can run anywhere from $25,000 to well over $100,000 depending on floor plan, details, amenities, and difficulty. There are many different “finishing systems” out there that claim to be “waterproof” or “removable in case of flooding” but what’s the point of spending money on walls in a basement if you have to remove them in order to keep them dry?

Lets say you choose do have wood studs and regular styled drywall in the basement. Both are organic materials that easily soak up moisture and water. Mold and rotting wood are the next logical steps if a flood happens or a small leak gets out of control. You spent $25,000 on that project and you’re going to have to spend at least 1/4th of it just to repair it. Bringing your total project cost to now $30,000.

You wouldn’t buy a car and not protect it, don’t finish your basement without defending against moisture and flooding.

What if you could spend $25,000 to not only have moisture control, dehumidification, air circulation, water and flooding protection, have it all warranted, and have your basement finished? Wouldn’t that be smarter? Having it all done with mold and moisture resistant materials with the look and feel of your first floor is easier than you think.

You would actually be buying a finishing system that has your basement’s health in mind. You would actually be truly finishing your basement. You’d be transforming your basement from a moisture zone to a controllable, healthy, comfortable environment.

With waterproofing your walls, your floor, your whole finished area would be protected. With the proper finishing materials and design your finished space will be exactly what you dreamed it could be, and it’ll all be well protected from flooding and moisture.

Call Pioneer Home Basement Finishing today: 1-800-439-0788
Or visit us online: www.homebasementfinishing.com

Indoor Air Quality; Affected by Basmenet

General studies suggest that over 40% of the air that we breathe in the rest of the house comes from the basement. In a cascading effect called Stack Effect. The air joins the rest of the air circulating in the home and eventually finds its way up and out.

However, having an untreated water issue in your basement, or uncontrolled moisture in your basement space can invite more serious matters to affect your Air Quality.

Using quality materials in moisture and water mitigation is so critical now, more than ever. Whatever you do in your basement can have health ramifications upstairs. And if you're subjected to a poor choice by someone who just wanted a check, it can harm you over a long period of time. Open back systems can actually increase the amount of Radon in a home. They can also invite bugs and other small animals to come, eat, live and defecate. Insanitary conditions this day'n'age are totally avoidable and you don't have to live with a bad choice off of someone else's ignorance.

Closed systems don't have any of these effects. There is no open aspect to them. They don't allow moisture or water through, and having a full concrete floor over the drain, small animals and insects can't find their way through. Now that you have full control over your basement moisture and water, a dehumidifier will run more effectively and efficiently. This will save you time, effort, and money, not only down stairs, but upstairs as well. Having less moisture cascading up into your living space will enable your air conditioners to work better.


Your air conditioner actually has to heat the air it takes in, which allows moisture to be removed, and then it cools the air and pumps it back into the house. The less moisture it has to remove from the air, the better it can drop the degree in the room. All of the energy can go into actually cooling the space rather than having to deal with removing moisture first. That's what makes a solid dehumidifier so important to a moisture control system in your basement. You're not only taking care of the space in the basement but minimizing the ramifications of that moisture on the money you're spending on heating and cooling the house upstairs.

A SantaFe Dehumidification Unit is a key element in any basement waterproofing or basement finishing project that you want to have done.

That time of year again

With all the snow that's come and quickly gone due to our strange weather lately, more and more of this is happening. In CT during the 40's and 50's there was a HUGE housing boom. Most of those post war houses are still very much in use and very much out of date. It was standard practice back then to install wooden framed windows on hinges to allow the homeowner to open them and get some cross ventilation in the basement (back then it wasn't thought to be a bad thing to have air flowing freely through the basement and up into your home.)




Before you get too sad and upset about your situation there are a few things that you do in deed have control over. I do implore everyone to get a moisture control system installed in their basements anyway, but there are definitely things that you can do before the installation.

1.) Extend all your rain gutter spouts at least 3 feet from the house. You can get parts for this at home depot. Don't be afraid to really get the parts together. You can rivet, bolt, screw, or heck, even duct tape the parts together. If you duct tape though, put some white spray paint on it, to cover it up...no sense in showing off your handy work to the neighbors ;-)

2.) Make sure that the flashing above your bulkhead door is flush against the house and is indeed keeping water from leaking back. These things do tend to rust and must be changed every so often. So keep your eye on that, and if in desperate need on the inside, run a bead of caulking down the seams of the bulkhead to the basement wall.

3.) Get your windows in your basement fixed and or updated. New windows have been designed to help with keeping your house energy effective and warm, so why not extend that benefit to your basement as well? PLUS having a new threshold for the window will give you a tighter seal which won't allow the picture above to happen until many many years from now.

4.) During a rain storm, take a walk outside. Map out the trouble areas of pooling and basement contact with water. This way you'll know more about the slope of your land, where it needs to go, and have more detailed information for the professional coming to help you install a Moisture control system.

there are some forums on Pioneer Basement that you can ask questions about other things you can do before an install to get your house ready.

HVAC issue in CT 1

I had a client not too long ago that has a type 1 (or level 1) mold issue in the basement. There's a secure bulkhead and an open stair well to the stairs up to the apartments.

The problem is tha the duct to the window for the ventalation is open. There's a grate on the outside. One vent coming stright down out of the window to about 2 feet from the floor. The second comes straight out at window/ceiling level. The idea is for the warm air to escape through the top vent and colder air from the outside is to come through the bottom vent opening closer to the floor in order to then travel, stir up air away from the furnace and then heat, and escape out the top. Simple right?

Yes, simple, however creating some complications. Apparently there are large piles of leaves and other outside material that has found it's way through the grate into the basement. Which leaves me to beleve that the moist air is coming in through the vents as well. Trying to do research has lead me to noting. Most vents on the furnace are carried through normal ducts to the outside, keeping the circulation in a close ciruit between the ouside and the furnace....right?

Besides having a water issue which will be corrected by installing the Grate Products System I can't see where else the moisture could be coming from. Even having a Santa Fe working full tilt couldn't eleminate an endless stream of moisture from the outside.

I'm vexed by the idea. I don't want them to install and then still experience mold because of the outside. I'll have pictures and I'll have information before anything happens..That's for sure.