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walrus_gw

Basement Wall Deterioration - causes, cure?

walrus
17 years ago

Sheetrock wall in the basement playroom had blisterlike appearance to it in places. Not on the surface, but the sheetrock itself was disintegrating.

When I took it apart to replace it, I discovered that the bottom board of the wooden framing was rotted. Replaced that. The brick wall has got a powder like flakiness to it in places, the air behind the wall is cold and dank. It had 3" of fiberglass with a foil surface facing the room. I suspect moisture is getting in from the exterior, but the base of the foundation is about 10 feet underground and there's not much we can do about it. Surface water drains away from the house well, and the downspout is about 20 feet away and that leads into a City storm drain system.

How should I insulate this, and what could be going on that's causing these masonry and rotting problems?

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