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Post by Fredo on Mar 11, 2009 14:20:37 GMT -5
If your basement never quite seems to get warm, it's because it wasn't built like this. Even with no heat on and 20 degrees outside you can go in k78s basement and it will be nice and comfy. Why sub slab insulation isn't mandatory in the building code is quite mysterious to me.
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Post by Laura Rice on Mar 11, 2009 14:23:04 GMT -5
She needs to hurry up and have that hubby of hers hanging dart boards in there! ;D It would be perfect with the front doors opening to the waterfront. We can step out for a smoke every once in awhile...
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Post by Fredo on Mar 11, 2009 14:24:55 GMT -5
I don't understand why smokers don't smoke in their own houses. When I smoke a cigar, I do so sitting in my own chair. If it were that offensive to me, I just wouldn't do it.
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Post by Laura Rice on Mar 11, 2009 14:36:51 GMT -5
I don't understand why smokers don't smoke in their own houses. When I smoke a cigar, I do so sitting in my own chair. If it were that offensive to me, I just wouldn't do it. I don't smoke in other peoples' homes if they don't. I smoke in my garage but not in the house. That way if I have visitors over that don't smoke they aren't offended by the smell of it. I just try to be considerate when I visit people too. ;D
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Post by raphael on Mar 11, 2009 14:46:13 GMT -5
I've never seen this stuff. How does it work? Do you pour concrete on the bottom floor and on the sides put block in front of it? My basement pretty much stays consistent in temperature and it doesn't have this stuff. Mine is slighlty more than half underground.
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Post by K78 on Mar 11, 2009 15:16:01 GMT -5
She needs to hurry up and have that hubby of hers hanging dart boards in there! ;D It would be perfect with the front doors opening to the waterfront. We can step out for a smoke every once in awhile... As of today, neither of us have a problem with anyone smoking in the basement or the garage. It's totally shut off from the rest of the house and we want to accomodate our guests. Upstairs is a different story. I want it to be clean, no stained walls, no nappy drab smell, and clean for a baby when it is time. When you have 15 friends over that smoke, it can make for a really nappy house very quickly. We have several exits from our house and a lovely front deck for any smokers we may entertain. Plus, most people hang out more during the summer. Guess they don't like to look at the mud pit either. Sorry, I had to do that!!!
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Post by rumpleteaser on Mar 11, 2009 15:57:19 GMT -5
God forbid a basement that leaks! Talk about a misery and a mess.
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Post by Fredo on Mar 11, 2009 19:39:39 GMT -5
God forbid a basement that leaks! Talk about a misery and a mess. This particular basement comes out prefabricated fro a high density concrete. The insulation is integrated right into the pour. The concrete is actually so dense that it requires no further waterproofing after installation. Shortly after we got the backfill done, we got rain. Lots of rain. Hard rain. We hadn't yet shaped the back yard to divert said rain, so what we got was, essentially, a funnel that was pouring the entire rainfall from the back of the property right against the foundation. It didn't leak a drop. I'm actually using the same system on my own house... if I can ever get started.
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Post by rumpleteaser on Mar 11, 2009 21:46:16 GMT -5
Why didn't someone come up with that years ago? (whine) Sounds like a VERY effective system. The house we live in is 44 yrs old. I think the basement was made into an apartment back during the 70's. Needless to say it is damp, damp and more damp. If we should decide to buy the house, we'll have to strip the basement, dig around the foundation, etc. I can't see my husband going into all that..by the time he gets home the last thing he wants to deal with is more construction. Makes me sad because I really like this old house..
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Post by Fredo on Mar 11, 2009 22:03:56 GMT -5
From an energy point of view, the primary weakness of a basement is that we have all of that masonry trying to reach 52 degrees by virtue of it's contact with the ground. It turns into a giant heat sink. By building this way, I've actually put a 40 ton concrete slab inside the thermal envelope of the house. It now works in their favor instead of against them.
No more cold concrete floors and very low heat loss. This is the kind of stuff that construction nerds just love.
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Post by rumpleteaser on Mar 12, 2009 10:47:55 GMT -5
There is a separate heating and air unit for our basement.. I think the only insulation down there is dirt and cinderblock... of course that's not very energy efficient, so we only use it for storage. We also have four very rude cats that live down there. I have to go down and clean everyday (shudder). Being that it's not very secure, I fear that I'm going to come up on a snake or something. EEK! Sounds like your basement system has the added advantage of keeping such critters out.
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Post by Fredo on Mar 12, 2009 11:01:35 GMT -5
It would be a pretty impressive rodent that got inside there.
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Post by rumpleteaser on Mar 12, 2009 12:07:52 GMT -5
Heh.. I don't think a Raccoon or a Groundhog could penetrate that much concrete.(We have these huge groundhogs, here, in Athens.)
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