Hello!
This question has come up a few times, I’ve noticed, but I haven't really found the answers to my questions.
I’m planning to decorate part of my basement to use as a gym. In the attachment below, I have a picture of what the space looks like today. There are bare walls and a bare floor. The drainage of the basement is unknown; I only know that half of the house was drained 10-20 years ago, but not this side. We are planning to insulate and drain from the outside (isodrän) in the spring. We bought the house this past spring, and the seller could not answer everything as it was an estate sale and the children selling it didn’t know what the father had done.
My plan is to use metal studs and then attach drywall to them. On the floor, I plan to lay platon mat, cellplast, and then a cheap click floor or something similar on top. However, I am not interested in breaking up the floor, so I prefer to compromise on ceiling height. I will partially grind the walls and floor with an angle grinder and grinding disc to open the pores. We do not know what kind of paint was used, and as seen in the picture, it has come off in the corner.
I am pondering on how to lay the platon mat. Should I first set out the metal studs and rails, install the drywall, and then lay the platon mat with the edge fold inside these walls (so that the edge fold ends up inside the intended room), or should I first lay out the mat all the way to the existing cast wall, with the edge fold included, and then place the studs and everything on top of the mat? In the picture, it’s not visible, but there is a ventilation grille right behind which will end up in the intended room.
Additionally, I am wondering about the doorway. The metal studs feel a bit wobbly, so to speak. How should one go about reinforcing them? I had a thought of inserting a wooden stud in the existing metal stud at the frame, but since one should avoid organic materials, I wonder if this is still the right approach?
To dampen the sound, what can you put in? Is it wrong to insert cellplast panels between the metal studs? If you place the studs a bit away from the wall to create an air gap, does the cellplast work then?
These were the questions I had right now, more will surely come
Thanks in advance!
Stefan
This question has come up a few times, I’ve noticed, but I haven't really found the answers to my questions.
I’m planning to decorate part of my basement to use as a gym. In the attachment below, I have a picture of what the space looks like today. There are bare walls and a bare floor. The drainage of the basement is unknown; I only know that half of the house was drained 10-20 years ago, but not this side. We are planning to insulate and drain from the outside (isodrän) in the spring. We bought the house this past spring, and the seller could not answer everything as it was an estate sale and the children selling it didn’t know what the father had done.
My plan is to use metal studs and then attach drywall to them. On the floor, I plan to lay platon mat, cellplast, and then a cheap click floor or something similar on top. However, I am not interested in breaking up the floor, so I prefer to compromise on ceiling height. I will partially grind the walls and floor with an angle grinder and grinding disc to open the pores. We do not know what kind of paint was used, and as seen in the picture, it has come off in the corner.
I am pondering on how to lay the platon mat. Should I first set out the metal studs and rails, install the drywall, and then lay the platon mat with the edge fold inside these walls (so that the edge fold ends up inside the intended room), or should I first lay out the mat all the way to the existing cast wall, with the edge fold included, and then place the studs and everything on top of the mat? In the picture, it’s not visible, but there is a ventilation grille right behind which will end up in the intended room.
Additionally, I am wondering about the doorway. The metal studs feel a bit wobbly, so to speak. How should one go about reinforcing them? I had a thought of inserting a wooden stud in the existing metal stud at the frame, but since one should avoid organic materials, I wonder if this is still the right approach?
To dampen the sound, what can you put in? Is it wrong to insert cellplast panels between the metal studs? If you place the studs a bit away from the wall to create an air gap, does the cellplast work then?
These were the questions I had right now, more will surely come
Thanks in advance!
Stefan
> put up metal studs and then attach plasterboards to these.
Answer: It works excellently
> On the floor, I plan to lay a Platon mat, foam board, and then a cheap click floor or similar.
Answer: I laid Platon + taped seams, 3 mm "foam board" as impact sound protection from Byggmax. On that, OAK or BEECH parquet which is hard and insulating. It's more comfortable to walk on and warmer than laminate as it doesn't conduct heat well. Extra insulation is not needed.
> However, I'm not interested in chiseling out the floor
Answer: I would never put energy into that either
> I'm considering the Platon mat and how it should be laid. Should I first set out the metal studs + tracks and mount the plasterboards before laying the Platon mat with a fold inside these walls (so that the fold ends up inside the intended room), or should the mat be laid out all the way to the existing cast wall, with the associated fold, and then place the studs and everything on top of the mat?
Answer: I've skipped the plaster, went with painted concrete instead. But if I were to put up plaster today, I would use steel studs, mounted the boards so there's some cm air gap both against the concrete floor and ceiling. Platon on the floor I would lay afterward, with a slight fold on the plasterboards. I would screw the baseboards against the plaster with the Platon fold in between. Then air can flow down behind the Platon/baseboard down under the plaster edge and up behind the plaster and out at the top (or the opposite way). The ceiling list should therefore be mounted "airy" at the top edge just like the baseboard.
>Also, I'm wondering about the doorway. The steel studs feel a bit wobbly, so to speak. How should one reinforce these? I had a thought of putting a wooden beam inside the existing steel stud at the frame, but since organic material should be avoided, I'm wondering if this is still the right approach?
Answer: Against interior walls, it is "completely" safe to have organic materials. What to watch out for is direct mounting against concrete floors and exterior walls. Place building plastic between the concrete interior wall and wooden beam, and it's fine.
> To dampen sound, what can be installed? Is it wrong to insert foam board between the steel studs? If the studs are placed a little away from the wall so that there's still an air gap, does the foam board work then?
Answer: Foam board is moisture resistant, so it should work. Whether it dampens sound, I don't know though.
Note, these are my own opinions as answers. When it comes to basements, there are many different "opinions"
Answer: It works excellently
> On the floor, I plan to lay a Platon mat, foam board, and then a cheap click floor or similar.
Answer: I laid Platon + taped seams, 3 mm "foam board" as impact sound protection from Byggmax. On that, OAK or BEECH parquet which is hard and insulating. It's more comfortable to walk on and warmer than laminate as it doesn't conduct heat well. Extra insulation is not needed.
> However, I'm not interested in chiseling out the floor
Answer: I would never put energy into that either
> I'm considering the Platon mat and how it should be laid. Should I first set out the metal studs + tracks and mount the plasterboards before laying the Platon mat with a fold inside these walls (so that the fold ends up inside the intended room), or should the mat be laid out all the way to the existing cast wall, with the associated fold, and then place the studs and everything on top of the mat?
Answer: I've skipped the plaster, went with painted concrete instead. But if I were to put up plaster today, I would use steel studs, mounted the boards so there's some cm air gap both against the concrete floor and ceiling. Platon on the floor I would lay afterward, with a slight fold on the plasterboards. I would screw the baseboards against the plaster with the Platon fold in between. Then air can flow down behind the Platon/baseboard down under the plaster edge and up behind the plaster and out at the top (or the opposite way). The ceiling list should therefore be mounted "airy" at the top edge just like the baseboard.
>Also, I'm wondering about the doorway. The steel studs feel a bit wobbly, so to speak. How should one reinforce these? I had a thought of putting a wooden beam inside the existing steel stud at the frame, but since organic material should be avoided, I'm wondering if this is still the right approach?
Answer: Against interior walls, it is "completely" safe to have organic materials. What to watch out for is direct mounting against concrete floors and exterior walls. Place building plastic between the concrete interior wall and wooden beam, and it's fine.
> To dampen sound, what can be installed? Is it wrong to insert foam board between the steel studs? If the studs are placed a little away from the wall so that there's still an air gap, does the foam board work then?
Answer: Foam board is moisture resistant, so it should work. Whether it dampens sound, I don't know though.
Note, these are my own opinions as answers. When it comes to basements, there are many different "opinions"
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Place your ear against a decimeter of mineral wool and knock on the other side. Place your ear against a decimeter of foam plastic and knock on the other side.
I don't think foam plastic works particularly well as a soundproofing material. In the worst case, it has the opposite effect.
I don't think foam plastic works particularly well as a soundproofing material. In the worst case, it has the opposite effect.
If it had been my home gym, I would have been satisfied with painting the walls and floors with a silicate paint that allows moisture to pass through, and then laying down a robust needle-punch carpet or gray balcony grass on the floor. These should be good both for dampening impacts when weights are set down and for allowing rising moisture to pass through. Also, a few large mirrors on the wall and a mandatory old bodybuilder poster from the early 90s.
I currently have needle felt carpet on our uninsulated basement floor. It works just fine and is super easy to lay out. I've painted the walls with silicate paint. The long-term ambition is to chip out the floor, but the walls will probably always be painted. I find it hard to see the point of drywall on a basement wall. If you want a smooth surface, you can plaster or spackle directly.pelpet said:
