Hi
I've spent the day tearing up a floor under a poorly constructed addition that has become water-damaged. The plan was to tear down the walls to the wind barrier as well and replace it with new insulation, but once the floor was torn up, I finally got a chance to examine the wall construction closely. There's no air gap, nor any wind barrier... the insulation is placed directly against the facade.
The cottage is insulated but unheated and stands on piers with about 40-50cm clearance. The space I tore down today was an addition with fiberglass + hardboard at the bottom. This was water-damaged, but the frame has held up well (phew). Now, I am uncertain about what to do with the walls and what is "required" for the subfloor.
We won't be using the cottage during the winter months, and it will remain unheated. The question is, why the heck should I have insulation in the walls? Since there's no ventilation gap and I won't be dealing with the facade (at least not this year), is it better for the cottage to be without insulation?
I'm putting in insulation in the floor anyway... it feels silly not to since the joists are open. There I plan to use asphalt board hung on treated wood and insulation directly on top with tongue and groove as the top floor. No plastic, no paper. Is that okay?
One more thing. Under the cottage, there's just soil. The soil was moist, and fresh roots were growing very shallow in the area I was standing in. I dug about 10cm away. Is it a good idea to lay an age-resistant plastic on top of the soil? It feels bare as it is now.
I plan to complement with drainage pipes on the "upper side" of the house, but I'll need help with that...
I've spent the day tearing up a floor under a poorly constructed addition that has become water-damaged. The plan was to tear down the walls to the wind barrier as well and replace it with new insulation, but once the floor was torn up, I finally got a chance to examine the wall construction closely. There's no air gap, nor any wind barrier... the insulation is placed directly against the facade.
The cottage is insulated but unheated and stands on piers with about 40-50cm clearance. The space I tore down today was an addition with fiberglass + hardboard at the bottom. This was water-damaged, but the frame has held up well (phew). Now, I am uncertain about what to do with the walls and what is "required" for the subfloor.
We won't be using the cottage during the winter months, and it will remain unheated. The question is, why the heck should I have insulation in the walls? Since there's no ventilation gap and I won't be dealing with the facade (at least not this year), is it better for the cottage to be without insulation?
I'm putting in insulation in the floor anyway... it feels silly not to since the joists are open. There I plan to use asphalt board hung on treated wood and insulation directly on top with tongue and groove as the top floor. No plastic, no paper. Is that okay?
One more thing. Under the cottage, there's just soil. The soil was moist, and fresh roots were growing very shallow in the area I was standing in. I dug about 10cm away. Is it a good idea to lay an age-resistant plastic on top of the soil? It feels bare as it is now.
I plan to complement with drainage pipes on the "upper side" of the house, but I'll need help with that...
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