Concrete sealer/vapor barrier? (subfloor, alternatives, paint, ceramic)

[Stephan_K]

Originally Posted by CA central coast

A dehumidifier will pull that musty smell out?

Maybe, if it does it will most likely be only temporary.

Originally Posted by CA central coast

Should I try to save it or toss the carpet and pad?

If it were me wanting to be on the safe side... I'd toss it ! Ain't worth it. Maybe check with a good carpet cleaner first to see what they think of it.

And get the water problem fixed from the outside or all will end up being for nothing ! Being on sand like you say, I can't believe you have a water problem that you do... is there a super high water table or something ? And how far above grade is your slab ?

[bruno_rs]

Originally Posted by CA central coast

A dehumidifier will pull that musty smell out? My carpet and pad smells musty in areas, but I don't see any mold at all in the carpet or pad. It just stinks. Should I try to save it or toss the carpet and pad? Does musty mean mold? or just that it got wet and now stinks? I want to be on the safe side.

hey ca,

sorry, haven't checked this thread since i commented. yeah, it will take the smell out (somewhat) but once you can smell it... it's deeply embedded.

me personally, i'd toss both and start over. the pad MUST be tossed and if you're reluctant to losing the rug, have it professionally cleaned . mold can be difficult to see and is EXTREMELY dangerous... be careful.

hope all works out. have a good one.

[N Perez]

I am having a H_ _ _ of a time with the city of sugar land accepting my project because the foundation does not have a Vapor Barrier underneath, is it mandatory to have one??
What did they used to do before there was a sheet of plastic to be put there, my home has exelent drainage around the house and i see no moisture problems there.

[Stephan_K]

Originally Posted by N Perez

I am having a H_ _ _ of a time with the city of sugar land accepting my project because the foundation does not have a Vapor Barrier underneath, is it mandatory to have one??
What did they used to do before there was a sheet of plastic to be put there, my home has exelent drainage around the house and i see no moisture problems there.

You answered your own question.... excellent drainage !

[K'ledgeBldr]

Originally Posted by N Perez

I am having a H_ _ _ of a time with the city of sugar land accepting my project because the foundation does not have a Vapor Barrier underneath, is it mandatory to have one??.

Obviously, your project was not permitted. Mistake number one.
And if the city is not accepting because of "no VB", then suffice it to say, it was mandatory.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by CA central coast

It's 60 yr. old house. No vapor barrier. The grade is probably not exactly code, but I'm built on sand, water drains easily here.

Is the carpet covering old hardwoods?

It was pretty common in the 60's for people to cover their great hardwood floors with carpet. The way the hardwoods would often be installed was to coat the slab with a layer of tar to act as a mastic/vapor barrier, then lay 1X4 runners something like 12" on-center as a sub-floor, then install the tongue&groove hardwoods over the runners.

California may be very different (from Houston, wet central), but the problem with this way of doing things is that the space between the runners can fill with water if the slab wants to sweat, the tar doesn't want to hold on to the slab and there isn't enough circulation. Putting the carpet pad over the hardwoods pretty much guarantees that circulation goes to zero. I've seen two houses in my neighborhood constructed cerca 1955 that had this problem. I would be surprised if there are not a lot more.

Another thing you may want to think about is a leak somewhere if you only see evidence of water around the perimeter of the room. It isn't impossible for a leak in the roof to run down a rafter, jump to the top plate, follow a stud down the wall and finally present under a baseboard in a room 20 linear feet away.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by N Perez

I am having a H_ _ _ of a time with the city of sugar land accepting my project because the foundation does not have a Vapor Barrier underneath, is it mandatory to have one??
What did they used to do before there was a sheet of plastic to be put there, my home has exelent drainage around the house and i see no moisture problems there.

It's mandatory if Sugarland says it is.

Arguing with code enforcement is not generally a good policy. You'll get a lot farther puckering up.

Is this an addition to a house?

[N Perez]

Yes this is a home addition. I hired an engineer from a neraby city to Sugar Land, he told me that engineering is divided on the opinion of vapor barriers, here is what he tells me.

I build homes and only use them when a customer requires it, if a foundation is build with a proper grade beam around it, and there is proper drainage around the house, then the amount of moisture that can work itself in to the inside of the house is so marginal that the air conditioning will take care of it. But the plastic is so cheap that why not use it.

By the way the city accepted his desision as a 3 party inspection and no problems.
On another note, i never have experinced any moisture problems with this foundation.

[Tommy349]

I need help also. I turned my south Florida garage into a play room for the kids two years ago. I chose carpet tiles for the flooring and now have mold underneath. After reacerch I've learned there was no vapor barrier installed because it was not required. After I rip out the flooring and clean the mold what. Can I do to help prevent it from comming back?

[harry chickpea]

In south Florida (we lived there for many years) your best bet is to skip the carpet, put in ceramic tile, and use area rugs over that. I've seen people try laminate wood, it looks good for a couple years then starts to go wonky. Tile and terrazzo last.