Change of plans: basements

[Rogue]

Given the weather I've not thrown myself fully into this; somehow I get the feeling the middle of a snowpocalypse isn't the time for airing and cleaning basements.

At this stage I'm not going to touch tanking. After thinking about it and re-reading through some of these posts, my plan is to clean it, limit the external vent to keep the cold air out, add some insulation in the ceiling to keep warm air in and give the walls a few layers of limewash. This will most likely be coupled with some dehumidification system once the external vent is sorted. Some heating facility would probably be a good idea too, though it would be nice if it isn't needed!

I'm currently attacking a corner to test out the process while I'm waiting for better weather. A bit of light elbow grease brings me down to red brick but there still seems to be the remains of paint or something that doesn't shift. Lightly chipping with something sharp doesn't seem to elicit much of a response. I guess it doesn't help that the surface is very rough so it is difficult to try and scrape under the crud to shift it.

I want to get rid of this without damaging the brick, cleaning it back fully so that is can be painted later with limewash.



Some of it almost looks... cementlike. Grey, solid, doesn't respond to scrubbing. The white stuff visible here is the paint or whatever it is that I'm also trying to shift.



Is this just a matter of scrubbing harder with wire brush or is there a smarter way to approach this? Or do I even need to do this? I'm assuming that I do, but then again I assume a lot of things

[D.C.]

That looks more like rust, is that a rsg at the top of the wall? As long as you get all the loose crap off you should be ok to stick a few coats on top without any problems, if you spend weeks wire brushing the crap out of the brickwork you will just damage the bricks. You might want to google 'wirebrush brick' before you go any further it is pretty much universally condemned. Just using a hard yard broom and then a soft floor broom then a good hoovering should get rid most of the crap use a scraper to get rid anything flaking off. Anything that doesn't shift after that is probably going to rip chunks of the brick surface off if you try to remove it so just let it be. If you have any mould/fungal growth give the place a good nuking and then stick an antifungal undercoat on.

Might also want to get the dehumidifier in and give the beam a bit of tlc, steel is much better at holding up your house than rust.

[Rogue]

That looks more like rust, is that a rsg at the top of the wall?

It's wood throughout (or at least I can't see any metal) so I hope it's not rusty

As long as you get all the loose crap off you should be ok to stick a few coats on top without any problems, if you spend weeks wire brushing the crap out of the brickwork you will just damage the bricks ... Anything that doesn't shift after that is probably going to rip chunks of the brick surface off if you try to remove it so just let it be.

Sounds sensible, I was just concerned about leaving something on the walls that wouldn't work with my "breathable wall" approach (hence wanting to clean back to redbrick and then limewash). Of course, "intact brick" is probably more important!

If you have any mould/fungal growth give the place a good nuking and then stick an antifungal undercoat on.

I've got some kind of 3-in-1 mould killer (Polycell or something) from a different project, I was thinking that a dose of that would be a good idea. As far as I can establish, limewash is antifungal anyway as well as allowing moisture to pass through.

Might also want to get the dehumidifier in and give the beam a bit of tlc, steel is much better at holding up your house than rust.

Dehumidifying is part of the plan though not until the weather improves and I sort the external vent, otherwise I'll just be trying to dehumidify the street outside the house.

As an ongoing thing I was also thinking about keeping one or two of those passive dehumidifiers (glorified boxes of gypsum or similar) down there to keep on top of the moisture in the air. Does anyone have any experience with those?

[Swarfing]

Rouge if you drop some pipes down and add a couple of radiators you might find that is all you need to clear any damp up? Going for the lime wash look over the natural surface will give a nice cottage feel down there and look rather good. Still treat the walls for fungal first with stiff brush. Assuming you have neighbors then the only real problem walls will be the front and back ones. Once it is all in use i don't think you would ever notice it again.

[Rogue]

Rouge if you drop some pipes down and add a couple of radiators you might find that is all you need to clear any damp up? Going for the lime wash look over the natural surface will give a nice cottage feel down there and look rather good.

There is zero hope in hell that my wife will let me near the plumbing or heating (and admittedly with good reason). Plumbers don't tend to be the cheapest of people to hire so I was thinking along the lines of a small electric heater to run every now and then.

I'm not so concerned about the "cottage feel", but I reckon it will help make the place much lighter and less oppressive.

[D.C.]

It's wood throughout (or at least I can't see any metal) so I hope it's not rusty
As an ongoing thing I was also thinking about keeping one or two of those passive dehumidifiers (glorified boxes of gypsum or similar) down there to keep on top of the moisture in the air. Does anyone have any experience with those?

My crappy eyesight then!

I've only ever used the big hot air ones, they work a treat but cost a small fortune to run.