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Our house was completed in the summer of 2006. The basement is partially finished and I noticed some moisture in the corners of the exterior facing walls on the concrete slap. No particular pattern and not any water, just moisture! I opened up the gyproc and found a moisture barrier followed by insulation. When I removed the insulation I found that the back of the insulation was very damp and the foundation wall itself was very cold and damp.
THe builder claims it is normal in a new construction. I would like to finish my basement ,but before I do so I want to make sure there are no issues. Any advice would be appreciated.
I'd have a home inspector come out and take a look--I think that both moisture barriers and insulation can be installed backwards and if they are it'll cause problems like that. Or it may be normal and you'll need to have the basement waterproofed to get rid of it. I remember at my parents' old house they used to get some moisture in the basement from time to time (not flooding, just moisture seeping in as you're seeing) and when they finished the basement the first step was to have it waterproofed since once you put up drywall, etc you don't want moisture coming in (before the basement was finished, the walls were just cement blocks where moisture doesn't matter)
Is your foundation concrete block? If so, it should have been waterproofed on the out side before it was back-filled. There is a possibility that the blocks are still weeping moisture from the block fill (concrete).
After spending this entire past weekend removing paint from my basement walls, because of mold or mildew behind the paint, I can't encourage you enough to make certain you will not have issues with moisture!! Once the mold is in the cement, it will very likely resurface. My home is older, but only three years ago we stripped these same walls and used a grinder to get to the cement. We then used a Sherwin Williams version of "Kilz" primer / sealer before painting the walls. I live in a high desert region, so mold doesn't grow that readily here. The odor of the mold in the cement is very toxic and I think makes for an unhealthy environment. I hope I won't have to repeat this event every three years! I've been reading about the importance of air circulation and other necessities to help prevent mold. I now have put on 5 coats of Kilz Premium and need to repaint. An expense, a frustration, and I feel like I have a mushroom growing in my lungs after this weekend! I'm thankful that I stayed with the rustic cement wall look and did not have this issue behind drywall. Best of luck.
