Tanking Advice, Best Cellar Tips, Dry Basement Home Design Guide
Tanking And Making Your Cellar Dry Guide
17 Sep 2019
A cellar is an essential part of your building. You may prefer adding more space in your house by converting the cellar into a more usable room. To ensure it serves you better, you must waterproof it. This will prevent your property from the impact of excessive moisture.
Before you begin the waterproofing process, you should consider the cost and the structure of the cellar according to Timberwise. This article explains what you should know about tanking and making your cellar waterproof. It covers the options, processes, and costs incurred in waterproofing your cellar.
Cost of tanking a cellar
The cost of tanking depends on the type of your basement and the water table around your house. You are likely to spend a lot on tanking your cellar if:
- Your home is built on a marshy, clay, or solid rock ground.
- The water table is relatively high
- You have a concrete slab floor
You are likely to part ways with at least £1,350.00 to £1,650.00/m2 for a cellar conversion. If you want to lower your floor and increase the size of the area of the cellar, you will part ways with another £200.00-300.00/m². It costs £500.00-1,000/m² to underpin your house walls.
Formalities needed
Do you need planning permission to change your cellar to a useful room? The answer is no. A cellar conversion is not classified as a development process. You would only seek permission from relevant authorities if the procedure involves engineering, and it changes the exterior of the house. Permitted Development (PD), which is the conversion of a cellar is grouped under, does not require planning permission.
Waterproofing the house
Waterproofing the cellar adds quality to the house. It makes it easier to convert the basement to a more useful part of the house. In most cases, the house basement can be flooded easily because the water in the surrounding walls can penetrate through the cellar walls.
You can waterproof your cellar using membrane systems. Let us have a look at some of these processes:
Tanking system
In this process, the inner walls of the cellar are coated with bitumen or cement coatings to prevent moisture from penetrating through the walls. The cellar walls must be strong enough because they need to withstand pressure from incoming water or moisture.
Cavity Drain Membrane Systems
A cavity membrane is the best solution in case of the pressure build-up along the walls is strong to permit moisture into the cellar. If your house is built in a region with a high water table, then you should go for cavity membranes when waterproofing your cellar.
Basement Insulation
The floor and walls of the basement should be insulated adequately to prevent water and moisture from finding its way into the basement. Your contractor can add a new floating floor to reduce headroom and insulate your floor. For the walls, they can be insulted using studworks. The stud should be covered with plasterboard and vapour barrier to be more productive.
Conclusion
Waterproofing your cellar is the only way to making it more useful. Apart from adding value to your residential property, it also improves the stability of your building and makes it more durable. Always ensure you get the best contractor to help with your cellar waterproofing.
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