Demolition Time

Having just put the finishing touches on my kitchen remodel, it was time to start forming a plan of attack for the basement.  The first step was to determine the extent of the damage from the water.  I pulled back a few panels.  I was hoping that if I found any decay or mold, I could just cut two feet of drywall off the bottom and replace it.  I could either mud it in or cover it with paneling or wainscoting.

What I found was discouraging.  There were traces of black mold on the areas of drywall that didn't even get that much water, and even worse, there was signs that it was in the wood.

Before this tear off, I didn't know how the basement was constructed or insulated, or if there was any at all.  I now could see that the previous owner used 1" x 3" strips anchored into the concrete with 3/4" foamboard.  None of the seams were taped, and the smaller boards explained why I couldn't find a decent stud to mount a shelf a few years before.

I took a couple days looking at designs online trying to figure out if I could salvage the existing framework.  That's when I was told by a very insistent wife that our children were no longer allowed in the basement now that there was a known case of black mold.  So, the next day, I took the day off of work and started demolition at 8 a.m.



Ripping off the bottom 2 feet




A look at the foamboard and frames.



The drop ceiling was a casualty of demolition.



The north wall where the flooding occurred.

In the end, I decided to just junk all of it.  Between the strange framework and the damaged drywall, it was better to start from bare walls and do it right.

One thing I wasn't expecting to find was a 2 inch section of concrete missing against the north wall.  It was loose gravel.  I can only assume that when the previous owners put in the interior tiling, there was a conscious decision to not fill that over with concrete.  I can't understand why.  Would it be so that water coming down the wall could flow down into the ground and hopefully into the tiling system?  Allow air flow?  It didn't make sense.  Every video I've watched shows fresh concrete going back over top of the gravel above the tiles.  I consulted my cousin who's a builder, and he didn't see anything wrong with patching it, so I threw a layer of Quikpatch concrete over the stones.

It's a good thing I listened to my frantic wife.  Here's a shot of the black mold, now safely outside the house in a dumpster: