I'm thinking about painting my basement's walls with some concrete sealer (before finishing the basement) and floor with epoxy paint. Many people are doing that, but I'm concerned about moisture in the concrete. The outside of the walls are covered with some black stuff which is a moisture barrier. If I paint the inside of the walls, I will lock moisture inside the concrete for ever – will it affect concrete in any way? What about mold in the concrete? I heard something about concrete breathing – does it apply here?
Concrete – Will I trap moisture in the concrete of basement walls and floors if I seal them with epoxy
basementconcretemoisture
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In the end, I ended up using DRYLOK® LATEX CONCRETE FLOOR PAINT
It's holding up well so far, we'll see how it does over the next few years.
I agree with Steven about Dricore. I have used it and it is terrific for
- creating a moisture barrier
- giving a slightly softer feel underfoot than concrete
- serving as a great subfloor for almost any type of surface
However, I would seal the floor first (which I did) with a wateproofing product like Drylok.
One caution - do not seal the floor under a water pressure tank or filter system that sweats in the summer. Condensation from these systems often drip down and dissipate through raw concrete, but will pool if you seal it.
Keep the dehumidifier going. The moisture is still in the soil surrounding the foundation and will probably still percolate through the walls.
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Best Answer
Would moisture be trapped? To some extent. Is it bad? No, once concrete has been mixed and started to cure, keeping it moist helps it get stronger and this effect can go on for a long time. In no case will it ever make the concrete weaker. See the graph at the end of this URL:
http://wgbis.ces.iisc.ernet.in/energy/water/paper/drinkingwater/wellsconstruction/appendix4.html
There are some who say the concrete in the Hoover Dam is still curing.
There is no need for concrete to breath from the point of view of the strength of the material. There will be moisture retained from the original mix and it is possible some are confused about the chemistry of concrete and think it needs to dry, but the truth is the complete opposite of that.