[Mgs] Mold, part 2

[Max Heim]

Bob is right, in that ventilation is the key.

My car is outdoors in a carport all winter, but even though I am near the coast it doesn’t get moldy because of the free air circulation. It’s under a cover, but the windows are cracked, and I do drive it from time to time (it would be driven regularly in a normal year).

--
Max Heim
'66 MGB


> On May 6, 2021, at 3:34 PM, Robert's New iPad <mgbobh at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>     Concrete may, if thick enough, be _water_proof (think dams)  but when used as a floor it is not _vapour_proof.  Vapour comes right through six inches of concrete, almost as readily as through bare earth. 
>     A responsible installer of tile, vinyl, carpet or anything else will tape a pane of glass down onto a concrete floor that is poured on ground, then check for condensation on underside of the glass a day later.   One should not place a bet that there will be no condensation; there almost always is.   That’s why carpets on lower-level of houses will smell musty after a year or so; it is because they are musty.  
>    Any conscientious home builder will put a layer of 10-mil plastic sheeting on top of the crushed rock before he pours the concrete.  I read about one once; have never met one. 
>    There are ways to seal the concrete, ways of greater or lesser effectiveness.  One commonly-used product in USA is “DryLock”, a coating for concrete that is pretty effective at stopping moisture vapour seeping through the concrete.  It is simple to apply, but hard work, as the thick material must be scrubbed into the concrete floor and walls to achieve the sealing effect wanted.  It works; I used it on the lower level of my raised-ranch house and found the dehumidifier ran half as much.  
>    In a garage, I would work at improving ventilation before messing around with concrete sealer. Code for a house is one sq foot of ventilation per 1000 square ft of house.  That is entirely inadequate, especially so when one realises that ordinary window screen reduces air flow by 50%.   A 12x20 ft garage is 240 sq feet, and really should have a vent at each end, or ridge vent its entire length.  That is way in excess of code requirements, but will reduce considerably condensation from moisture through the floor.
> Bob
> 
> 
> On May 6, 2021, at 5:20 PM, Max Heim <mvheim at sonic.net <mailto:mvheim at sonic.net>> wrote:
> 
>> Theoretically it will form on the underside of the plastic… which will not be good for your carpet, which should be removed.
>> 
>> Leave the cover off for ventilation, as much as possible (obviously you might want to cover the car if you are running the saw or the belt sander, or spraying paint). If you could leave the windows down, at least a few inches, it would help. Surely mice can’t climb up sheer glass…
>> 
>> 
>> --
>> Max Heim
>> '66 MGB
>> 
>>> On May 6, 2021, at 2:06 PM, Frank Krajewski <frankk12 at verizon.net <mailto:frankk12 at verizon.net>> wrote:
>>> 
>>> I have received many great suggestions from the list. A simple start will be to create a moisture barrier between the concrete floor, which at present has a carpet, and the MGB.  This will be in the form of a tarp or plastic sheet.  Excuse my naïveté but what prevents moisture from forming on the tarp or plastic? 
>>> Frank Krajewski
>>> 1980 MGB LE
>>> 1991 Mazda Miata SE
>>> 2003 RAV4
>>> 2021 Subaru Outback Limited 
>>> 
>>> Sent from my iPad
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