Non-motoring > Insulating a concrete man cave Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Bobby Replies: 16

 Insulating a concrete man cave - Bobby
My concrete panel garage became a man cave 10 years ago when we built the house extension and the garage had to be halved in size. The garage door was removed and that side bricked up with brick and block.

I keep getting the itch to convert it properly into a "garden room" in that to insulate and sheet the inside , walls and roof (sloped not pitched).

Any experts on how best to do this and what to use? I see all sorts of conflicting advices on moisture barriers, vapour barriers, rockwool v boards. In which sequence to do these, some say vapour barrier against the concrete - others say between the plasterboard and the insulation. Due to the design of the concrete panels I am thinking the rolls of insulation would be better than the boards as the edges of th epanels are tapered in.

Also how do you actually affix the vapour barriers (depending on where they go). For the ceiling There is probably around 100mm of clearance so I thing that leaves plenty of space for insulation as well as leaving the airflow gap.

Any advices would be appreciated and hopefully might help me get my mojo back and desire to get on and do it.


 Insulating a concrete man cave - car4play
What about just sticking PIR insulated plasterboard onto the walls using PU foam adhesive - like they dob and dab plasterboard onto walls. But this time the PU will be ok with any moisture and the insulated boards are foil-backed so already have a barrier. You also get the gap of the foam to keep it all directly off the concrete. Then just plaster skim over. (see Screwfix Soudal PU foam adhesive)
 Insulating a concrete man cave - MD
A mate bought a steel container and had a guy come in and foam spray it.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Bobby
Resurrecting this thread to ask if anyone has used the rolls of foil insulation?
I am thinking these would be much easier to use and form than traditional rock wool and board type insulation.
Something like this

www.wickes.co.uk/Products/Building-Materials/Insulation/Insulation-Foil/c/1049000
 Insulating a concrete man cave - CGNorwich
How long do you use/propose using the room for? What heating does it have?
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Bobby
Good question, which is answered partly by how long it is taking me to do something about it!

I am not sure of its final use, might just be a garden room with some seating, tv and beer fridge.
Or I might use it as a mini gym. Or I could use it as my WFH office.

So in a way it’s more like a project to actually do the DIY as opposed to the final outcome if that makes sense. Either way, Final outcome will hopefully be a plasterboard sheeted room. Give me a project to work on and occupy my time.

Re Heating, it currently has a wood burner stove in it which pipes through the roof.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Lygonos
>>Re Heating, it currently has a wood burner stove in it which pipes through the roof.

And a carbon monoxide monitor one hopes
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Bobby
I always puts the sleepiness down to all the beers that were consumed sitting beside it….

Yes it does have a detector but being honest, it’s not something that I have worried too much about with all the ventilation it has through the eves and ill fitting door and window.

However I have now fixed them and if I go ahead and line and sheet and insulate then it will become far more important to think it all through.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Lygonos
>>However I have now fixed them and if I go ahead and line and sheet and insulate then it will become far more important to think it all through.

Absolutely - you hear the odd episode of CO poisoning as people block air flow/draughts into combustion heated sheds/man caves.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Dog
Back in the day when we lived in a quintessential Cornish country cottage, I emptied the hot ashes from the wood burner, into a copper coal scuttle which I left on the hearth while I refueled said stove.

Without the Honeywell carbon monoxide alarm on the wall, I would now be brown bread.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Lygonos
Apparently a common method of suicide in SE Asia is to close up your doors and windows and light a disposable BBQ in the room.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Runfer D'Hills
Bet some of them chicken out.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Zero
Burger that.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Runfer D'Hills
I guess people do the most extreme things if the steaks are high enough.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - smokie
Silly sausages
 Insulating a concrete man cave - Bobby
Remember in the campsite up in Stornoway they had a small outhouse for campers to use for socialising, but they had massive signs warning of the risk “indoor” disposable bbq present.
 Insulating a concrete man cave - smokie
When SWMBO and I lived in our first flat, and it was freezing, we had everything tightly shut and draughtproofed, and our heating was a calor gas fire. I don't even think I know that carbon monoxide poisoning was a thing then. I started to feel woozy one evening and luckily mentioned it to her, and she did too so we decided it must have been the effect of the fire. I think another five or ten minutes and we'd have nodded of forever.
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