There are very offensive situations in life when, after a painstakingly completed repair, a pipe bursts in the bathroom or in the kitchen of the neighbors, and water floods a new ceiling. Or, arriving at the cottage for the weekend, you notice yellow drips on the ceiling after the past rain. In order to avoid such problems, the next repair should be started with waterproofing.
The main tasks of waterproofing
When carrying out repairs, a lot of money goes to building materials and decorative decoration. With excessive humidity, they can be damaged, over time, mold appears, which not only spoils the wallpaper, walls and ceiling of the room, but also causes allergic reactions of the human body, which eventually turn into asthmatic conditions.
It is also very dangerous if a short circuit occurs when moisture gets on the electrical wires hidden in the walls. This threatens a fire in the room, and nobody needs it at all. The main task of waterproofing the ceiling in an apartment is to protect it and the entire room from moisture, steam, mold and mildew. Having a dry ceiling, you can not worry about the beauty of decorative plaster and expensive wallpaper.
Mixes for work
For work on waterproofing the ceiling from the inside, various coating or penetrating compounds are used. The cost of coating materials is relatively inexpensive, they are applied to the surface of the concrete ceiling, after which the screed is already done. The composition of such mixtures is different. There are cement-polymer, bitumen-polymer and bitumen-rubber.
The penetrating compositions contain active particles, which, when applied to the ceiling, penetrate deeply into cracks and microcracks, filling them. They are non-toxic and do not interfere with the access of air. However, they are used only for waterproofing a concrete ceiling. If new cracks appear over time, then penetrating mixtures continue to operate throughout the entire period, until the next major overhaul.
Types of waterproofing compounds
- Mixtures in the form of a powder consisting of cement with the addition of plasticizers and some resins. Before work, the mixture is diluted with water in the proportions indicated on the package. Apply it to the ceiling surface with a spatula. Such a mixture is cheap, therefore short-lived. Under mechanical stress it can break.
- The mixture for coloring resembles paint or varnish, which contains rubber, latex, bitumen. Such mixtures are applied with paint brushes. Can be used for waterproofing a wooden ceiling. However, over time, the surface needs to be re-coated, since the service life is short.
- You can buy ready-made universal compounds (water repellents).
- There are waterproofing materials that need to be pasted over the ceiling. This is a plastic film, roofing, roofing felt, fiberglass and other modern materials. The cost of such products is high, the workflow is laborious. Usually, such material is applied to the ceiling, which will subsequently be sewn up with a wooden or plastic lining. Gluing methods vary too. There are self-adhesive, and some need to be preheated with a gas burner to hold on.
Surface preparation
To carry out ceiling waterproofing, the surface is prepared in different ways, depending on the materials. First of all, the old ceiling is carefully peeled off, the existing mold is removed, and it is treated with antifungal solutions. Further, the dust and the remnants of the old painting are cleaned.
If the ceiling is covered with a penetrating mixture, it will be necessary to constantly moisten the ceiling. For such a coating there are the following requirements: to avoid drying out, constantly wetting the mixture on the ceiling from the sprayer, the temperature in the room should not be high, repairs should be done before the heating season begins, somewhere in late September or early October. If you follow all the recommendations correctly, then the layer of the mixture will last 7 or 8 years. If there are large gaps in the floor slabs, they must first be repaired with a mixture for suture insulation or glued joints with tapes for sealing.
Before applying powder mixtures, the surface of the ceiling must first be primed. Then the clutch will be reliable. The waterproofing of the ceiling in the form of paints and varnishes is also applied only on a fully leveled and primed surface.
Waterproofing process
There are several dangerous places in the apartment and in a private house, most often exposed to moisture accumulation and possible leakage. This is a bathroom and toilet, kitchen, balcony. In a private house it is the top floor and attic rooms. They require special attention and careful work on waterproofing the ceiling.
After preliminary cleaning of the surface and sealing joints and crevices, the process of applying the main mixture is started. It can be applied with a thick coarse brush, putty knife or a thick painting brush, depending on the chosen composition.
Not only the surface of the ceiling, the joints between the ceiling and the walls are smeared, but also the upper part of the wall, approximately 15-20 cm. It is important to observe the application rules, maintain the time period specified in the instructions, to dry the layers and apply the required amount.
With the option of waterproofing with moisture, it is necessary to check the condition of the composition every few hours by spraying the ceiling with water. The procedure is carried out 3-4 days. But subject to the norms of the application technique, such a composition will serve for a long time.
Stretch ceiling
Modern and most effective means of waterproofing a living room are stretch ceilings. The film, stretched in a heated state, is able to withstand large amounts of water. If you are flooded with neighbors from the upper floors, the film will stretch, collecting all the amount of liquid, and will not spoil the flooring and walls of the room. To get rid of it, you just need to drain the water through the hole for the chandelier into a container.
At the same time, the film assumes its original appearance without completely deforming. It is very convenient, and even a beautiful flat ceiling gives the room a well-groomed appearance, hiding all the surface irregularities.
Balcony protection
The main attention when eliminating moisture on the balcony is given to supporting floors. Rains and high humidity can not only destroy the concrete layer, but, even more dangerous, damage the metal reinforcement on which the entire structure is supported. The metal begins to rust from moisture, which leads to the destruction of the material.
First of all, joints with the wall of the house are smeared, then it is necessary to carry out outdoor work. Namely, to make a good visor, close all the cracks between the upper balcony and yours, if the balcony is built large, then close the cracks between the roofing material, whether it is slate, tile or metal roofing sheets.
Work on the ceiling of the balcony ends with smearing with a waterproofing compound or stretching the film ceiling.
Work with a wooden ceiling
In wooden buildings, the main problem with moisture is the formation of steam. To solve this problem, use modern materials for vapor barrier. This can be a plastic film, roofing material, roofing, special foil, a protective membrane.
The action of such materials is aimed at complete isolation from moisture. She doesn’t leave the house and doesn’t go inside. If water gets into the wooden beams and logs of the house, then in winter it freezes. Everyone knows from the school curriculum that freezing water increases in volume. This means that the tree may burst, and large cracks and crevices will appear.
The vapor barrier of ceilings in wooden houses does not allow condensation to form and counteracts the destruction of logs. How to waterproof the ceiling? The boards are first covered with a layer of waterproofing impregnation. Then they lay out strips of waterproofing material (for example, glassine), longer than the roof level, on the beams, and are overlapped so that there are no cracks.
Styrofoam sheets are inserted behind the beams, the remaining slots are filled with mounting foam. Then lay another layer of waterproofing. Then the ceiling is insulated with a layer of mineral wool. A vapor barrier layer is then stretched and strengthened with additional slats, on which a finishing ceiling is subsequently hung.
Important tips and tricks
- Do not pierce the protective film with nails. In order for it to be firmly fixed, you need to use a frame laying system.
- Be sure to screw the rails on top of the film. The thickness of the material will allow air to be ventilated and moisture will not accumulate under the film, especially if, for example, they do not live all the time at the dacha, but on short visits, and in winter the room is not always heated.
- A room covered on the ceiling with a layer of vapor barrier should be periodically ventilated. Then the decorative covering of the ceiling will not suffer.
To do the waterproofing of the ceiling with your own hands, you need to follow all the recommendations. Then the repair work will not be done in vain. The ceiling will be dry and will last a long time.