Methods for insulating a room: brick insulation. Do-it-yourself insulation of brick walls from the inside. Foam plastic, extruded polystyrene foam

18.10.2019

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From this article you will learn:

Why do you need to insulate a brick house?
What to consider when insulating a brick house from the inside
How to insulate a brick house from the inside with mineral wool
How to insulate a brick house from the inside with polystyrene foam
How to insulate a brick house from the inside with warm plaster
How to insulate a brick house from the inside with your own hands using polystyrene foam

Brick is a traditional material for the construction of buildings in Moscow, which can be used for decades even in difficult climatic conditions. The thermal insulation characteristics of brick walls depend on the number of masonry rows. The reason for freezing of wall structures may be their insufficient thickness or a violation of construction technologies during the construction of the building. The solution to this problem is to install thermal insulation on the walls. In this article we will look at how to insulate a brick house from the inside. You will learn which modern materials are best used for thermal insulation of brick walls and how installation work is carried out.

When is it necessary to insulate a brick house?

A certain amount of heat and moisture is constantly released in our apartments and houses. These processes are associated with human life and occur continuously. Thermal energy is released during the cooking process, during the operation of household appliances, computer equipment, and so on. During wet cleaning, during daily hygiene procedures, when boiling water and during other actions, the level of humidity in the premises increases. Moreover, the higher the air temperature, the better it retains water.

If the walls are insufficiently insulated, condensation forms on their surface when the moist air cools. Moisture settling on the walls provokes the appearance of mold and mildew, the spores of which pose a threat to human health. They penetrate the respiratory system, which causes asthma attacks or leads to allergic reactions. In addition to being harmful to health, mold and mildew contribute to the destruction of the materials from which wall structures are built and spoil the finish.

Insulating the walls of a brick house will help prevent such problems. Regardless of which thermal insulation option is chosen - internal or external, you need to take a responsible approach to its implementation. With internal insulation, brick walls will not be in direct contact with the warm air of the room, so they may freeze to the point of contact with the heat-insulating material.

In this case, the effect of insulation will be minimal. A completely opposite result can be obtained by placing thermal insulation material externally, but in practice there are situations when such a solution will be impossible.

The need to insulate the walls of a brick house from the inside arises in the following cases:

The presence of a ban by regional authorities on changing the architecture of the facade of a building (ancient monuments, buildings on central streets, etc.);
There is an expansion joint on the outer part of the wall;
The wall structure separates a technical room, elevator shaft or other objects where there is no access for installing thermal insulation;
The design documentation for the construction of the house provides for the installation of thermal insulation from the inside.

How will insulating a brick house from the inside affect the performance characteristics of facade structures? How will the microclimate inside the building change after this? Answers to these questions must be obtained before work begins. In other words, if insulating walls from the inside remains the only option for their thermal insulation, you need to carefully approach the choice of thermal insulation materials and strictly follow the technology and procedure for performing installation work.

Nuances of insulating a brick house from the inside

To properly insulate the walls of a brick house from the inside with your own hands, let’s figure out what the thermal insulation of a building depends on. To correctly select thermal insulation materials according to their characteristics, it is necessary to consider some physical processes associated with insulation.

The term “insulation” means a change in the characteristics of building structures in relation to thermal conductivity (the ability to conduct thermal energy). High thermal conductivity indicators indicate that you have a bad insulator and you should not use it to insulate the walls of a brick house from the inside and outside too. To perform such work, materials with low thermal conductivity should be used.

As you know, building bricks are made by firing clay, which conducts heat well. A brick building without insulation heats up and cools down as quickly as the surrounding air. For example, it can be noted that such a popular material for low-rise construction as shell rock (comparable to its characteristics with a cauldron) is 8 times worse at conducting heat than brick, and polystyrene foam used to insulate houses from the inside is 27 times worse. In addition, baked clay has a porous structure and absorbs moisture well, which under certain conditions begins to actively evaporate.

The evaporation of moisture is accompanied by a decrease in temperature on the surface of the object on which this process occurs. Thus, a brick house, which in itself is not warm enough, becomes a refrigerator when moisture evaporates. Using this property, you can cool a brick dacha (without insulation) in hot weather by opening the basement. Damp air from the basement, rising upward, will fill the brick with moisture from the inside, which will then evaporate outside. This process is similar to the operation of a conventional air conditioner.

How does insulation work? The material used to insulate walls from the inside makes it difficult for air to move freely. Immobilized air acts as a barrier to the flow of thermal energy. This principle underlies the design of a thermos and modern double-glazed windows for window structures. An even more effective protection against heat loss will be an air gap enclosed between the walls of a special substance. And the greater the number of such layers with partitions, the higher the thermal insulation characteristics of the material will be. This feature must be taken into account when choosing insulation.

Insulating a brick house from the inside helps shift the dew point to the internal boundaries of the load-bearing structures. The dew point refers to the conditional location of the place where moisture condenses from the warm air that is inside the building. It is necessary that such a point is not inside the wall structure, but as close as possible to its outer part, in any case, further than the middle.

This condition is satisfied by the thermal insulation of a brick house from the inside, which takes the form of an additional wall located with an air gap or close to the existing wall structure. Of course, such a solution will reduce the usable area of the interior, which will be especially noticeable in a small apartment.

How to choose materials for insulating a brick house from the inside

To ensure a normal microclimate and optimal humidity in the room, good ventilation is needed. It has been noticed that it is easy to breathe in brick houses. This is explained by the high vapor permeability of the brick (namely, the porous structure of the material). At the same time, so that moisture does not collect under the insulation layer on the wall surface, but leaves the room without hindrance, the main rule must be followed - vapor permeability should increase towards the outside of the wall structure.

In other words, when insulating a brick house from the inside, you cannot use heat insulators that allow steam to pass through better than brick. Otherwise, condensation will settle on building structures. For example, covering a freezing brick wall structure with plasterboard will lead to dampness in the house during the cold season.

When insulating a brick house from the inside, you should take into account the thermal insulation characteristics of the insulation and its vapor permeability characteristics. There are three ways to prevent possible contact of a brick wall with moist air:

There are also other options for choosing brick wall insulation for installation from inside the house:

Foamed polyethylene, covered with aluminum foil. Thermal insulation foil creates additional strength and serves as a heat-reflecting screen. Installing penofol from the inside of a house built from foam blocks allows you to save up to 97% of the thermal energy produced by heating equipment. Penofol is glued to the walls from the inside without the use of auxiliary waterproofing (it is not susceptible to getting wet). In certain cases, such material can be used as an additional heat insulator when insulating a brick house from the inside with mineral wool or polystyrene foam.

Sotoplast- an inexpensive and aesthetically attractive material, but it insulates very poorly. The fact is that honeycomb is a honeycomb of paper that is rolled between plastic sheets. In this case, there are too few partitions to create a reliable barrier to the passage of heat.

The simplest method, which some “masters” recommend, involves using Chipboard (chipboard). This material is not very effective as a heat insulator, but still provides a minimal effect. The thermal conductivity coefficient of chipboard is about 0.15, which is completely insufficient. Therefore, we can say that its use does not bring the desired result. Even if you have a large amount of this material lying around, it is better to use it for other purposes.

Arbolit- a marketing ploy aimed, rather, at deceiving the consumer than at solving the problems of insulating a brick house from the inside. It is made from reed, waste paper, reeds, sawdust and straw. This composition is bound with cement - and voila: the wood concrete is ready. It should be noted that behind the beautiful name there is a useless material for insulation.

Fibrolite- is also included in the category of ineffective materials for home insulation. It consists of a cement mixture, wood shingles and magnesium, and is supplied in the form of durable slabs with low weight. Fiberboard as a building material has good characteristics. Its boards are resistant to moisture, do not rot or burn (they just smolder), but it is quite expensive, and its thermal conductivity coefficient is not much better than that of particle board. It ranges from 0.09 to 0.1.

Ecowool is shredded paper sprayed onto wall structures. This material has good characteristics for solving problems of insulating a brick house, but it will not last long. They spray it from the outside onto the walls of the house, after which they finish the facade with siding or other material. This spraying retains its thermal insulation characteristics only until the ecowool gets wet. At the same time, such material takes tens of times longer to dry than it takes to be saturated with water. With questionable performance characteristics, ecowool works at the level of high-quality insulation. Immediately after its application, it has a very good thermal conductivity coefficient - 0.04, but after five years this figure will increase to 0.08, and then it will grow even faster. In addition, when using ecowool to insulate a brick house, keep in mind that mice and other rodents love it.

Mipora- insulation with a complex chemical composition. This material is based on urea-formaldehyde resin with glycerin and a large number of various additives that provide strength and other performance characteristics. Mipora consumers can be attracted by its affordable price, but the real benefit appears only with large volumes of insulation. The main disadvantage of this material is its composition. To insulate a brick house from the inside, it is better to choose a heat insulator that is less hazardous to health.

Glass wool, basalt or ceramic wool- related materials by origin and characteristics. They differ from mineral wool in their higher resistance to moisture. These insulation materials do not absorb water well and dry very quickly. But they also have their drawbacks. After a couple of decades they will disintegrate. This process is accompanied by the release of glass dust, therefore, in order to protect the residents of the house, a thick film must be laid over the insulation.

When planning to insulate a brick house from the inside, you need not only to take into account the characteristics of the heat insulator, but also to choose the right installation technology. Almost all installation work options can be done independently. Special devices and devices will be necessary only when insulating walls using the technology of spraying polyurethane foam on their surface.

Before purchasing body insulation materials, it is worth considering several factors:

insulation can be of 2 types: for external and for internal use (materials of these types may have very different characteristics);
coefficient of thermal conductivity;
insulation density (this indicator, together with the thermal conductivity coefficient, affects the weight and thickness of the thermal insulation layer);
the material for insulation from the inside must be completely safe for people.

Insulation of a brick house from the inside with mineral wool

The features of mineral wool as an insulator for wall insulation include:

Manufacturers of materials for insulating the walls of a house from the inside produce mineral wool in the form of rigid or elastic slabs. In the first case, the material has a density from 80 to 120 kg/m3, and in the second from 35 to 120 kg/m3. The structure of rigid slabs includes ventilation grooves, which increase the thermal insulation characteristics.

Insulation of a brick house from the inside with polystyrene foam

Expanded polystyrene as a modern thermal insulation material has a number of advantages, which include good thermal insulation properties, low weight and strength. Extruded polystyrene foam is classified as fireproof materials. Insulating a brick house from the inside can be done with its help in the same way as when using mineral wool. It should be taken into account that the sheathing ensures the formation of cold bridges, which contribute to the formation of condensation.

Insulation of a brick house from the inside using extruded polystyrene foam is carried out as follows:

The surface of the wall structure must be cleaned, leveled with a thin layer of plaster and primed.
Using polyurethane foam or a special adhesive composition for polystyrene foam, slabs of foamed polymer are glued to the surface of the wall. Individual insulation elements are placed with a shift of 1/2 the width. This will help avoid long vertical seams.
The joints of the polymer boards must be filled with polyurethane foam, after which the excess has hardened and the excess must be cut off.

The optimal finishing option after such insulation involves gluing a reinforcing mesh with further plastering of the wall surfaces for painting or wallpapering. You can also use the option of finishing the walls with plasterboard. To do this, profile segments about 100 mm long are secured using “fungi” dowels, but in this case the integrity of the thermal insulation is compromised.

Insulation of a brick house from the inside with warm plaster

Using plaster mixtures, insulating scrap bricks from the inside is not an easy task. This option is the most effective in terms of preserving free space in the premises of the house. Plaster is applied to walls to insulate them in layers.

The initial layer is called spray. It is applied with a liquid mixture, which qualitatively fills all irregularities and defects on the surface of wall structures. After this, a primer is applied in the form of a thick solution. The formation of this layer occurs in stages. Its final thickness should be about 6 mm. For the final layer, liquid cement mortar, glue or other compounds are used. The finishing layer serves to final level out unevenness and prepare the wall surface for cladding work.

Do-it-yourself insulation of a brick house from the inside using polystyrene foam

Stage 1. Selecting Tools

For high-quality insulation of a brick house from the inside with polystyrene foam, you will need a certain set of tools. The time spent on selecting such a kit will be returned by minimizing downtime during installation.

You will need:

The list of equipment for insulating a brick house from the inside with polystyrene foam (or polystyrene foam) is not very large, since this technology does not provide frame elements or finishing panels.

Stage 2. Material selection

In addition to the foam itself, other materials will be needed to perform installation work. The complete list is as follows:

Stage 3. Preparing for insulation

Let's consider the issue of preparing to insulate a brick house from the inside:

At this point, the preparatory stage is completed, and you can move on to the main work on insulating a brick house from the inside.

Stage 4. Main works

Installing insulation is not a very difficult job, but it is necessary to strictly follow the technology for its implementation and the sequence of operations. Violation of the recommended procedure may aggravate the process of condensation formation.

An air gap should not be allowed to form between the surface of the brick wall and the insulation. Such a gap will become a place for condensation to form, which will subsequently lead to the appearance of wet corners, mold and fungal formations. The further procedure is as follows:

This is how insulation of a brick house with polystyrene foam is done from the inside. Let us note once again that this option is used only in cases where it is not possible to insulate the outside.

Which is better: internal or external insulation of a brick house

As we already know, insulation of buildings can be done from the outside and from the inside. If we make a detailed analysis of these options, then from a physical point of view it turns out that only the installation of insulation on the outside can be called insulation without footnotes and amendments.

The reason for cold walls in a brick house is the lack of heat to warm them due to large heat losses. When insulated from the outside, the wall is protected from outside air, which reduces the leakage of thermal energy.

In this case, by heating the inner surface of the wall structure, the possibility of moisture condensation is eliminated, since the dew point is moved outside the wall. Based on this, we can say that external insulation of the walls of a brick house effectively solves the problem of retaining heat and preventing dampness of building structures.

Insulating a brick house from the inside using modern methods provides a slightly different effect. Thermal insulation material applied from the inside protects it from the warm air in the building. As a result, the wall becomes even colder, since it is freely cooled by outside air. Moist warm air from the interior, under the influence of partial pressure, will pass through a layer of thermal insulation material, and its contact with a cold wall will lead to the release of condensation. As a result of the processes described here, the wall becomes wet, which, in parallel with freezing, causes the destruction of the wall structure.

Based on the above, we can come to the conclusion that insulating a brick house from the inside only leads to insulation of the walls from contact with warm internal air. The pitfall of this solution is that the moisture accumulating between the thermal insulation material and the cold wall will be invisible to visual observation. It may seem that the goal has been achieved, but over time, negative aspects may appear that accompany insulating walls from the inside.

Despite the negative aspects, internal insulation is quite common. The main reasons for this are the simplicity of the technology and the ability to perform all the work at any time of the year with your own hands, even without much experience. If you have already decided to insulate from the inside, we recommend choosing a material that is as impervious to moist air as possible. Such heat insulators include expanded polystyrene (EPS). The use of this material will minimize the problem of steam and condensation by preventing the wall from coming into contact with moist, warm air.

Cooperating with the “My Repair” Company is reliable and prestigious. The specialists working here are professionals of the highest level. The company "My Repair" operates throughout Moscow and the Moscow region.

The main function of the house is to protect the owners from various kinds of dangers. And the cold, I’ll tell you, is one of them. Having started renovations in a brick house, it is better to insulate its walls at the same time. This will keep your family warm even on the coldest days of winter. I will tell you how to insulate a brick wall from the inside in my article.

What should the brick insulation be?

I won’t surprise anyone if I say that a brick house is the most reliable house, but it has one drawback: brick doesn’t hold heat well. To avoid this, it is necessary to insulate your brick home. Many experts will tell you that it is more advisable to insulate the facade of a brick house, since the insulation from the inside “eats” part of the room.

However, many believe that such insulation inside is a rather labor-intensive process and resort to internal insulation of their apartments. But there are several nuances here too. Simply put, insulation of brick walls from inside the house can be carried out in the following cases:

the presence of an expert commission’s conclusion that the façade of the building cannot be changed;
behind the wall there is an unheated room (for example, an elevator shaft), in which it is impossible to install insulation;
if behind the “cold wall” there is an expansion joint between the houses.

It must be remembered that for insulating brick walls from the inside there are no insulation materials that cannot cope with their functions. The fact is that each individual insulating material has its own characteristics. In addition to this, they also differ in cost. When choosing insulation, you need to compare all the available and suitable options for you from the following:

basalt slabs;
cellulose insulation;
mineral wool;
polyurethane foam;
Styrofoam;
plaster.

The differences between these materials are their vapor permeability, thermal conductivity and moisture resistance - these are the main criteria for choosing insulation. Moisture resistance and vapor permeability are selected for the required type of installation, and climatic conditions must be taken into account. And the required thickness of the layer of coating to be laid depends on the third parameter - thermal conductivity. This is where the choice of insulation material begins.

Installation of insulation material

Before you start insulating a house, you need to calculate the required width of the insulating layer for various materials and the number of layers of these materials.

“bare”: remove old insulation or plaster from it;
inspect for unevenness, protrusions or differences in height;
get rid of the above defects using a solution;
clean after drying from dirt and dust;
apply primer;
dry again;

After this, it is necessary to build a system of plumb lines and beacons - a grid should be obtained, we will be guided by it during installation work.

Today, the building materials market provides everyone with the necessary insulation. I will talk about some of them below.

Mineral wool

Mineral wool is often used as brick insulation for its many advantages: it retains heat well and is quite profitable financially. But when installing it inside, you definitely need to know some nuances.

you can lay plaster, or you can not lay it, but take a different route: put vertical slats on the walls, the space between which will be narrower than the width of the insulating material. Why is this being done if you could resort to the first method? Since mineral wool is afraid of moisture and in order to prevent condensation vapors from settling in the thickness of the insulation (and at the same time the mineral wool will lose its insulating properties), it is necessary to carry out the above work. Therefore, in my opinion, it is better to choose the second option.

Next, waterproofing material should be placed;
and finally - vapor barrier;
finishing of installation – finishing of insulated brick. It can be plywood, lining or any other material.

Styrofoam

At its low cost, polystyrene foam is an effective and reliable insulation material. Excellent sound deadener.

The foam installation process is simple.

plaster the wall;
put waterproofing material on it; polystyrene foam, like mineral wool, is afraid of moisture, and the consequences of water getting on this insulating material are exactly the same as those of the material discussed above.

Only after these procedures can foam plastic be glued. To do this, the adhesive composition must be applied specifically to the wall. The foam sheets are laid close to each other, avoiding gaps. If they form, they need to be puttied.
Now you can install waterproofing.
completion of installation – finishing of the wall. It is carried out using the same materials as the walls, insulated with mineral wool.

Plaster

Insulating a wall with plaster is the most labor-intensive and polluting method. But at the same time it is also the cheapest.

You should know that when insulating brick walls from the inside of a house, it is necessary to apply several layers of plaster. They are applied directly to the wall itself.

The first layer of plaster applied is called spray. In terms of consistency, this is the most liquid solution and, following from its name, it should be applied simply by spraying the wall with some force, since it is necessary that the solution gets into all the cracks and gaps in the wall. The wall must first be moistened with water.

The second layer is priming, it is the most important in the work, because... sets the quality of thermal insulation. It should have a dough-like consistency. The second layer should be applied in several layers (stages), drying each previous one well before applying the next. This is done so that the soil does not crumble under its own weight. The thickness of the soil at the end of the work should be 50-60 cm.

The third layer is a covering - a liquid solution based on fine sifted sand. This is the finishing layer in the process of insulating walls inside the house, the thickness of which is approximately 4-5 cm. It is necessary to obtain a perfectly flat surface.

So, today I introduced you to the procedure for internal insulation of a brick house. As you can see, the work is not complicated, but has many subtleties: from the feasibility of insulation inside to the number of layers when covering a brick wall with plaster. But it is enough to make a little effort and the creation of warmth and comfort in your home will be ensured. For my part, I guarantee accessible and useful information in this article. Equip your home in accordance with your desires and needs, make your home a fortress!

The video shows in practice how you can insulate a wall from the inside of a house, using the minimum acceptable set of tools.

Content

Brick is a classic material for building a house, designed to last for many decades of use. The thermal conductivity of brick walls depends on its thickness - the number of rows of masonry. If a wall in a brick house freezes in the first winter after construction, this means that the construction technology has been violated or the thickness of the enclosing structures is insufficient. In this case, it is necessary to resolve the issue of thermal insulation of the external walls of the building. Priority should be given to external insulation, but its installation is not always possible. Let's look at how to insulate a brick house from the inside, what materials are preferable to use and how to properly carry out the installation of thermal insulation.

How to insulate internal brick walls of a house Features of wall insulation

Human activity is associated with a large release of heat and moisture. Heat is emitted by bodies and household appliances. Moisture is released during breathing, during cooking, using water for hygiene procedures, washing dishes, and watering flowers. And the warmer the air, the better it retains moisture.

If the walls are not insulated enough, condensation will form on them when the heated, humid air cools. It will provoke the development of fungus, and dark spots will appear on the surface of the walls and ceiling. Fungal spores are harmful to human health - they enter the respiratory system, causing asthma attacks or an allergic reaction. In addition, mold has a destructive effect on the materials from which the walls are built and irreparably damages the finish.

Wall with and without insulation

Before insulating the walls of a brick house from the inside, it is advisable to understand how this will affect the operating conditions of the external walls and the microclimate in the room.

Where to place the insulation?

It is correct to insulate buildings from the outside, otherwise condensation of moisture from steam cannot be avoided when warm air comes into contact with a cold front (dew point). Let's consider three types of brick walls:

There is no insulation. The dew point is located in the thickness of the wall, so it accumulates moisture during the winter months, becomes damp and deteriorates over time.
The insulating layer is located on the side of the room. The wall freezes through, causing the dew point to shift toward the room, to the inner surface of the enclosing structure. Because of this, moisture condenses between the heat insulator and the wall. To avoid dampness of the wall, it is necessary to provide effective ventilation of the room.
The insulating layer is laid on the street side. The wall does not freeze, so it remains dry and freely releases steam outside. It is important that there is a ventilation gap between the insulating layer and the brickwork to remove moisture coming from the room.

Internal instead of external

Obviously, insulating a brick house from the inside is not the best solution. However, you have to resort to it if:

The building is an architectural monument, and it is prohibited to make changes to the appearance of the facade.
The walls of an apartment in a multi-story building freeze. According to current standards, it is forbidden to install structures that change the appearance of the building without permission.
The buildings are located close to each other, which makes it impossible to carry out work on external insulation of the walls.
The external masonry of the house is made of expensive facing bricks and it is a pity to cover it with new finishing, and in order to lay a new external layer of decorative bricks after installing the thermal insulation, additional serious financial investments are required.

The disadvantages of insulating internal walls include reducing the space of the room due to the fastening of insulation and the base for finishing. The thickness of the thermal insulation “pie” is usually at least 10 cm.

When installing a heat insulator inside the house, it is important to take into account that insulating the internal surfaces of the walls threatens condensation, which should not be allowed.

The ventilation gap improves the thermal conductivity of the wall

Vapor permeability

In order for the living space to breathe well and the air not to be overly humidified, high-quality ventilation is necessary. It is easy to breathe in buildings with brick walls, since the material is vapor permeable due to its porous structure. And so that excess moisture does not condense under the insulation layer on the wall, but freely leaves the room, an important rule must be observed - vapor permeability must increase towards the outside, i.e. to the street.

This means that when insulating brick walls from the inside, you cannot use materials that allow steam to pass through better than the brick itself. Otherwise, this will lead to condensation settling on the structures. That is, covering a freezing wall with plasterboard will provoke constant dampening of the structures during the cold season.

Material selection criteria

When choosing how to insulate a brick wall from the inside, it is important to take into account the thermal insulation parameters of the material, as well as its vapor permeability. To protect freezing brick walls from contact with steam, choose one of three options:

They use a polymer heat insulator that does not allow steam to pass through. Extruded polystyrene foam, high-density foam (loose material is vapor-permeable), penofol, sprayed polyurethane foam will help to insulate walls from the inside.
Mineral wool insulation (as well as loose foam) is laid using high-quality hydro- and vapor barrier. Fiber insulation allows steam to pass through and tends to accumulate moisture. Basalt wool does not collapse under the influence of water, but its insulating properties deteriorate sharply.
A thick layer of heat-insulating plaster is applied to the enclosing structures.

When deciding how best to insulate your brick house, take into account the method of installing the heat insulator. In almost all cases, you can do the insulation from the inside yourself. An exception is spraying polyurethane foam, since the work requires the use of special equipment.

Properties of materials and installation technologies

Let’s figure out which insulation is best for the walls of a brick house, taking into account the advantages and disadvantages of each option, as well as the installation features of popular materials.

Note! The thickness of the thermal insulation layer is calculated individually, taking into account the heat loss of the house and the thermal insulation properties of the selected material!

Mineral wool

Internal insulation of brick walls with mineral wool slabs has certain specifics due to the vapor-permeable structure of the material. The heat insulator must be covered on both sides with a vapor barrier film, ensuring tightness in order to prevent heated moist air from contacting the enclosing structures.

Scheme of insulation of internal brick walls with mineral wool

Work progress:

a vapor barrier film is attached to the wall (overlapping the adjacent planes of the walls, floor and ceiling), the joints of the rolled material are securely taped;
a vertical sheathing is installed in increments slightly smaller than the width of the heat insulator, the depth of the cells should correspond to the thickness of the insulation;
Mineral wool slabs are inserted into the cells;
a vapor barrier material is attached on top with hermetically sealed joining seams;
a counter-lattice is inserted to secure the sheathing made of chipboard sheets, plasterboard or other materials.

Extruded polystyrene foam

The advantages of modern material are excellent thermal insulation properties, lightness and strength. Extruded polystyrene foam is fire resistant. It is possible to insulate structures with this material by analogy with mineral wool, but the lathing promotes the formation of cold bridges, which lead to the formation of condensation zones.

Scheme for insulating brick walls with polystyrene foam indoors
Let's look at how to properly insulate a brick wall from the inside using extruded polystyrene foam:

the surface is cleaned, leveled with a thin layer of plaster and primed;
using polyurethane foam or foam glue, slabs of foamed polymer are glued to the wall - the elements are placed with a shift of half the width to avoid long vertical seams;
The joints are filled with polyurethane foam, and after hardening, the excess is cut off.

The best option after this work may be gluing reinforcing mesh and plastering the surface for painting or wallpapering. You can also use “fungi” dowels to attach pieces of metal profiles about 10 cm long, onto which you can then sew drywall. But the use of “fungi” violates the integrity of the heat-insulating layer.

Styrofoam

The advantage of polystyrene foam is its low cost; in all other respects it is significantly inferior to extruded polystyrene foam. The main disadvantage of the material is flammability with the release of toxic substances. Foam plastic with a density of at least 35 kg/m 3 can be used as a heat insulator. To insulate the walls of a brick house from the inside, high-density material (about 50 kg/m3) can be installed using the technology of fastening extruded polystyrene foam, and looser, steam-permeable material can be used as mineral wool. In this case, the joints between the thermal insulation elements and the sheathing are sealed with polyurethane foam.

Scheme of insulating walls from the inside with foam plastic

Penofol

Thermal insulation made of polyethylene foam can have a foil coating on one side or on both sides. The material is characterized by its low thickness and high thermal insulation properties. Penofol with a thickness of 4 mm can replace mineral wool with a thickness of 80 mm. At the same time, it is often used together with mineral wool slabs to increase the thermal insulation properties of the “pie”, while simultaneously reducing its thickness. In this case, it is attached instead of a vapor barrier film after laying the heat insulator into the sheathing.

You can make thermal insulation of walls and partitions from foam foam alone. Slats with a thickness of 20 mm or more are stuffed onto the walls to create an air gap. Using staples, horizontal strips of penofol are mounted with a foil layer to the room, gluing the joints with aluminum tape. Then they fill the counter-lattice for cladding the walls for finishing. The foil layer reflects thermal radiation, helping to retain heat in the house.

Sprayed polyurethane foam

Sprayed polyurethane foam will help create a warm wall without cold bridges. The foamed polymer is applied in an even layer to the prepared surface using special equipment. If the estimated layer thickness exceeds 3–4 cm, it is recommended to install formwork lathing, which will serve as the basis for attaching the sheathing for finishing. The disadvantage of the material is the high cost of work.

Internal insulated walls with polyurethane foam

Plaster

Plastering walls is a classic method of insulation. This is a good option if you don’t want to turn the room into a sealed box with artificial ventilation, since the plaster layer is “breathable”, like the brick wall itself. The disadvantages include the duration and labor intensity of “wet” work - you will have to plaster in several layers to achieve the required thickness of thermal protection.

Application of plaster for brick walls

Conclusion

Knowing how to insulate a brick wall from the inside using different types of materials, their advantages and disadvantages, it is easier to choose the appropriate option. If you plan to do the whole complex of work with your own hands, you must follow the instructions, because violating the technology can have serious consequences in the form of mold on the walls and gradual destruction of the brickwork. We must not forget that internal insulation requires the arrangement of supply and exhaust ventilation, which will remove excess moisture.

From the author: Hello, dear readers. You know, there is one building stone on the market, an artificial one, which became popular decades ago. Both our fathers and our great-grandfathers used it. It is so widespread that not a single construction project takes place without it, even modern aerated concrete high-rise buildings. The only disadvantage of this material is that it has enormous thermal conductivity. That is, not only will it not protect you from the cold, but it may, on the contrary, become a refrigerator. Many of us face this problem, which is why we want to talk today about how to insulate a brick wall from the inside.

At first glance, everything seems so simple that some dare to start such work without a certain knowledge base. Of course, they will face a complete fiasco or huge expenses on the way to a real result. I will say this: over the past few months I have already encountered two cases of sad alterations. The first is independent insulation of a brick wall on the balcony, and the second is insulation of the house, which is much more serious. The last mistake cost the owner dearly.

In both cases there was complete freezing, moisture, condensation and mold. So, if you don’t want to encounter such troubles, carefully study everything that we will tell you today. Each point of the article is important, do not skip anything, because you may miss exactly the essence that will be useful or become a turning point on the way to the task.

Basics of insulation

Before you take on such a responsible task as insulating a brick house, and indeed anything associated with such work, you need to know what insulation is and what it depends on. Let's try to understand the physical processes to better understand the properties of materials and what we will describe below.

So, insulation is an improvement in the properties of materials in everything that concerns the improvement of thermal conductivity. Thermal conductivity, in turn, is the ability of a material to conduct heat. If the thermal conductivity is good, then the material is poor as insulation; if, on the contrary, it is extremely low, then the insulation is excellent.

Brick is just baked clay, and it has excellent thermal conductivity. A brick house cools down at almost the same rate as the surrounding air. By the way, it heats up just as quickly.

If we consider, for example, shell rock (or, as it is also called, cauldron), then its thermal characteristics are eight times greater than brick. And polystyrene foam - at 27! Moreover, this fired clay perfectly absorbs moisture. Therefore, when water gets there, it is quickly absorbed, and then at the first opportunity it begins to evaporate.

As you know from a school physics course, the process of evaporation of a substance is accompanied by cooling of the body from which it “migrates”. That is, not only is it cold in itself, but when the moisture evaporates from it, it completely turns into a refrigerator.

For example, if you have a country house with a basement, then in order to cool it in the summer, all you need to do is leave the cellar open. The air in it is moist, after a while it will saturate the brick with a certain amount of moisture, and then it will begin to evaporate, and you will have a real chill, as if the air conditioner is working.

Let's return to the insulation. So, any insulation is a kind of substance in which air movement is suspended. It is not the material itself that insulates, but the immobilized air, because it retains heat like a barrier. Both thermoses and our windows work on this principle. All have an air layer that provides a barrier to the cold.

Well, immobilized air is good, but it’s even better when the cold has to not only overcome it (it would be possible to insulate it with balloons), but also overcome the walls of the substance in which this air is enclosed.

Here is the main criterion for insulation: the more air space it has with more bulkheads, the better it is. You need to build on this knowledge when choosing it. Well, we’ll teach you now what to choose from.

And now the most important information, which, if you can, remember forever or write it down. You only need to insulate anything from the outside! And all because of a physical phenomenon called the “dew point”. This is the condensation of water from moisture in the air.

It occurs when a cold surface comes into contact with warm air. Temperatures can be anything, all these are extremely changeable values. The main thing is to know that if you have a similar condition - and it will happen if you insulate from the inside - then condensation will occur there in any case.

Of course, it is possible to insulate from the inside, but this must be done in the most desperate cases. And then, if some conditions are not met, it is prohibited. Because there will be constant damage to the walls, a lot of it, and you can get Aspergillus pneumonia.

Types of insulation

This is the most extensive and interesting point of our topic, since the production technology of the work is not so complicated, but the competent selection of material is half the success. In principle, the modern market offers about 11 different types of insulation. They all have different properties and different prices. So that you don’t get lost in the vastness of the Internet or are not fooled by advertising advice from sellers, we will tell you the basic information:

The most simple thing, but still used by some craftsmen, is chipboard, chipboard. It's not very good as an insulator, but it still has some effect. It is mainly used for other purposes, but some manage to insulate it. The thermal conductivity coefficient is very low, approximately 0.15, which is extremely low. If you have a large amount of such material, then you still shouldn’t use it;
wood concrete is a modern marketing “miscarriage”. It is most often made from reeds, reeds, waste paper, sawdust, and straw. This whole bouquet is tied together with cement, and at the exit, wood concrete awaits us - complete nonsense with a beautiful name;
fiberboard is another victim of cheap production. A mixture of wood shingles, magnesium and cement. The result is quite light and durable slabs. They do not rot, are not afraid of high humidity, and from fire they only smolder. There are two significant disadvantages that completely discourage the use of this material: the high price and the thermal conductivity coefficient at the level of 0.1–0.09, which is slightly better than chipboard;
ecowool - in fact, it is ordinary crushed waste paper, which is sprayed onto the wall. Yes, it’s not bad as insulation, but it won’t last long. It should be applied on the outside of buildings in a single layer, then covered with a finishing coating, such as siding. Everything seems to be fine, but as soon as it gets wet - and believe me, sooner or later it will absorb the moisture - then that’s it, the insulation is completely removed. It takes 10 times longer to dry than it takes to get wet, therefore the insulation is questionable. But you will pay for this miracle as if it were good. The coefficient after application is as much as 0.04, but after 5 years it is already 0.08, and then downhill. By the way, mice and rats love such houses so much that it is beyond words;

Foamed polyethylene looks like a good thing, but when you look at it, you understand that it’s not worth taking. It seems to be cheap, but it insulates poorly. Very large air bubbles, therefore, few barriers to cold. We don’t look at it in detail, we just remember that it’s not our client;
honeycomb - oh, today this is the last material that is under no circumstances worth taking. Yes, it is beautiful and cheap, but it insulates very poorly, because it is a kind of paper honeycomb rolled up between two plastic sheets. Well, as you understand, there are few bulkheads-obstacles there, therefore, the insulation is bad;
polyurethane foam - this, I tell you, is simply the god of insulation. The best of the best, because its coefficient is 0.018–0.02. You won't find anything cooler. If you have previously had to deal with polyurethane foam, then this is it, it is simply applied on a more industrial scale and with a special spray bottle. Not only are the insulation characteristics fantastic, but this material does not absorb moisture, it is not afraid of fungus and time does not matter. In general, it would be ideal if not for one “but” - the price. She's just huge. Nowadays they advertise such a method as innovation and breakthrough, but only a few use it. And the majority understands that almost the same effect can be achieved by spending half as much;
mipora is an extremely complex chemical element. The base is urea-formaldehyde resin with glycerin and a bunch of additives to give it strength, hardness and the like. Surprisingly, it is not that expensive, but it only becomes profitable to use it on a large scale. The most repulsive thing is, of course, the chemical composition. I don’t recommend it, choose something less dangerous;
polystyrene foam - and here comes my leader. I believe that this is the best option out of all existing ones. It is not very expensive, the properties are excellent, the coefficient is as much as 0.03–0.04. Sold everywhere, installation is not too difficult. He is not afraid of water, even complete immersion, he is not afraid of any fungus, and in general he is a real shield. There are, of course, some nuances with the installation, but this is nonsense compared to what you get;
mineral wool - but this is the leader in the number of installations and use. In fact, mineral wool is highly processed clay. It is fired, extruded, crystallized, fired again - in general, non-flammable fibers are made from it. Yes, it is cheap and easy to install. There are just two huge disadvantages. The first is that for installation you need a frame and a finishing coating, for example, lining, siding or. And the second, the most painful. She is terribly afraid of water. The coefficient is approximately 0.035;
glass wool, ceramic and basalt wool are all sisters with approximately the same origin and properties. The main difference from mineral wool is that if water gets on it, it will not be absorbed well, will dry out, and will not do anything in terms of insulation. But even here everything is not so rosy. After 20 years of use, it begins to disintegrate, releasing glass dust into the air. Therefore, you need to insulate it well with film before laying it in the walls.

That's all for insulation. And I’ll tell you this: you, of course, are free to choose anything, since now you know almost all types. But I would advise you to opt for polystyrene foam, or, as it is simply called, polystyrene foam. In terms of price-quality-installation ratio, this is the best option.

Preparation of tools, materials, walls

Now the time has come to move from words to actions. And we’ll start, perhaps, with preparing the instrument. Although it seems to you that this is not worth reading, still go over the points in order to avoid further delays during work. So, you will need the following:

hammer drill with drill, drill diameter 6 mm and length at least 16 mm;
hammer;
spatulas 10 cm and 40 cm;
several buckets for preparing the solution;
stepladder and carrier;
trowel, or, as it is also called, malka;
construction or stationery knife with a set of blades;
a whisk for a puncher, for mixing the solution;
roller with tray, for priming and painting;
tape measure, pencil and marker.

That's it with the tool. As you can see, the list is small, and all because we will consider work using the example of using polystyrene foam. And its installation does not involve the use of frames or special finishing panels. So, let's move on.

Let's talk about the material. I hope you don’t think that we will need pure foam plastic, because I will have to disappoint you. Much more different materials will be required. Let's list it so you know what list to go shopping with:

actually foam plastic. Remember, it comes in different densities and thicknesses. For best results, use as thick a seal as possible. If we are talking about ordinary white polystyrene foam, then to insulate the external walls of a private house you will have to use at least 10 cm. Such slabs are rare; they are usually sheathed with two 50 mm each. If we talk about extruded polystyrene foam, then you will need a thickness of at least 35 mm, it replaces 100 mm of regular one. To insulate a room from the inside, the numbers do not change if we want to achieve a real result. By the way, for ease of work it is better to use sheets not 1×1 meter, but 100×50 cm;
tile adhesive or similar composition. It is best to use it, and not any plaster for finishing facades. It has good protective properties, but we need a complex of properties, that is, waterproofing, glue, and durability, and tile adhesive has all of this in equal proportions;
deep penetration primer;
wide serpyanka mesh. We will use it to cover the entire insulation area. Of course, if you have a little more money, then it is better to buy a mesh for reinforcement, thin, 0.5 mm, with a cell of 10x10 mm, or fiberglass. The use of such materials will ensure the creation of a more durable final layer that will definitely not crack;
a can of polyurethane foam - for gluing joints between plates;
facade plaster if we work outside the building. Or the same tile adhesive for interior work, only here we will need it not for gluing, but for creating the final layer. We do not use putties on gypsum bases;
paint, it is best to use waterproof acrylic;
plastic fastening “fungi” for foam plastic.

So, we’ve figured out how to decorate our walls, let’s now quickly go over the actions that we must perform before the main work. We will look at the example of preparing walls indoors. So, let's take the following steps.

Usually the first step is preparing the room, that is, cleaning large items and the like. We are not considering this here, because we have bare brick walls, and they only exist in new buildings and on balconies. If it is still new, then you need to think about how to insulate the outside. And if we are talking about a balcony, then you also need to insulate it from the outside. Remember that internal insulation is a last resort. So, we prepare the room so that it is convenient for us to work.
We move on to laying the necessary communications, namely heating pipes, if any, and electricians. It must be laid at this stage. We nail the wires with ordinary nails, only, of course, not into the wire, but behind the clamp.
We mark the places for future mounting of switches and sockets and go deeper with the crown into the wall if we use 35-gauge insulation. Because this depth is not enough to attach the mounting box.
We process a deep penetration wall.

Well, that’s all, it’s time to move on to the most responsible, final actions.

We carry out basic work

The work we have ahead of us is not difficult, but you must not deviate from what we write below. If you change the installation technology, you will aggravate the process of condensation. Now you should strictly understand this.

An air gap should not be allowed to form between the insulation and the wall, because it is this that will cause condensation and all the consequences in the form of wet corners, mold, and the like. I hope you understand this and won’t philander. Now look at what actions are needed and in what order they follow.

Well, friends, we have figured out how to properly insulate brick walls. And I remind you once again that it is worth insulating from the inside only in the most extreme cases, if it is absolutely impossible to do it from the outside.

And here's another thing: if you noticed, we did not write strict installation instructions. This is just an introductory article that is aimed at introducing you to the topic and getting you up to speed. Therefore, only you are responsible for your actions. And if, after reading, you realized that you are not capable of such work, then it is better to entrust it to professionals. Good luck!

Proper insulation of a brick house from the inside with your own hands is a task that must be solved after the walls are erected. Understanding the theoretical foundations of the process is the key to its successful implementation. The experience of similar work collected over many years allowed the masters to derive two principles. They should be used as a guide when working with insulation and related materials.

In a residential building, the vapor permeability of walls should increase towards the street. The main reason lies in the different humidity levels inside and outside the house in winter. The reasons for high humidity in the house are:

There are people living in the house who breathe, cook, wash floors and dishes, and do laundry. All these habitual operations make the air more humid. And with the windows closed, air exchange is difficult and is carried out only by the ventilation system.
From the physics course we know that heated air is capable of holding more moisture compared to cool air. For this reason, condensation occurs from “excess” moisture as the air cools. Foggy windows and dampness in the corners of the building are a practical example of this.
But water vapor leaves the house not only through ventilation, but also through the pores of the wall. If the wall outside is more permeable to steam, then it can pass through it without difficulty. Otherwise, having encountered an obstacle, water vapor begins to condense directly in the wall, which leads to its dampness.

Insulation location

If you follow the instructions of professionals, then insulation of buildings should be done correctly from the outside of the wall. The reason for this is the location of the dew point (the place where steam condenses from the air):

House without insulation. The dew point will be located in the thickness of the brick wall, which will become damp and begin to collapse.
Insulation from inside the house. The dew point will move to the inner surface of the brick wall. Approximately between insulation and brick. The consequence of this decision is a feeling of dampness, the appearance of mold and puddles of condensed moisture on the floor of the room.
Insulation of the building from the outside. In this case, the wall of the brick house will be completely warm and steam will pass through it to the street without any obstacles, without making it damp.
Solid sand-lime brick is more hydrophobic than red. White brick walls should be protected from precipitation by large roof overhangs. It is important to ensure that water vapor escapes from inside the room.

The real state of affairs

The reality is that not in all cases it is possible to carry out work according to the textbook. In some cases, it is impossible to insulate a house from the outside:

The building is an architectural monument. The façade must be left untouched.
The upper floors of a brick house in the absence of the ability to work at high heights.
The distance between the houses is too small, which does not allow work to insulate them from the outside.

Let's consider actions in a situation where insulation from the outside of the building is impossible. How to insulate the walls of a brick house from the inside with your own hands?

The main problem that residents of the house will face is condensation in undesirable places with all that it entails. To protect yourself from this trouble, you need to hermetically insulate the walls with insulation from the rest of the room.

There are two ways to do this task yourself:

When choosing insulation, you should give preference to a material with very low permeability to water vapor. Common options include penofol and extruded polystyrene foam. The side with the foam foil and the compacted surface of the polystyrene foam should face the inside of the room. Only in this way will it be possible to avoid the absorption of steam by the insulation.
If mineral or basalt insulation is used, they can be protected using a vapor barrier. However, sealing should be carried out with special care: no possibility of steam contact with the insulation or wall should be left. The film is attached with an overlap, and the seam is taped.

Insulation with extruded polystyrene foam

This material has a very high density. With a thickness of 2 to 4 cm, it allows you to stick it directly to the walls. The side of the insulation that faces the inside of the room can later be subjected to fine finishing (wallpaper, decorative plaster, etc.).

However, a brick bathhouse or sauna cannot be insulated from the inside: at high temperatures, polystyrene foam releases substances hazardous to health.

The walls of a brick house should first be properly prepared: leveled and treated with an antiseptic primer. It will protect the wall from mold. It is better to attach the insulation using tile or foam adhesive. Rolling over the material with a needle roller will help improve the degree of adhesion to the glue. It is more convenient to apply the glue with a notched trowel. The insulation boards are applied to the wall with minimal gaps. Vertical seams of different rows should not match.

It is not worth using disc-shaped dowels (which are appropriate for external insulation) to fasten polystyrene foam, because they create through holes through which steam can overcome the created barrier. When the glue dries, the seams between the plates are sealed with silicone sealant. The purpose of this is one - absolute tightness.

You can now glue the wallpaper on top using PVA glue diluted with water. And if you glue a fiberglass mesh to the same glue, then you can apply decorative plaster over it.

Polystyrene foam and mineral wool

You can also insulate the brick walls of a house from the inside with your own hands using more affordable materials that allow steam to pass through well and have a low density. They are mounted on the wall using a frame made of bars. Its thickness should be equal to the thickness of the heat-insulating material, and the distance should be one centimeter less than the width of the slab.

The resulting sheathing is filled with insulation boards at random. In polystyrene foam, it is advisable to fill the existing gaps with polyurethane foam. A vapor barrier is stretched over the finished structure. A good alternative to film is penofol several millimeters thick. The film is fastened with a construction stapler, all connections are overlapped, and the seams are taped with special tape. Using the lathing, a decorative wall is made from wooden trim, wall panels or plasterboard.

The issue of insulating a bathhouse with your own hands has already been touched upon. A good solution would be to make it with mineral wool and provide protection from steam with thick foil. All seams are taped with aluminum tape. A linden clapboard is attached on top of this pie.

Insulation in other ways

Insulating the walls of a brick house from the inside with plaster is the most cost-effective and longest way. This is due to the fact that it should be applied in several layers and a reinforcing mesh should be attached. But the use of sprayed polystyrene foam is an expensive option that requires special equipment and skills. Foam is sprayed into the space between wooden blocks or metal guides. The finishing process is carried out similarly to the above methods using these bars.

Craftsmen do not recommend insulating a brick house from the inside. But it’s possible to do it yourself without disastrous consequences.