Here's what the Building Science Consortium says about double vapour barriers: "The main problem with a double vapor barrier wall is that it cannot dry to either the inside or the outside should it ever get wet. In addition, it requires a perfect air barrier on the interior to prevent warm interior air from contacting and condensing on the cold foundation wall where it may be trapped. This type of construction should be avoided." Even the University of Minnesota study notes that in a basement without an internal vapour barrier, a dehumidifier would prevent excessive water vapour problems. Yet time after time, I come across musty basements that would have been fine if the owners had only bothered to invest $200-$250 in a portable dehumidifer and $50 a year in electrical charges. (I was just at a customer's home today. Sure enough, the dehumidifier I bought and hooked up to run continuously was stuffed in a corner of the basement.) I've used glue-down carpet for years in basements with absolutely no problem. But only low-pile with a jute backing that doesn't trap water vapour. Only in new homes and only with mechanical dehumidification. Here is a link that might be useful: Basement Insulation Systems

Eternally wet shower floors are usually the result of the membrane being placed flat on the subfloor, then a sloped layer of mud is placed on the flat membrane, then the tile going over the sloped mud. A flat membrane is bad practice and a code violation. Code requires that the membrane itself be sloped. This usually means a sloped layer of deck mud on the subfloor, then the membrane goes over the sloped mud, then another layer of mud goes on top of the sloped membrane. When the two-part clamping drain is installed, there are secondary weep holes along the throat of the drain. The intent is that any moisture that gets under the grout/tile and into the mud bed beneath the tile will hit the sloped membrane, then travel down the slope (code min 1/4" per foot, code max 1/2" per foot, with 1/4" per foot being standard) to the drain. The moisture will go through the secondary weep holes and down the drain. Normal practice is that when placing the second layer of deck mud (the layer that goes on top of the sloped membrane) the installer will first place a bit of small stone or tile spacers near the weep holes, then pack the deck mud around the stone/spacers. If not done, deck mud that is packed right up over the weep holes can clog the weep holes, and slow or prevent moisture water from escaping. As to the cracked grout lines at the changes of plane, that's why changes of plane (wall-wall intersections, etc) are usually caulked instead of grouted in lightweight shower construction. Here's a good reference on how to do a sloped membrane on a shower floor: Harry at Ontario Tile Sealing tile is sort of superfluous. In general, unless it's handmade or some sort of artisan tile, porcelain tile itself is pretty much waterproof. I'm not a fan of sealing grout, but that's my personal preference. If grout is sealed, a vapor permeable sealer should be used. Lastly, and going backwards a bit, cracked grout around a bench can sometimes indicate poor waterproofing. Thin hairline cracks can indicate movement cracks, but if the cracks are wide, it can sometimes indicate wet and swollen wood underneath the tile. The swelling of the wood is causing excessive movement, and thus, larger than typical cracks. Again, supposition on my part, but based on the nasties I've seen over the years...I'm simply putting them out there for your consideration.

ok, well just wondering. Faron, you said: * "ONE COAT" from a Neutral base?!?!? Only if you apply it 1/2" thick! Well, this was a charity version of Martha Stewart's one coat neutral base. "* Seriously, these bases/colors ALMOST ALWAYS need the help of a tinted primer (often Gray), to look good after 2 FULL topcoats applied ~5 hours apart." Could you explain please? But anyway, I'll just get rid of the neutral base because I'm hoping to paint in a light yellow/beige type thing. "Some Ralph-Lauren Burgundies take the auto-tinter over a minute to pump all the colorant in!! 14 ounces of it sometimes!" Well, this is Martha Stewart and I looked in the can and wanted to see what color it was, I swirled it around with a stick and nothing came up for a while, FINALLY something whitish came up, but I guess I won't mess with it. Thanks for reply. And oh yes, while we're at it: what would happen if I added this base to a can of colored paint?

First off, thank you for the advice. I decided that you are 100% correct and I shouldn't pre-judge what has happened. With that in mind, it has now been about 3 weeks since they came out the first time and inspected the floors. About two weeks ago, they had a more "senior" flooring person come out to do another inspections. I gave them about one week to review the matter and called them for a status update. They never returned my called. Since then, they have been largely uncommunicative with me. I've been calling every couple of days asking for a status and get no return calls. While I am upset, I've decided that keeping things calm and non-aggressive. The lack of calling me back is not giving me a warm fuzzy. I'm going to continue to call them for then next two weeks. Hopefully they contact me back and we can work through this. If not, I'll have to decide what my next steps are. Last week, our neighbors who have a similar house as ours (built in 1956) had floors put in. I asked if I could see how it was coming along and they let me in. I noticed they were having a barrier put in between the floors and the slab. When I inquired the person installing the floor about the barrier, he stated "it's to reduce noise and also serves as a moisture barrier". I'm going to call the nwfa.org and have a inspection done. Thank your advice. If you have any more advice, I am all ears.