Damp detached garage

I live in Buffalo and I have a detached garage. In the spring when the air gets warmer than the ground there is always a layer of condensation on the ground. I store lawn equipment in it as well.

I have a clean dry basement, but I brew near the garage. Am I best off to just keep lugging equipment back and forth rather than trying to store anything in the garage?

Moist and dark breeds mold.

Sounds like you garage is poorly ventilated.

GilaMinumBeer said:

Moist and dark breeds mold.

Sounds like you garage is poorly ventilated.

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That would be correct. The moisture is leeching up from the ground into the cement. I'd be willing to bet that's the case as I have the same problem in a detatched garage, and there is no ventilation because the previous owners sided over EVERYTHING. Windows, vents, etc..

GilaMinumBeer said:

Moist and dark breeds mold.

Sounds like you garage is poorly ventilated.

Click to expand...

It's old and not nice. It has two of the small box vents on the roof and that's it. No ridge vent or anything.

petep1980 said:

It's old and not nice. It has two of the small box vents on the roof and that's it. No ridge vent or anything.

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Does the garage have a separate attic space? Eave vents?

Windows?

You might be able to install a fan in one of those vents to get the air moving around, but it probably wont help against the moisture. Dont even bother with moisture control stuff, there's too much water to soak up.

I tend to leave the door open for a day or so and that helps, but I work from home so I'm not worried about theft.

GilaMinumBeer said:

Does the garage have a separate attic space? Eave vents?

Windows?

Click to expand...

Two windows which are kept closed for some odd reason.

I'll just use the basement for storage.

Slabs soak up moisture from the ground - you'll likely never be able to combat the moisture. Slabs under houses have a layer of visqueen plastic sheeting to prevent the capillary movement of moisture thru the concrete. I doubt this is the case for your garage.

one option, albeit not practical, is to pour a concrete layer on top (2" or so, half an inch will just crack) with a layer of plastic sheet between the two.