Garage Issues
 

Hey there,

I've been having mold (or what I think is mold) form on my garage wall base since I've moved into it 4 years ago. The house is only 5 or 6 years old. I've just washed it with cleaning solution and sealed it with cement sealer, but it's still molding. I was going to acid wash it, but I've never done it before and I just wasn't feeling adventurous enough to try, and of course no one I know has ever done it. Here are some pictures to give you an idea of what's happening (it's the white powdery stuff close to the floor):

http://www.mts.net/~lsenden/Garage1.jpg

http://www.mts.net/~lsenden/Garage2.jpg

Before I sealed it, it was eating at the cement and every time I would clean it off, chunks of cement would come off as well. I'm not sure if that will still happen now that I've sealed it, but you never know. It almost seems as if the air and moisture coming up out of the junction between the floor and wall is what's causing it, but I'm not sure if I should seal that up with some type of caulking or if it's suppose to be left open. The other thing I'm thinking is if I should be putting some kind of ventilation or de-humidifier into the garage or not.

Any suggestions? I really don't want to spend the money for some cement guy to come in and fix it or whatever if it's something that I can do.

Higgy- here's what I found:
Wet Basement Waterproofing white powder
This one may be a little more informative.
Ask the Expert: Painting Concrete that has "Efflorescence"
I hope this helps you. Doesn't seem like anything to be too worried about providing you treat it accordingly.

Higgy- this link has pictures and tips for various problems.
Wet Basement Waterproofing pictures

Thanks a bunch Toyo. I didn't know that's what it was called until reading your posts. I may have to call a concrete guy to come and look at what's going on as it's already eaten away some of the top layer of the concrete in certain parts of the garage. But I'll wait until next year to see how this sealer does. Maybe once it's fully absorbed into the concrete the issue may stop.

I think my garage also needs a small dehumidifier out the side of it just to get rid of that extra moisture and circulate the air in the garage.

Appreciate the help man!

For a garage, I'd recommend a fan instead of a dehumidifier. For mild cases, a fan will get air moving about enough where you don't need run a dehumidifier. This'll save a descent amount of electricity as you don't have to run a small refrigeration unit.

Sorry...not a dehumidifier, I meant something like this:
Wizzvent® - Garage Ventilation, Window Condensation, Mold on Walls, Window Frost
Gets rid of moisture and circulates the air.

Some other info I found on ventilating your garage:
Garage ventilation thwarts numerous problems - Home and Garden - MLive.com

No problem Higgy- glad I could help.
I'd go with the small fan Idea like Daox suggested. All you need is something that will move air.

I wouldn't worry about it at all. It just looks like efflorescence. Waterproofing it likely won't help. Efflorescence is a side effect of water pushing through the concrete from the ground. You can take a look outside and make sure you have adequate drainage around your home - just make sure the ground slopes away and all your downspouts are diverted away. However, you're located in Winnipeg which is a natural floodplain - every spring the ground gets waterlogged pushing moisture up through your garage floor. Structurally, your garage should be fine but you might want to think of parging the concrete if the spalling gets too bad (if it loses 0.5 - 1.0 inches of thickness).