Pacific Northwest: Insulating a detached garage – GreenBuildingAdvisor

Climate zone 4, the Pacific Northwest: I have a detached garage that has no insulation, other than in the roof.  We store things there and they are covered with mold due to the constant damp, although there are no obvious leaks.  I want to insulate the garage and add heat to decrease the cold and damp and make it usable.

My thought is to put a tyvek type wrap against the interior studs, add insulation, then drywall.  I can’t tell if in this climate I should add a vapor barrier as well, or if that will just keep the damp in the walls and let mold grow on the insulation.

I don’t think there will be an ideal solution given the situation, but I don’t want to make it worse!  Suggestions?

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