Waterproofing! Worse than the heartbreak of psoriasis, smellier than halitosis and more unsightly than "ring around the collar." Maybe you can tell that I haven't watched much television for a while (barely know how to operate the remote), but I do know what worries homeowners and buyers. If there's brown, green or black on the foundation walls, it's one of the first concerns I hear about.
Basement water can significantly affect your enjoyment and use of a home; it can create very costly problems, reduce the value of a home and even have an impact on your health. So buyer and owner concern about moisture and waterproofing is anything but frivolous.
Fortunately, over 50% of waterproofing problems are the result of neglected gutters and downspouts. Another 40% of the problems are due to improper grading that is usually remedied very easily with a shovel and some grass seed. A very small percentage of moisture and waterproofing problems are the result of a high water table.
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Waterproofing should generally begin on the outside of your home. Look for areas that may contribute to the collection of water near or next to your foundation. Fill these low areas so that water flows away from your foundation. (See grading for more information). Check your gutters for debris and make sure downspouts extend at least 8 feet away from the house. Service walks that settled and slope back to the house should be adjusted to flow away from your foundation.
Homes that have major waterproofing problems in winter during heavy rain when the ground is frozen are most often on slopes and have water penetration on the side of the house facing uphill. This occurs because even in the coldest winter, the soil around the foundation is thawed and porous because of heat loss. Everywhere else, the ground is frozen and impermeable; water from the hill flows down the surface and sinks into the soil around the foundation. Installing a barrier under the soil tarred to the house, but pitched away from it, may solve this type of leakage and waterproofing problems.
As soil around your home becomes water-saturated, hydrostatic pressure forces water through the joints where your floor and wall meet. The result is a wet basement and generally the only solution is a drainage system that will direct seeping water into a floor drain or more commonly, a sump pump. There are a variety of drainage systems available on the market, most of which need to be installed by a professional contractor. The proper system needs to be tailored to your specific foundation construction and predominant soil type. Do not be fooled by the suggestion that one system fits all. We encourage you to seek information and educate yourself before investing in a major waterproofing system.
Why don't waterproofing contractors try to totally seal water from ever coming into basements? The truth of the matter is it is not cost effective to "waterproof" by sealing water out and, even if the contractor succeeds by using an epoxy sealer at 40 lbs per square inch, concrete will crack and therefore water will come in through that new crack. So waterproofing contractors learned that it is easier to relieve the hydrostatic pressure by directing the ground water to a sump collection basin (pit, liner, etc), where once it filled the sump basin to a certain point, an automated sump pump would turn on and pump the water down to a certain level. The waterproofing contractor knew that if he could keep the ground water pressure below the floor then the area could be kept relatively dry.
A new basement waterproofing company, Grate Products, LLC, has recently introduced a complete line of products that may very well revolutionize the industry. These products, geared to help the consumer and address the important issues of preparation, will likely see wider usage in years to come. Compare these products and systems to what is being proposed by your contractor.
Once you have solved your waterproofing problems, consider some of these products offered in the BasementDepot store:
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