First Steps to Basement Waterproofing

On the exterior, make sure that the soil is properly graded around perimeter of home to ensure positive drainage of surface water.  This may mean re-grading and/or installing a custom drainage solution.   Check to see that all roof run-off, gutters and downspouts, are draining away from home with positive slope.  It’s best to get downspouts to discharge 10’-15’ from home.  Connecting downspouts to underground 4” PVC drain pipes is a great way to direct the water away from your home Also, look at all exterior concrete… driveways, sidewalks and verify that it has ¼” of fall per foot away from home.  If your concrete is falling toward the home, the concrete will need to be raised, or removed and replaced, or the water will need to be re-routed by installing channel drains in proper locations It is recommended that basements and crawlspaces have interior or exterior drainage system next to footing.  This system is a 4” perforated pipe backfilled with clean gravel and in most cases wrapped in filter fabric. Drainage pipe should be run to daylight if possible, when not possible, pipe should be run to a sump pit that can be installed on the interior of your home and water pumped away. Determine size of sump pump to be installed.  The correct sizing of your sump pump is critical, if a pump is too small it may not keep up with the amount of water coming in, also the sump discharge plays a critical role. If an exterior drainage system is not an option, an interior, under-slab drainage system can be installed and drained to the same sump pit/pump.  Once a drainage system is in place, and foundation stability is verified, cracks in walls and floors need sealed.  This process is done by epoxy or polyurethane injection http://www.reliablebasement.com/

Foundation Crack Repair

Even though concrete cracks are normal, it is not recommended that they remain ignored. Most homeowners have concrete cracks in their basement, either on the foundation wall or on the floor. If there are water puddles or water stains around these cracks you should address them as soon as possible. More often than not, a foundation crack will grow over time and result in larger amounts of water seepage. For more infomation contact Reliable Basement Services http://www.reliablebasement.com/