Waterproofing basement walls should be a standard thing to do when finishing a basement. Moisture entering through the walls of the basement is the main reason that area of your house is more damp than the rest of the house. The most frequent causes of water build-up in basements are due to cracks, leaking windows and pipe condensation. A great deal of problems can be created from too much water or long term water retention in the basement.
Basement Wall Options
Among the available methods are:
- French Drains
- Hollow Baseboard Molding
- Sump Pumps
- Waterproofing
- Damp Proofing
French Drains - An exterior system running the perimeter or partial perimeter of your house for heavy rain run off drainage, or an interior system if water is coming into your basement through the floors or cove between the floor and the wall. A trench is dug round the inside perimeter of the wet basement floor. A pierced plastic drain tile pipe is placed and encircled by stones and pebbles. Some wet basement waterproofing and repair contractors re-cement the floor over the French drain system leaving a 1 inch to 2 inch gap in the floor along the walls to allow the web wall seepage to drain below the floor into the French drain system. Sump pumps are used in French drainage systems.
System for installing a hollow baseboard channel use a waterprof-of epoxy for the bonding to the floor and joint. The hollow molding collects wet wall seepage and water rising at the cove area. In most cases linked to the sump pump.
Sump Pumps – Installed in a plastic or fiberglass tank below the wet basement floor. In order to collect underground water one case install a device known as a sump pump. This should solve your underground water problems! A good way of draining excess water from a basement floor or from any underground drainage pipes that you might have is to utilise a sump pump.
Wall Sealers – Varieties include spray applied basement wall sealers, brush or roller applied basement waterproofing sealers, or panel type basement waterproofing sealers for wet basement walls.
The fact is that even with a good drainage system there is no surety of the basement walls remaining dry. Lets look at damp proofing and waterproofing as these are the cheapest and easiest methods of stopping moisture getting into your basement through the walls.
Damp proofing means what?
You may be asking yourself what is involved in damp proofing your basement and the best example I can give of damp proofing would be to think of a castle with a moat and think about how to keep the water away from this castle; first you build the permiable pallette layer where you want the castle floor, then you would place a solid layer over that, then you would leave a vent space and lay your foundation; as for your walls, you would build your walls, then do your solid layer and then your permiable layer, and now you have damp proofed your castle.
Proofing products that are moist are usually made of tar in a solvent base. Although these are a cheap fix, they are not very effective because they are designed only to slow down the moisture build up not prevent it. The biggest problem is that, because this material becomes brittle, hairline cracks will appear as the foundation settles. Since the tar based coating does not stretch to cover these cracks, water will seep into the basement.
Find out the meaning of waterproofing.
Products used for waterproofing underground areas, such as a basement, are only designed to prevent water from penetrating the walls especially after heavy rains or spring thaws; but, if you have underground water from a source such as a spring you may need to install a sump pump to prevent water from entering your basement from under the floor. Advanced Waterproofing Technologies products contain rubber which provides superior waterproofing protection and allows the product to remain flexible even when it dries. The concrete or block has a waterproof coating that stretches to make the foundation completely waterproof.
Application instructions
Clearly waterproofing is a better option and since there is not a huge price difference between that and damp proofing, it seems a more sensible long term choice, especially when it often has a 25 to 30-year guarantee.
In the past, builders ignored the need to waterproof basement walls. At this point you have the opportunity to put this situation right with convenient products that have easy to follow instructions Even if you are not a professional you will find that our products are easily applied and not harmful. Available even in 5 gallon pails or 55 gallon drums, they are ready for use and do not require heating or other application equipment – just the use of a brush or roller. You can even use a commercial airless sprayer which can be rented by the day. Two people using rollers to waterproof a basement of about 1,000 square feet can accomplish the task easily in about two to three hours. So get started and begin to enjoy your basement space without the dampness.
Comments are closed.