Basement Waterproofing?

[Jayru]

Anybody on the board ever gone about doing this or had a company do it? I get a tiny bit of standing water that seeps up from the floor, under heavy rain conditions, in a few spots in the basement. It's never been a concern to me, but now i'm thinking of finishing the basement into a small apartment.

I called the company "B-Dry" and they came out to give a consultation. $6,000. :surprised

They want to dig a whole trench system around all the walls and that just seems like way overkill (and too much money) for a little standing water here and there.

Any suggestions?

[gator]

yes ..that is what you probably need to do. You may also need a sump pump. Hard to tell from here. Sometimes you need to trust a pro and hope for the best. Not all contractors are out to screw you. This problem of yours can be a costly fix...

Cheers .. Bruce

[Ed]

You have to prevent water from getting to your basement walls. This is done by digging around your foundation and either applying a tar base waterproofer or a plastic liner. If you don't have a sump pump then that would be recommended also. There is no cheap alternative. If you try and paint over the cement in the interior the water will still find it's way in.

You can try and prevent water from getting to your foundation walls by landscaping and rain gutters but this will only help a little.

[rdefabri]

Do NOT go with a waterproofing service, it's a scam. My brother paid an arm and a leg to do this and it still came back.

You can use UGL Dry-Lok, which works very well, but I have a sump-pump, it's your best option. French drains won't really help in bad leak situations, and it's a bear to retro fit (although it CAN be done).

Do you have a concrete block or poured concrete?

[Jayru]

I have a poured concrete foundation. The water comes up from where the floor meets the walls, not the walls themselves. After a lot of research last night, it's called hydrostatic pressure. The only way to aleviate it would be some kind of drain system i think.

If i put just a sump pump in 1 corner, would that relieve the pressure from the whole basement?

[mriz]

I think you also have to consider soil type, but curtian drains might be an option. Also make sure the grade of the soil slopes away from the house along with any water from the roof.

[gator]

Jayru : .. It is possible that the sump will drain the water. You should take all issues into account. I am a contractor and have fixed this problem a number of times and it is different every time. It is hard to take an xray of what is under your house. Sometimes, we have dug a hole for the sump only to find we now have a gusher and we actualy also needed to divert an underground stream. I strongly suggest you find an expert in your area and get some sound advise on site. Sometimes what may seem to be the most expensive option turns out to be the cheapest. This is usualy because it is the right fix and the cost of doing 2 or 3 wrong ones then the right one becomes very painfull.

Cheers .. Bruce

[Jayru]

I just thought i'd update this thread.

So i had another company come out today, Basement Systems. His pitch was a little more agressive than B-Dry, but honestly, i think their product is better. Instead of digging all the way down into the mud and installing a huge 4" pipe, this company uses an almost plastic gutter aproach that is only set down into the floor, above the footer.

This prevents any mud/setiment from ever cloging the pipe, also it's much less invasive than the B-Dry system, less digging, mess, less of the floor/foundation cut out, etc. Yet it still acomplishes all the things the B-Dry system does. He priced me out for all 4 walls, same as B-Dry did, with an $8500 price tag ($2500 more than B-Dry), but then said i could get away with doing only two and that would aleviate 99% if not all of the problem.

So the end quote was around $4000, lifetime guarantee (for those 2 walls), transferable warranty, etc. And that was with a sump pump, i was going to have B-Dry pitch it into a floor drain already there.

So i think i'm going to do it. What do you guys think?

[240ZX]

Dig a moat and install a draw bridge! Homeland security, you know! Just kidding ya!

[beandip]

I am a retired contractor and I live in Oregon where we get a few buckets of rain every year , this year from December it rained over 30 days in a row . I agree with gator . As for the '' lifetime guarantee '' Ha Ha yes right. Next year when he is no longer in business , try and collect on it . To properly water proof the basement , tar coat the entire exterior of the concrete wall and at the bottom of the wall , along the foundation , install drain tile and cover with the silt sock. and then cover with about 3' of gravel . Then you can back fill the ditch. The drain tile must go to a drain away from the structure or to a sump with a sump pump. If by chance the slab is over a spring , you will still have problems because the water pressure will find a way into the basement. Gary

[Jayru]

Gary, do you not believe in the interior drain systems?

It seems that it's really my only option as i have two big porches that run the length of the house (front & back), making it impossible to excivate the exterior.

Am i wasting money?

[mriz]

Just keep in mind you are dealing with a franchise operation and do some checking on the guy who is actually doing the work.How long has he been doing it ,and of course get references . Treat it as if he is doing 4K of work on your Z. The parent company is sound ,thier main HQ is close by my house and the origional founder still runs it.