Waterproofing Foundations

Hello,

My garage is similar to a basement in that two sides of it are nestled within a hillside. It was originally built in 1950. There's efflorescence and some hairline cracks and surface corrosion. Being that I can't waterproof the outside (the side nestled in the hill) is it recommended that I coat the inside of the garage walls with waterproofer? Or would this risk routing the water that would otherwise seep through the garage, now to another area of the house on that same level?

Thanks!
Camie

Camie,
Please go to the Drainage category of AsktheBuilder.com and read just about every article, *especially* the ones dealing with Linear French Drains. That is all you need-a linear french drain up on the hill.

I was having leakage from a concrete basement wall that is 5 feet underground(house is 25 years old). Thanks to you I know the difference between dampprofing and waterproofing (I have neither). I received a bid of $12,000 for a french drain (120 linear foot around foundation). I am retired and dug a hole 2 feet deep and 3 feet on both sides of the leakage and 2 feet from the foundation. I then covered the hole with 2 layers of heavy plastic. This stopped the leakage and was real cheap.
Should I be concerned that this is just a quick fix that might cause other problems in the future.
Dick Wobbe, St. Louis, Mo
314-892-7753

Richard,
For a permanent solution, install one of my Linear French Drains. Go to my Drainage category.

We built our house five years ago and within two years the concrete foundation developed two vertical cracks. Each runs top to bottom and match exactly with either side of the steps leading to the front door. The foundation for the steps is also concrete and is attached to the foundation (poured at the same time). The foundation was dampproofed with liquid asphalt when we built to house. The cracks are generally 1/16" wide and have not widened over the last three years. Water does come through the cracks when it rains hard for prolonmged periods of time. I recently decided to finish my basement. I plan to fill the cracks with a liquid cement and then cover the walls with a product to seal the interior walls of the basement with a waterproofing paint. I am wondering if the water will create further structural damage to the foundation over time since it will no longer be able to leak through. I am also wondering how concerned I should be about the fact that the foundation cracked at the points where the foundation and steps meet.

Thanks,

Mike.

Mike,
You need to monitor the cracks. Make a mark across them and measure accurately. If the width grows by 50%, call in a structural engineer.

We recently bought a house that was built in 1923, making the house 85 years old so there probably wasn't much in the way done to waterproof the foundation. We've recently noticed some water damage to the stairs leading up to the partial basement. The water seems to be coming from the concrete walls & there's some white chalky substance leaching out of the walls. What can I do to protect the basement from further deterioration?

Sandra,
Simple. Read all of my Drainage category columns and install a Linear French Drain to stop the water infiltration.

Thanks for your email. I don't think that we can install a linear french drain anymore since we put in a concrete patio that covers the entire backyard. What do you recommend for this type of situation?

I bought a house last year that was built in 1986. I discovered a fireplace add-on on the outside of the house that was holding water and so I put a pump in it to drain it. I discovered tiny cracks in the block of the house which water continued to pour out of and fill the add-on back up. There is no water coming into the house at this point and the home warranty company will not cover any repairs. I think that there may be an underground stream or drainage issue as the driveway apron has separated from the garage and there is a deep void under it. I suspect that the two problems may be related. I would like to get someone to pump gravel back under the garage apron (but I'm not sure who) and to rip out the fireplace add-on and waterproof and backfill that area. I am concerned that this will divert water into my house (which has a sump pump). Any suggestions on who to call or what to do?

I have seen a lot of information on waterproofing the exterior walls of the basement during construction, but what about the floor? Is there a way I can waterproof the floor prior to it being poured? If so, what is the best way to do so? Thanks.

i decided to waterproof my basement where i found some wet areas. I used dry-lock cement patch and then dry-lock paint. When i finished it didn't look to bad, but when i went to check on it later parts of the white painted wall on dark tar looking liquid seaping through the wall and this was on about 40% of the wall. Any ideas what this is and how to stop it?

Hi Tim,

I just put in a French Drain using your guide. When rinsing off my stucco from dust caused by the digging, the water run-off made its way down to the ground/foundation and the next day I noted damn spots on the interior of the foundation in my crawl space cause by the rinsing.

I was thinking of lapping pvc sheet against the exterior foundation, right under where the stucoo finish extends over the foundation stem wall. Sort of how roofing shingles work. Then extending this pvc sheeting, on a slight slop, to the mouth of my french drain.

Question is, will this PVC sheet (skirt), trap moister and cause more problems? And will this method also cause problems when I eventually pour a concrete walkway over this skirt? (water moving on top of the sheet right under the walkway and towards the french drain)

HI,
WE BOUGHT A HOME BUILT IN 1924 THE BASEMENT IS WET.. IT IS BUILT OF CLAY TILES THAT HAVE BEEN PAINTED OVER, NOT SANDSTONE OR CINDAR BLOCKS....HOW OR WHAT CAN WE DO ON THE INSIDE, IF ANYTHING, TO PREVENT WATER FROM ENTERING....
THANKS,
KATHY

Dear sir, I live in Malaysia, I have land , a small land 1,600++sqmeter.

The land is flooded with 2feet water every time the tide is high and rainning season.

That land semi swamp land, a few swamp tree grow there.

My situations is, I intended to build a small house there, maybe a siting room, and a kitchen with a bathroom and toilet..

My dad, advise me to sandfill it with black soil up to 4 feet, but Im not sure what the right should I do.

I have a Mitsubishi Pajero car and two motorcycle to park, maybe a small shade will do for them.

My question is,

1. Should i fill it with soil up to 4 feet?
2. How long it possible for me to build the house on top of it since I soil filled the land.?
3.My budget is USD5000/-

Thanks.

my contractor used a roll on tar and used no gravel around drain tile just covered with clay backfill. Is this standard or is my contractor at fault.