Wet Basement

May 13, 2002

Question from: Lorraine in Edmonton, Alberta -----

Dear Shell,

My son’s basement leaked this spring. He found two cracks in the foundation after he took the drywall off. You can't get to the outside as the siding goes down too far. Is there something on the market that you can seal the inside walls with. Something you can paint on maybe. Or is there another method. Also, the outside drain tiles only go around the house not the garage, so he figures maybe some water followed the attached garage and went into the basement. He's thinking of building a berm across his property (he's on 3 acres) so this won't happen again. Water migrates so bad it seems to go everywhere. The berm will be across the front of the house as it is on a hill - the water comes down the hill, around the house until it finds the cracks in the foundation.

Thank you, Lorraine

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Dear Lorraine,

I suggest that you contact the Basement Systems Company in Edmonton 1-888-844-0616 (there are Basement System Dealers across most of Canada) and have them repair your crack with an epoxy or urethane injection from the inside. They may have other suggestions about how to deal with your water problems once they get a look at it.

In most cases, ground water will flow on top of hardpan and under the topsoil. You'll probably find that the ground water is running about 4 to 6 feet deep in the ground at the point it comes up against the foundation wall. To catch this ground water, perimeter drainage must be installed at the hardpan level. Berms will not correct this problem. Good Luck

And I wish it was “Just That Easy”.

Shell Busey