My home is 12 years old. Below ground basement was Drylocked when we bought the house. Basement was fine for a few years but now we occasionally see water. Think one of the primary sources is a bad seal on one of the windows. Easy fix. Also seeing what I believe to be moisture on one of the interior walls. Not so easy fix. This one I can't figure out. My husband thoroughly bleached the wall and applied fresh drylock about a year ago but now the block or paint is swelling and flaking off. (worse than before). How serious is this? Think we need to understand the root cause. Suggestions? What's the best way to permanently fix it? See pics attached. Have talked to a couple people and they've suggested using a wire brush to scrape off the swell. Then what? Is there a better, not so manual way to tackle it safely without damaging the blocks? THANKS SO MUCH!
basement moisture - drylock gone wrong - best fix?
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Ayuh,.... What's, Outside at that point,..??
Have ya changed the landscapin' in the last year or so,....
Generally speakin', All cellar water problems are caused by water against the wall,...
Divert the water, before it get's there is the Cure,....
No major changes to landscaping for about 5 years. It's really weird. Somebody asked me if we keep the downspouts clear. Do that too. Can't figure out the cause and don't want to burn my arms with a wire brush scraping until I know what's causing the problem.
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Pictures?
Guttering and grading are the big two when it comes to foundation moisture issues.
Guttering and grading are the big two when it comes to foundation moisture issues.
You are keeping the gutter downspouts clear, but where does the water dump?
You should be piping the water away from the house, at least 12' away, to a lower grade. There are several solutions at the home centers, like corrugated piping, black PVC, french drains, etc.
You should be piping the water away from the house, at least 12' away, to a lower grade. There are several solutions at the home centers, like corrugated piping, black PVC, french drains, etc.
I wish every poster that comes here and thinks that Drylock is the "be-all, end-all" product to there foundation moisture issues would see this post first. This happens all the time with Drylock and similar coatings. If the moisture enters from the outside of the block, and isn't allowed to dry to the inside, it will create problems exactly like this.
To the OP, unfortunately, I've never seen any quick way to take this garbage off that I wouldn't consider extremely invasive to an occupied home..........
To the OP, unfortunately, I've never seen any quick way to take this garbage off that I wouldn't consider extremely invasive to an occupied home..........
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Like Jomama stated, DryLock is not an end-all moisture solving coating. It will stop very small amounts of moisture that can come through the concrete block, but, that's about it. As others have stated, double check the grade and how the downspouts are moving the water away from the foundation. Sometimes if not diverted far enough away, the water can move back TOWARDS the foundation. I had a customer once swear to me that the downspouts were clear of leaves and debris.......and, they were. Unfortunately, his son was throwing rubber balls up on the roof and they sometimes got stuck in the gutter and washed down into the downspout causing it to plug and the water overflowed the gutter causing major water issues in the basement........
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Water is coming in from the outside. It is seeping through the blocks. Painting the inside is not going to fix it.
If you want it fixed properly dig the outside.
Waterproof the wall.
Install a proper drainage barrier.
Make sure the weeping tiles are clear.
If you want it fixed properly dig the outside.
Waterproof the wall.
Install a proper drainage barrier.
Make sure the weeping tiles are clear.
Thanks everyone for the insightful info. Much appreciated! Perhaps it is related to grading. I took photos today and when I was walking around I noticed that the landscaping seems to slope into the house a little. Don't recall noticing this before but I wasn't explicitly looking for it either. Anyway, here are some pics. Does this help with diagnosis? Think it could be the grading?
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Where do the buried gutter drains go?
When you look at all that is necessary to build a new dry basement you realize that 99% of current basements were never built to be dry. The fact that some are is due to where they are and the moisture in the soil around them. Apparently your soil and is not appropriate for having a dry basement, and ending up with one will require major improvements.
At the start of a dry basement they pour the footings over a rubber membrane that is then wrapped up to become continuous with the wall treatment and to the inside where it is sealed to the below slab treatment. Those steps can never be added to an existing foundation, thus any moisture in the soil will be wicking its way up those walls looking for a place to push its way in. Products like drywall state they can stop water, but they do not stop moisture vapor, which becomes water on the inside.
Some reading:
http://buildingscience.com/documents/digests/bsd-103-understanding-basements?full_view=1
Bud
At the start of a dry basement they pour the footings over a rubber membrane that is then wrapped up to become continuous with the wall treatment and to the inside where it is sealed to the below slab treatment. Those steps can never be added to an existing foundation, thus any moisture in the soil will be wicking its way up those walls looking for a place to push its way in. Products like drywall state they can stop water, but they do not stop moisture vapor, which becomes water on the inside.
Some reading:
http://buildingscience.com/documents/digests/bsd-103-understanding-basements?full_view=1
Bud
As others have stated painting anything including dry lock on the inside of a wall does nothing other than make the wall white. Looking at the outside, I see several potential issues. One, the lot is pretty flat. There looks to be some down grade to the right of the house but otherwise flat. I also see mulch piled up,against the stone veneer. Here is what I would do,for starters, reduce the level of the mulch or soil in the gardens so it's below the level of the stone (assuming there is a concrete foundation behind and below it). , extend the downspouts three or more feet from the house, and if you have an automated sprinkler system in that shrub bed, stop using it or remove the sprinkler heads and water manually when needed. If it doesn't work, then more substantial grading will be necessary or in the worst case excavation and waterproofing the foundation from the outside. Or if it only happens occasionally (like in my case), ignore it, use a dehumidifier and don't ever consider finishing the basement.
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