Drylok, good idea or not?

15206 Views 2 Replies 2 Participants Last post by bk626, Jun 29, 2011

bk626

Discussion Starter · Jun 29, 2011

I have an older house ,built in 72, and during heavy rain the basement leaks. We are in the process of selling the home and the basement poses concern to future buyers. It's not a finished basement, and using a dehumidifier it dry's in less than a day. I've heard pro's and con's with using drylok and just don't know what to do. We have had estimates on waterproofing and most say do a french drain, but the cost is so much. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as we thought about applying the drylok soon. Thanks

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coderguy

· #2 · Jun 29, 2011 (Edited)

bk626 said:
I have an older house ,built in 72, and during heavy rain the basement leaks. We are in the process of selling the home and the basement poses concern to future buyers. It's not a finished basement, and using a dehumidifier it dry's in less than a day. I've heard pro's and con's with using drylok and just don't know what to do. We have had estimates on waterproofing and most say do a french drain, but the cost is so much. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as we thought about applying the drylok soon. Thanks

You can do the drylok, and then the new owners can be screwed. Guess what is peeling off my basement walls as I struggle to come up with the money, patience and time to deal with our basement water problem? Oh; you guessed it - Drylok! With the bitter new homeowner in me out of the way....

I suggest you disclose the problem regardless of how you fix it, and provide the paperwork on how you had it fixed. Drylok isn't a fix in my eyes, it is a cover-up. Since you have just light moisture; You could assess the grading and gutters and fix any deficiencies there; which may alleviate the problem or in some cases eliminate it. If there is a gutter leaking bad or absent; or a portion of the house has bad grading; that water could be collecting around the foundation.

Sorry you have water in the basement; it really makes you pull your hair out...

EDIT: I believe it is called "inward drying"; as the foundation gets wet it needs to dry inwards, drylok locks the water in the foundation. Here is a great read:
http://www.buildingscience.com/docu...nderstanding-basements?topic=doctypes/digests

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bk626

Discussion Starter · #3 · Jun 29, 2011

Thanks, water in the basement wasn't that big of deal while we just lived there. We dealt with it and moved on, its an unfinished basement we just use to store items and a truck. Now that we have it for sale.... huge frustration. I would think having a basement would be a plus, but not so much anymore.

I've heard drylok can cause more problems than it can help. The water has to go somewhere, and if it can't come out, where's it going to go? We also did a pre-inspection, and the inspector said he wouldn't paint the walls since that's a big sign you're hiding something. I think we may work on the gutters (draining) and maybe do some minor grading to slope away from the house first.

I appreciate the feedback!! and the link!

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