Waterproofing 101 from the experts on Waterproofing Kansas City Basements
- Eric Scheele
- May 1, 2017
- 3 min read
Does this apply to your Kansas City home?
I have a house with a block, rock and poured foundation. On wet days, water leaks through the blocks, rocks and cracks in the corners and on some of the walls.
Unfortunately, this is a reality for many families in Kansas City. Our phone activity always spike over long periods of rain in Kansas City. Here is some advice that we put to work with many of our crack seal and waterproofing projects.
Let's start with the source - the exterior! The best waterproofing methods are those that address water leakage at exterior surfaces of the foundation. Ideally, moisture protection is achieved through the combination of controlled surface runoff, applied foundation damp-proofing, effective subsurface soil drainage, and the installation of an effective perimeter drainage system. The bad news is that you don’t know what has been done on the outside of the foundation below grade; and re-excavating the perimeter of the foundation to inspect and/or install the appropriate moisture proofing and drainage can be costly. The good news is that you still can take some steps to improve your chances of having a dry finished basement.
On the outside, start by installing roof gutters connected to downspouts and leaders that direct water at least 10 ft. away from the house. Then grade the soil around the perimeter of the house with a positive slope leading water away.
On the inside, apply damp-proofing to the surface of the foundation wall. There are many damp proofing over the counter products that can provide an important layer of moisture protection. These products have a low permeance, or perm, rating and a good track record for holding back liquid water in commercial applications. Be sure that the coating you choose is low perm (around 1 perm). This product will minimize diffusion from the soil through the foundation.
The problem with applying moisture proofing coatings on the inside, though, is that the damp-proofing product will be under negative pressure. Any water trying to leak in literally will be pushing the coating off the wall vs. damp-proofing applied to the exterior is on the positive pressure side. The success of the product depends on how well it adheres to the wall. Remember that these coatings are not elastic. They also are unable to bridge any cracks that develop in the foundation walls.
If you want to finish the basement to create living space, you can attach a layer of foam insulation directly to the inside surface of the foundation after the interior damp-proofing is applied and cured. Though we really suggest you explore options that address and waterproof the exterior walls. The exterior methods we use come with LIFETIME warranties against moisture penetration. If exterior walls are not financially feasible to you, then tape the seams of the insulation, and seal all edges of the foam panels to prevent air from reaching the cold foundation, which will cause condensation. Then build an uninsulated wood-frame wall spaced away from the foundation. It will be simple to run the plumbing and electrical lines through an uninsulated wall, and the frame should remain above dew-point temperature, reducing the likelihood that condensation will form in the wall.
KC Pier - Foundation Experts provide foundation repair and basement waterproofing in Kansas City and the surrounding metro area. KC Pier specializes in pier installation to correct foundation settlement, waterproofing leaking basements, straightening or stabilizing bowing walls and correcting poor drainage, foundation piers, wall piering and ibeam support solutions.
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