Fall Basement Waterproofing Preparedness

It's fall, and the leaves will soon be turning all sorts of colors, falling into our yards and streets.

They also fall in to your gutters, which can present unforeseen consequences for your basement or crawl space. Clogged gutters are one of the most preventable causes of basement seepage, and happen all too often, especially in these heavily wooded Michigan neighborhoods.

Fall basement waterproofing preparedness starts with making sure those gutters are cleaned of all leaves and debris, so they can flow easily and direct water away from your foundation.

When you allow leaves to clog up your gutter, a couple of things happen. First, water is allowed to flow over the sides of the gutters like a waterfall. This overflow of large volumes of water creates a powerful splashing very close to your foundation, which can more easily make its way into old window sills, above-grade foundation cracks, as well as the sill plate––the space between the top of your foundation walls and the upper floors of your home.

As the rain continues, and the gutters continue to pour out water, the soil becomes more rapidly saturated. At it's most critical point, the water table (body of natural ground water pushing upward) and the surface water (rain absorbing into the ground) converge, and begin to push against your foundation, working its way into hairline cracks and up through your floors.

The more you can do to route water away from your foundation, the better off your home will be during heavy rainstorms––so keep those gutters clean!

Floor Cracks and Basement Waterproofing

During the average home's lifetime, there are bound to be waterproofing and structural issues. Just like other common issues you may experience more often upstairs, it's part of the game. Some of these issues, like your windows fogging up in the winter, can be indicative of a larger issue (insufficient insulation and weatherproofing).

Floor cracks, like many other basement waterproofing warning signs, can certainly be one of these indicators. Basement floor cracks can point to larger issues such as foundation settlement and hydrostatic water pressure buildup.

Each of these issues requires a different strategy––a general rule of thumb is, if one side of the crack is taller (or one half sinks), you may be dealing with a larger structural issue that may require the attention of a foundation professional.

How Storms Affect Your Basement

Storms impact us in many ways, and can have devastating effects on our homes. For some of us, it’s wind and lightning that have the most damaging effects. For most of us, however, its the prolonged, torrential downpours that tend to have a lasting impact on our homes.

Foundation cracks, water seepage, and mold can become indefinite problems if not addressed, and generally tend to become worse, and more difficult and costly to fix over time.
Basement Waterproofing and Heavy Rain

Two things happen when it rains heavily for extended periods of time. Surface pooling, and total soil saturation. The pooling on the surface can immediately find its way into your basement through windows, the sill plate, and unsealed cracks in your foundation walls.

After an extended period of time, the soil around your home may become saturated, creating a large amount of water pressure pressing against your foundation. With enough pressure, water can actually begin to make its way up through the concrete joints where the walls and the floor meet, as well as through floor and hairline cracks.

The best way to avoid bigger problems in the future is to have it looked at as soon as you notice an issue; whether it be sudden mold growth, hairline cracks, peeling paint, or excessive rust on appliances. These sorts of early warning indicators can save you loads of time and trouble in the long run.

Storms impact us in many ways, and can have devastating effects on our homes. For some of us, it’s wind and lightning that have the most damaging effects. For most of us, however, its the prolonged, torrential downpours that tend to have a lasting impact on our homes.
Foundation cracks, water seepage, and mold can become indefinite problems if not addressed, and generally tend to become worse, and more difficult and costly to fix over time.

Basement Waterproofing and Heavy Rain

Two things happen when it rains heavily for extended periods of time. Surface pooling, and total soil saturation. The pooling on the surface can immediately find its way into your basement through windows, the sill plate, and unsealed cracks in your foundation walls.
After an extended period of time, the soil around your home may become saturated, creating a large amount of water pressure pressing against your foundation. With enough pressure, water can actually begin to make its way up through the concrete joints where the walls and the floor meet, as well as through floor and hairline cracks.
The best way to avoid bigger problems in the future is to have it looked at as soon as you notice an issue; whether it be sudden mold growth, hairline cracks, peeling paint, or excessive rust on appliances. These sorts of early warning indicators can save you loads of time and trouble in the long run.
- See more at: http://everdrymichigan.com/how-storms-affect-your-basement/#sthash.TsJK0sY0.dpuf

Sump Pump Discharge Lines

Example of a discharge line tied into main sewer line.

Many homeowners underestimate the importance of the configuration of the discharge line. The discharge line is what leads the water from the sump basin out of the home, and can have a direct effect on the pumping efficiency of your home's waterproofing system. Here are some things you want to be aware of:

1. Long distances. The farther the water has to travel through a discharge line, the harder your pump has to work in order to get it out of your home. This can allow water to build up in your perimeter drain tile, and may cause premature pump failure.
2. Too many fittings. If your path out of the home isn't the simplest one, and your discharge line is curved and routed every which way, you may be adding unneeded stress to your pump. Reduce the amount of turns in your discharge line, and make its route outside as short and simple as possible.
3. Beware tying into sewer lines. In some areas, this is completely disallowed. In others, you must have a secondary overflow valve and line exiting the home onto your yard to prevent catastrophic failure in the event of a storm backup. Always abide by city code.
4. Prevent winter freezing. In these cold, bitter Detroit winters, it's important to make sure the discharge line isn't freezing outside and block up your waterproofing system. We recommend adding a rubber coupling a few feet out from the home so the line can be shortened during the freezing winter months.

Learn more at http://www.everdrymichigan.com.

Keep An Eye On Foundation Cracks

Foundation cracks can occur more and more frequently as your home's foundation ages, but can also occur relatively early on in the life of a foundation.

Cracking in the foundation can occur based on a variety of circumstances, whether it be improper construction, excess soil moisture during construction, or high soil pressure due to regular, heavy water saturation.

What we do about foundation cracks and when is critical. If left for too long, small issues can become larger structural issues that become more costly and difficult to fix. So what can you do? First, perform a crack inspection. You may also have a professional contractor perform a free basement inspection. Inspect the foundation from both the inside and outside of the home, the latter being especially useful in the case of a drywalled interior.

Hairline cracking is common and nothing to be too alarmed about––however, there are still recommended precautions you should take. First, reduce the possibility of moisture seeping through the crack by applying masonry caulk along the cracked area. If the foundation shifts and the crack becomes larger, consult a foundation professional. We also recommend reaching out to a professional if water seepages is too powerful for the caulk and begins to make its way through.

For more information about free foundation repair inspections in the Detroit and S.E. Michigan area, click here!

Basement Waterproofing Michigan | Everdry Michigan | Maintaining Floor Drains & Main Sewer Line

It’s important to remember that flood-proofing a home basement only has a few things in common with waterproofing large structures like apartment buildings, hotels, or parking lot garages. It’s true that both usually have floor drains that can be maintained by snaking a pipe with electrically-powered drain cleaning rooter machines. However, unplugging a house trap cleanout or catch basin is a completely unique project.

Unlike sewer laterals in large industrial structures, the sewer main in your home can become clogged with substances like fat, grease, food, cosmetics, shampoo and toilet paper. Regardless of how well your basement walls are waterproofed to protect against hydrostatic pressure and provide under slab drainage, you could still be susceptible to a flood from a backed up floor drain.

In order to avoid this, there are a few precautions you can take. First, if you’ve had problems with the main sewer line clogging in the past, it might be time to replace or repair it. Jackhammering the basement floor is the only way to reach the pipe itself, but a sewer snake or hydro jet might be able to solve the problem just as well. And don’t forget: your gutter downspouts tie into your main sewer line too, which is why these are also take into consideration by many professional basement waterproofing companies.

For more on basement waterproofing in Michigan, feel free to visit everdrymichigan.com or call 586-698-3030

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