How to Take Care of a Leaky Basement Like a Pro

It seems like, in recent years, the midwest has been plagued by an excess amount of precipitation. And while this is great for helping the flowers bloom come springtime, it isn’t great for homes that are vulnerable to leaky basements and potential flooding.

Water in your basement can cause damage to the floors and ceilings, which can then lead to costly repairs. So, if you notice that you have some just a little bit of water in your basement, you need to act fast so that it doesn’t turn into something more serious.

Today, we’re going to offer up a solution for dealing with a leaky basement.

What Causes Leaky Basements?

A leaky basement can be attributed to one of the two types of pressure: hydrostatic and lateral. When it rains heavily and consistently, the soil around your home becomes overly saturated, which causes hydrostatic pressure – also known as water pressure. This type of pressure then causes the moisture and water to slip past cracks in your walls and floor.

The soil around your home is looser, which leads it to absorb more liquid. If you don’t have the proper gutter set-up our your downspouts aren’t position well enough to lead water away from this looser soil, then you may run into problems. The soil around your foundation will then continue to take on more water, eventually expanding and placing pressure against your home. This is known as lateral pressure and will likely bring harm to your home’s foundation by creating leaks.

Pay attention to any window wells you have as well, as they can be another culprit for leaky basements. When wells aren’t installed correctly or the drain becomes clogged, then the well will fill with water. Heavy rain can then cause the water to leak into the basement.

Solutions to Leaky Basements

Some homeowners will try and paint their basement floor or block walls with a special coating of paint to stop water from sneaking in, but this usually doesn’t work particularly well and eventually, the moisture will find a way in.

If you have any cracks in the foundation and if your gutters are overflowing, or, as previously mentioned, your downspouts aren’t placed properly, then there may be no stopping the water with these simple measures.

In fact, nine times out of ten, you’ll end up doing what we recently did in the basement of one of our client’s homes. Using a cement saw, we cut through the floor around the perimeter of the floor. After getting rid of all the rubble and clearing out the basement, we dug down six inches into the trench that we had created.

Then, you take a piece of drain tile and run it around the perimeter of the floor, into the trench. The drain tile is simply a plastic pipe with perforations. This allows any water to run into the pipe, where it will then flow into a sump pump, which is essentially a giant basket buried in the ground attached to an electric pump.

The pump will then be able to sense when the basket is too full of water and will suck it out and away from the foundation of your home. It is crucial that the pump leads far enough away from the home where the water won’t end up back in your basement.

While this may sound like a complicated procedure on your home, here at Treasured Spaces, we are well-versed in this process and will have your home leak-free in no time.

Contact Treasured Spaces For All Your Home Remodeling Needs

Our team of home building experts prides themselves on customer-oriented service. We’ll work with you to ensure that your home is exactly the way you want it.

At Treasured Spaces, we preach loving the one you’re with. So make your current home your forever home with Treasured Spaces. Contact us today!