Why is basement waterproofing important?

by | Feb 5, 2015 | Construction and Maintenance

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It is very important that the basement in your home be kept dry at all times, a damp, leaking basement can become a nightmare. Your home is probably your single biggest investment and it is in your best interests to ensure that all areas of the house are well maintained, this includes the basement. It makes little difference if you have spent a great deal of money turning your basement into a home theater or if it’s just a convenient storage space, keeping it dry is vital for the health of the family living in the home as well as for the house itself. There is no better reason for effective basement waterproofing in Philadelphia.

Let’s discuss why it is important:

Just for starters a wet basement is an ideal breeding ground for mold and mildew. Mold can colonize a damp area very quickly, the spores move on air currents and before you know it the mold has invaded your air ducts and every room in the house. Mold can be quite dangerous, it is responsible for a number of health related issues, especially respiratory issues.

A wt basement will eventually lead to unwanted structural problems, it takes but a little source of constant moisture to begin wood rotting. As well as these issues, a wet basement is inviting for pests that tend to thrive in damp environments. Effective basement waterproofing in Philadelphia will help keep the basement in your home dry, safe and healthy. A dry basement will also eliminate the potential of that unpleasant smell that comes from a musty basement and everything that is in it.

An effective method of waterproofing a basement:

There are a number of commonly used basement waterproofing methods in use, one of the most common is a process called “tanking.” Tanking involves the application of a waterproof chemical coating to either the outside of the wall that is in contact with the backfill spoil or the interior basement walls and floors. Newly built homes or homes that have been built for perhaps the last half century will invariably been tanked on the outside during construction. It is ideal as a water barrier.

Unfortunately not even the best water barrier is perfect, water will find the path of least resistance, when it comes to basement construction this is the joint between the wall and the foundation and where the slab joins the wall around the perimeter of the space. Problems in these areas can often be solved with interior tanking, a very effective method of basement waterproofing in Philadelphia.