Basement Waterproofing

Any recommendations for masons/water-proofing contractors that repoint basement stone walls where mortar has failed?

owest

in General Discussion 8 months ago

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cate | 1 weeks ago

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Stone rubble basement walls always admit humidity by their very nature. Actual leaks may have another cause. Before digging down and repointing and waterproofing outside, which is expensive and disruptive, you might want to try other things first. Concrete should be sloped away from the house. Water should be carried away from the house (with clean, sufficient, and properly installed and maintained gutters, etc.). Brick and stone stories should be repointed and repaired and not admitting any water (a first floor level of brick that needed repointing but was hidden under PermaStone turned out to be the cause of our longtime cellar leaks). We also had other leaks in the cellar that didn’t appear to be from the rubble walls, and those turned out to be coming from neighbors and also from worn out lead solder in our main waste pipe during heavy snow and rain.

edrice | 1 weeks ago

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Here’s the quote I have for my 20ft brownstone in BedStuy. We have a lot of water coming in only through the rear wall. The backyard is a poured concrete patio from the back of the house and extends about 25ft back.

“Exterior Foundation wall waterproofing at back of the building:
we will dig down up to foundation level. we will clean the foundation wall after digging. we will repoint the joint. once the pointing is dry, we will apply blue membrane waterproofing Blueskin, finally we will apply flashing for extra waterproofing protection. For 3rd protection there would be cement pour along with foundation wall up to 3 /4 inch we will refill the dirt, compact the soil, finally we will make 6-inch cement slab with wire mesh ,5 feet/5 feet.
When outside is waterproofed, we will clean old mortar from stone, repoint with spec mix mortar and then apply parge coat.

Payment Schedule
1st Installment 30% $7,500 of total Amount (owner can pay same day we start the job)
2nd Installment 40% $10,000 of total amount after finishing waterproofing outside
3rd payment 30%$7,500 after completing the job

For sales tax exemption owner can use ST-124 form as capital Improvement. we will provide ST-124 form upon order. “

daveb | 7 months ago

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dudeonocean: Sorry for the late reply, I used:

The foundation waterproofing company I used is called City Suburb Inc. The contact is Ravinder Singh: citysuburb07@gmail.com. I thought they were very good. Fast, clean, efficient. https://citysuburbinc.com/

dudeonocean | 8 months ago

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daveb can you share the name of the contractor that your used?

bklynteacher | 8 months ago

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I’ll highly recommend Mohammed Kabir at 917-407-9058. He paved our patio, repointed brick, restored brownstone, and painted. He gave me his advice and an estimate to improve the condition of the brick and stone in our cellar; but I haven’t pulled the trigger on that job. He has done similarly good work for two of my neighbors. Though he’s rather difficult to understand, we’re all happy customers, and all rather amazed by his low prices! You can tell him that Stephen on South Oxford Street recommended him.

daveb | 8 months ago

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I had the back of the house waterproofed in 2021 after Hurricane Ida after seeing water literally pour through the foundation. These men had to crawl under my steel frame deck (about 3 feet of clearance), excavate 6 feet down, repair the mortar, apply a waterproof membrane, back fill, and repave the area under the deck. Took them three days, highly recommended. On top of that, I run two dehumidifiers in the basement year round, and run a window ac unit in the summer – all of which helps. I’m still susceptible to heavy storms which overwhelm the sewers, but when that’s an issue the water doesn’t enter through the foundation, it comes up my shower drain and traps, not as easy to address compared to the foundation.

workisfun | 8 months ago

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We have two dehumidifiers running at around 35% – 40%. Also installed vertical vapor barriers along rhe rubble walls and a water barrier beneath the slab. The barriers are tucked into a perimeter drain, which leads to the sump pump. Couldn’t do external because of accessibility and cost. We’re happy with our interventions, though. Will always be fighting the moisture levels in the air.

Brownstone Home Inspection | 8 months ago

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keep in mind, mortar itself is not impervious to moisture. there are additives that can be added to mortar and 4000 psi concrete, say on a floor, comes close. these wall will never be ideal. even if you get it good, it will need maintenance every few years.

Brownstone Home Inspection | 8 months ago

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robert:

i tell people that more often than not, there will be moisture (water) coming in through the mortar or high humidity in general. i am using a hygrometer and see readings of 50% – 72% and these are too high. readings of 60% in the air can push the moisture content of wood above 25% and we can see termites thrive. readings over 50% can support mold in dark places. that is what i see in MOST places in the city but sometimes we get an area that has historically remained dry (as evident by no inactive termite damage; most brownstones have some termite damage. if someone asks, i will elaborate on why and what this means for this type of construction).

some of the high humidity is brought on by seasonal wet periods and some are ever present conditions (a lot of water in the ground).

instead of spending money on a loosing battle for nothing, i say run two small humidifiers in these basements. if there is water pouring in through the mortar joints, go ahead and seal but that might not be perfect because if can come in through the floor.

I did have someone write me today about these drains installed around the perimeter that catch the water and direct them to a sump pump. if things are that bad, i can say that they do work because my aunt had one installed and it worked and i speak to customers who have them. i see them all the time. but water has to be directed to the drains and that can be problematic.

BobMarvin | 8 months ago

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So Steve, are you saying that cellars like mine, with rubble foundations, will always be somewhat damp?

Brownstone Home Inspection | 8 months ago

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simple repointing and parging will not hold water back. The best way to do this is by “positive side” water proofing (on the outside). because this is an expensive undertaking, people often do “negative side” water proofing (on the inside using liquid applied products). know that negative side water proofing fails because the weight of the water pressing on it will cause the liquid product to decouple with the wall.

Before calling a contractor, read about negative side water proofing so you have an understanding of some of the products and challenges. when the contractor is on site, talk about some of the products. if he has not heard of some of them or cannot talk to them or offer up similar products that do what you are talking about, he is not who he says he is (as a professional, we get through these questions on the initial phone call so we do not waste time).

i do water leak investigations on the upper portions of buildings. i do not usually come out for basements because water is often everywhere outside these houses. even if you pour a pad with high psi concrete to help move water away, it will go in the ground and move laterally to your wall.

steve
www.brownstonehomeinspection.com