8 Ways Water Can Get Into Your Basement

Eight ways water can get into your basement.....and subsequently ruin family heirlooms, floors, walls, your real estate value ........and possibly your life. OK, maybe not your life, but, we can all agree that any unrestrained water in your home is a disaster so here goes:

There are two routes water takes and some possible ways to remedy the situation:
 
- Route A: water coming down above aka surface water
     - Ventilation vents - your best option is just to remove these.
     - Windows and window wells - remove, replace, or change the outside grade.
     - Steps, Bilco doors - usually you can change the door or change the outside grade.
     - Downspouts - run them away from the home.

 - Route B: water that comes up from below aka ground water
     - through the floor - if you have a dirt floor pour a concrete floor, if you have a concrete floor there are a few ways to fix this but it depends on how the floor was installed so it is a tougher issue to talk about here, call us for that one.
     - through the sump pit - a bigger pump, deeper pit, or backup electric can fix that.
     - through the walls - probably you will need to dig out the foundation, repair, tar or parge the walls, and install drains, BUT, depending on the amount of water you may be able to paint on a water sealer. 

There are a lot of variables to how to repair these things. Your foundation type is a big factor as well as the outside grade. Feel free to call or email photos of your particular problem. Often the issues can be remedied with a simple inexpensive fix. Once in a while the situation calls for going full tilt and installing everything known to man to keep the water at bay. Those situations are not the norm though.