Basements, Attics and Crawl Spaces - Need Waterproofing advice.

After deliberation with others, i am going to seal my basement wall before I start to Finnish it. I wasn’t going to at first because it was sealed from the outside and I wasn’t going to do the extra work. But I’ve been told that the extra precaution over time will be worth it since pored concert over time will leak. I wanted to know about 2 products; Damtite and Dryloc. If it makes difference or what. I do know Dryloc in the 5 gal. is about $100. Im doing this all out of pocket, so no home loans and I want to waist money.

The walls will be sealed, but do I HAVE to do the floor as well? I know I sound whinny but I do want to know.

Also, I wanted to know if the two pics show should be caulked or just painted over with the sealant. They are hairlines and wanted to know.



http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd134/gripp2020/Tha%20House/Crack1.jpg

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd134/gripp2020/Tha%20House/Crack2.jpg

You should waterproof up to grade level and out onto the floor about 6" or so. If there are any holes in the monolith, plug them with hydraulic cement or cement patch compound before you drylock/damtite it. Both, are fine products for what you intend. The cracks I see can be coated right over with the compound, as it is a concrete based product itself. Now, you won't go nailing things to your wall once it is sealed, will you? You do plan on building walls separate from the concrete, I am sure.
Not sure which part of GA you are in, but there is more hydraulic pressure here in the mountains that there is in the flatlands.

I've used both the drylok and damtite and both do a good job. I'd probably use drylok because it's already mixed :D Use the latex version - it's almost as good as the oil base and the odor won't drive you out of the house. The main thing is to apply it liberally! You want a good fluid coat so it will fill all the pores.

IMO waterproofing the inside of the foundation prior to finishing the basement is cheap insurance.

Ok posted my pics of the basement. (its a little junkier now.:P These pics are from when i first moved in :D) I came home with a 5 gal bucket of Dryloc guys, but listening to others, hell i may need another one!! Was $100 plus i got the Drylok Pourable Crack Filler as well because where the walls and the floor meet, there is separation there as well. (links below) The separation crack is on all 3 walls. Now in the pic, the big crack is from the tub stub but look a long the wall and the floor, i think i should caulk it too.

And no Chandler, i wont nail anything to it. I was ready for me and my out of work contractor help to start framing, but i figured i better ask u guys bout sealing it.




http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd134/gripp2020/Tha%20House/Iphonepics040.jpg


Tha House pictures by gripp2020 - Photobucket (http://s220.photobucket.com/albums/dd134/gripp2020/Tha%20House/)

If you are planning to coat all the monolithic walls, everywhere there is wood, it will have to be removed, painted, then replaced after it dries. If you don't you will create a possible moisture area behind the wood members.

Yea chander your right. Had that conversation at work bout the space under the stairs. I wasnt going to do it but he told me that, water travels, and being a designer i should have thought about that first. It will travel past the coated part of the wall and enter where it isnt. I watch a lot of "holms on homes" and his "Do it right" approach. I will have to find a way to get behind the studs your talking about. The studs your referring to are structural, so i will attempt to get behind them with out removing them first. If not, once my contractor and i start framing, i will remove with his help and then coat.

So the outside was already sealed and now you will seal the inside. Where does any moisture go that gets to the wall? With two vapor barriers instead of one and dry to the inside..... BSD-012: Moisture Control for New Residential Buildings — (http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/digests/bsd-012-moisture-control-for-new-residential-buildings?full_view=1)
Be safe, Gary

Ok DANG IT !! Everyone has been telling me i was crazy for NOT sealing it while i have it empty and no issues. Calling it cheap insurance. YEa the outside is sealed, but i was thinking the same thing. Why not do the inside "Just in case". Cause that way if it EVER gets past the outside, then it still has to get past the inside as well. I dont know where it goes once its past the outer barrier, but im guessing it will go down and out the bottom of the wall slab instead of into my finished basement.

What are your issues with sealing the inside?

LOL Ive been umpiring this Sat. from 10 till 7 !! Im feeling lazy, but i was gonna go down and start sealing tonight and get done before monday!!! Probably still will, just want to hear what you had to say.

I've used drylok on quite a few basement walls and have never been made aware of any issues regarding the wall being sealed from both sides..... although often when I'm called for such a job, the foundation has already been leaking.

It used to be that a lot of folks painted their basement walls [cheaper than finishing :D] and we always used drylok for the 1st coat and then whatever the customer spec'd for the top coat.

Just to comment on the comment of the people who asked if you waterproof the outside and your waterproof the inside - where does the water go.

The answer is that if you remove all soil from around the foundation and you put two coats of Hydroshield on the wall - with a Fiberglass cloth between the two coats and you nail drainage board to the outside of the home and you put your weeping tile on the bottom - near the footer and you fill the whole area above the weeping tile the whole way to the top of the foundation with gravel and you put gutters and downspouts on all your roofs and you divert all water away from your foundation and you keep topsoil and gardens away from the foundation - then you will not ever have any water issues.

The problems comes when you do not have gutters and you do not have downspouts that are followed by splashdowns and ran into a pipe that would carry the water away from the home and when you plant flower gardens right up against the foundation and the dirt gets down into the weeping tile and plugs it up - then you have the drainage problems.

Too many people are only out for looks and most people do not understand how a foundation works.

The worst thing you can do is plant pine trees around the home. Pine trees has a root structure that will go 2 to 3 times as far as the tree its self. The roots will grow into the weeping tiles and into the cracks in the foundation and will grow into the pipes for the drains and will cause nothing but problems in the long run.

Ok, after 2 five gallon buckets and 2 one gallon buckets of DryLock, im done. The basement is 16 to 1800 sq. feet so i did need all of it.

Gonna start framing this week end.

Im putting Berber carpet on Media and both bedroom sides and on the Kitchen-sitting/2tv aria and office side im putting a durable hardwood. (in plane english, carpet on one side of the basement and wood on the other)

Question: do i HAVE to put a plywood sub floor down? Then a pad and then carpet. I saw on another post that i shouldnt put a pad down in a basement, but if not wont it be kinda hard under the carpet? I will put a sub floor down in the bathroom cause i plan to put tile in there.

I believe there is a pad made specially for basements,It's a foam and I think its odor resistant.check at any flooring or carpet retailer.Putting down a subfloor will make the floor under your feet warmer but in my basement the carpet was put down directly on the concrete,its been there for around 20 years now.

And you won't put subflooring down in the bathroom to install tile. Install it over the concrete. You don't want plywood directly on the concrete, as it will absorb moisture.