Signs of Water in Your Basement

For some spring is their favorite time of the year in Kansas City. It's time to get our and enjoy the beautiful weather. Flowers and trees are in bloom, the grass is turning green, The KC area fountains have turned on and the temperatures start to warm up. With that also comes rain and basement flooding. Kansas City Fountains

Rain can cause a lot of issues with water getting into Kansas City area homes. It is best to make sure your foundation walls are in good shape before a significant rainfall.

• Damp or wet carpet
• Damp or wet drywall
• Cracks in foundation walls
• Cracks in concrete floor
• Windows that leak
• Condensation on pipes or exposed beams
• Efflorescence or salt deposits
• Musty smell

A lot of residents in the Kansas City metro ask, "what causes water to get inside my basement?" This question has several different factors when it comes to basement waterproofing.

A Clog in Your Footing Drain - Over time drains can get clogged with all kind of debris. Typically a footing drain has a filter fabric that keeps large particles of debris out. Over time finer particles can work their way through the fabric and can clog the drain. Once this happens hydrostatic pressure and build up and this can lead to water issues.

Hydrostatic Pressure - We have all heard the saying “water travels in the path of least resistance.” In the case of hydrostatic pressure, the water weighs more than 60 lbs. per cubic foot. In the case of a major rainstorm, the soil could be saturated with water. In this case a home’s foundation could have thousands of pounds of hydrostatic pressure building up against the foundation walls. At some point the water will work its way into the foundation walls through cracks.

Soil Settlement Issues - When a foundation is originally being poured by the homebuilder, The over dig from the excavator can cause many problems with the concrete being poured. As the dirt is filled back in, it is often times not compacted. The soil can settle very easily. As this happens the settlement can cause voids under the foundation walls. This can lead to cracks. Once that happens, water can find its way into the basement.

When a rainstorm comes and you are dealing with the aftermath of standing water or basement flooding the best thing to do is to call us. PierMagic® Foundation Specialists will come out and give a free estimate to all home owners. During this time we will come up with a solution that will prevent this from happening in the future.