Before You Finish Your Basement…
Few things can destroy a newly finished basement like groundwater flooding or a plumbing failure. Taking a few precautions before a flood occurs can prevent this issue and protect your home. This includes eliminating all existing and potential sources of flooding and addressing any issues with humidity in the space.
Homeowners who have a wet basement are often reluctant to invest in finishing, worrying that water damage will ruin their new space. With a little preparation (including a warrantied basement waterproofing system), your basement can be permanently protected from any moisture damage to drywall, insulation, or property.
Once the basement is finished, repairing and waterproofing the space is much more expensive. If you’re planning to finish the basement, it is recommended that you prepare it beforehand. However, if your basement is already finished, many of these precautions can still be taken.
Install an Effective Drainage System
If your basement floods after it’s been finished, flooding water can damage drywall, flooring, insulation, wiring, and personal property.
Repairing a finished basement that’s flooded can be very costly. The better choice is to install a drainage system before the basement is finished. Many homeowners choose this option as a precaution even if their basement has never flooded before.
Install A Complete Sump Pump System
Installing a sump pump system ensures that you can discharge large volumes of water from your home in the case of heavy rains or a plumbing failure. If you’ve installed a drainage system, you should definitely install a sump system as well.
The best sump pumps are ready for anything — including power outages and sump pump failure. This means that your system should include both a battery backup and a secondary sump system that can kick on if your primary pump fails.
Guard Against Frozen Discharge Lines
One of the most common causes of sump pump failure occurs when discharge lines become clogged with ice or debris. When water has no way out of the home, the sump system backs up. To protect against flooding, your drainage system should include an open discharge line extension to send water away from the foundation of your house.
Seal The Basement Walls
Because concrete basement walls are porous, they sponge moisture from the earth outside. This moisture enters your basement in the form of water vapour. This moisture will then build up behind walls, leading to mold, mildew, and moisture issues.
By sealing the basement walls, you create a barrier for water vapour, protecting your interior and directing any water into your perimeter drain.
Install A Warm, Dry Floor
Moisture can also make its way upwards through a concrete floor. If you’re planning on installing anything on your floor that can be damaged by mold or moisture (carpeting, wood, chipboard, glue, etc.), then it’s vital that you install a vapour barrier beneath it to protect your floor finishing.
Upgrade Those Basement Windows
Basement windows are vital to the beauty and appeal of your finished basement. If they’re dingy, rusty, and providing a front-row view of a rusted window well, then they’re not doing their job. We recommend upgrading your basement windows to models with energy-efficient glass.
While you’re at it, protect your windows from rain, snow, and cold winter winds by installing covered basement window wells at each window location. Along with keeping back the cold, the cover will also hold back dirt, leaves, and other debris that would otherwise fill the window well and grow weeds.
Perform Basic Exterior Maintenance
For a typical home, a 1″ rainfall adds up to about 500 gallons of water on your roof. Unless your exterior is properly designed to handle this water volume, this can mean a lot of water in the soil around your foundation.
Extending your downspouts and keeping your gutters clean of leaves and debris is an important part of properly maintaining your home. And those window wells we talked about earlier, should be carefully cleaned of leaves, debris, and weeds at least once a year. To make sure that water is running away from your home, it’s also vital to check your grading. If necessary, regrade the soil so it’s pitched away from the foundation.
Install Plumbing Leak Safeguards
If you’ve invested a lot of time and money to protect your basement from flooding from the outside, it’s certainly worth it to spend a little on protecting your basement from plumbing leaks from the inside. Water heaters can begin to leak significantly as they age. If you already have a perimeter drain system installed, it’s usually a simple thing to install a ring around the water heater that connects to that drainage system.
Protecting your basement from moisture will ensure that when you refinish your basement remodel, it stays valuable and looking great for many decades to come.
Source: Homeservice Club of Canada