Waterproofing Basement Walls - Do It Yourself Or Leave It To The Pros?

If you plan on building your basement into utilized living space, you must be sure you do not have a damp basement, or worse yet, a leaky basement. If you have any moisture at all coming inside you'll need to consider waterproofing basement walls before beginning construction. The question then becomes whether to do the work yourself or hire a professional waterproofing contractor.

Unless you have several basement leaks, a flooded basement or foundation issues, you may be able to do the work yourself and come out with a dry basement. Now, if you do have severe water problems in your basement then don't even think of doing the work yourself. Get several bids from professional contractors and have them waterproof the basement professionally. You will be very happy you did.

To get started on doing the work yourself, you'll first want to do a visual inspection. Where is the moisture or water in the basement coming from? The most common cause is through cracks in the walls and foundation, but there can be other reasons as well. Believe it or not, I had a friend who complained of having water in the basement and it turned out to be the excess condensation from his air conditioner that caused it! This is why you want to get to the root source of the problem first.

Before waterproofing basement walls you will want to have a smooth clean surface. Clean off any dirt and remove loose mortar or excess concrete from the walls.

Next, repair any cracks where the water was coming in. Fill them with quick dry cement designed for basement walls.

Finally, waterproof the walls with a concrete waterproofing paint. This is a unique and special paint, not a regular gallon of latex. You will want to apply at least two coats to the walls to keep the moisture out. While this method does work, it may not in all situations. You may find that you will still need to waterproof the basement with a professional system. But, it is a very inexpensive and quick way of protecting your basement walls that may provide the solution you need.