How radon gets in to your home:

• Unfinished crawlspace
• Construction joints
• Cracks in walls
• Gaps in suspended floors
• Gaps around service pipes
• Cavities inside walls
• Cracks in solid floors

Concrete Crawlspaces know the problems that confront Chicago area homeowners better than anyone. Contact us today and we'll help you evaluate your radon risk.

We especially appreciate the care they took to protect the areas in which they worked. The job was done within the specified time frame and the crawl space never looked better.Thanks again to your company and the crew that did our crawl space.

Fred and Dorothy
Huntley, Illinois

Have you ever considered all the activities and utility you could add to your living space if you called Concrete Crawlspaces Corp (www.concretecrawlspaces.com) and evaluated your basement waterproofing needs?

Just to name a few:

Family Room

Playroom

Home Office

Additional Bedrooms

Extra Bathroom

Media Room

Workout Gym

Game Room

Damp Free Storage

There are so many possibilities with a completely dry, odor free, mold free space. Call a professional today to assess your basement waterproofing needs.

Basement Waterproofing refers to techniques used to prevent water from entering the basement of a house or other building. Effective below ground waterproofing will include both drainage and sealers.

Waterproofing is needed anytime a structure is built at ground level or below ground. Waterproofing and drainage considerations are especially needed in cases where ground water is likely to build up in the soil and raise the water table. This higher water table causes hydrostatic pressure to be exerted underneath basement floors and against basement walls. Hydrostatic pressure forces water in through cracks in foundation walls, through openings caused by expansion and contraction of the footing-foundation wall joint and up through floor cracks. Hydrostatic pressure can cause major structural damage to foundation walls and is likely to contribute to mold, decay and other moisture related problems.

Methods

The three measures developed to prevent this problem differ greatly in ideology and design.

    The first being interior wall and floor sealers.

    The other two methods are

    interior water drainage and
    exterior drainage combined with waterproofing coatings.

Interior Sealants

In poured concrete foundations, cracks and pipe penetrations are the most common entry points for seepage. These openings can be readily sealed from the interior. Epoxies or urethanes are pressure injected into the openings, pentrating the foundation thru to the exterior, thereby cutting of the path of the seepage. These repairs will last for a long time. Many contractors provide 10 year to lifetime warranties on these repairs.

In masonry foundations, interior sealers will not provide permanent protection from water infiltration where hydrostatic pressure is present. Interior sealers are good for preventing high atmospheric humidity inside the basement, from absorbing into the porous masonry and to prevent spalling. Spalling is a condition where constant high humidity or moisture break down masonry surfaces causing deterioration and shedding of the concrete surfaces.

When the foundation is constructed of concrete blocks, an interior drain tile system, described below, can capture the water entering the block system and drain the water into a sump. Typically, weep holes are drilled into the lowest course of block, allowing the drainage to occur. This system will provide a dry and moisture free basement for years to come.

Interior water drainage

Although interior water drainage is not technically waterproofing, it is a widely accepted technique in mitigating basement water and is generally referred to as a basement waterproofing solution. Many interior drainage systems are patented as well as recognized by B.O.C.A (Building Officials and Code Administrators)as being effective in controlling basement water. They function by draining underground water from alongside the foundation footers and underneath the basement floor. They then channel it with a French drain, PVC pipe, or through a patented product to a sump pump system, which will then pump the water from the basement. Foundation sump pumps can be installed through do-it-yourself kits, plumber installations, or by a professional waterproofing contractor and generally come in plastic and cast-iron models.

To simplify:

    Water enters the home via the basement wall/floor joint, through cracks in the foundation walls and/or holes created by faulty or decaying masonry/brick.
    A perimeter trench drain such as a French drain collects the water before it enters into the basement.
    Wall vapor barriers/retarders and drip moldings are used and incorporated into the sub-slab perimeter drain to collect water coming from wall cracks and other foundation wall defects, such as pipe protrusions.
    The drain directs the water to a sump pump.
    The sump pump directs the water out of the house.

Interior basement waterproofing systems should be prepared to work in the case of a power outage, the failure of a sump pump, and in the face of overwhelming torrential rain. A proper sump pump, backup sump and/or battery backup sump pump should be installed in a large sump pit with an airtight lid for safety and to keep humidity from seeping through to the basement environment, where it can promote mold growth. This airtight practice will also reduce the possibility of dangerous radon gases for entering the living space.

Exterior Waterproofing

Exterior waterproofing prevents water from entering foundation walls therefore preventing the wicking and molding of building materials. Waterproofing a structure from the exterior is the only method the IBC (International Building Code) recognizes as adequate to prevent structural damage caused by water intrusion. Prior to the 1980s much of the original exterior waterproofing was actually damp-proofing using a degradable asphalt-based covering.

Polymer based compounds

Over the past ten years, polymer-based waterproofing products have been developed. Polymer-based products last for the lifetime of the building, and are not affected by soil pH. Polymer-based waterproofing materials have the advantage of a low enough viscosity that they can be sprayed directly onto a wall, are very fast curing, and are semi-flexible, allowing for some movement of the substrate.

Source: wikipedia

"I usually don't write to companies to say "thanks" but your company deserves it. I just wanted to write to thank you for a job well done. I couldn't be more pleased with my crawlspace. I was especially pleased that you fit me in right away and did what you had to do to get the job done on time. Also, the communication between your staff and myself was excellent. Your staff was there to answer my questions, even after hours. The combination of price, service, quality, and the friendliness of your staff exceeded my expectations. The preparation, installation, and everything else went exactly as described on your web-site. Further, there were no surprises in the end with respect to the work performed or the price. Everything went as planned and quoted. I can't say that for many companies. Also, the main problem – the radon level, previously 14 (well above the 4.0 EPA action level) has been reduced to 1.8 on average (safely below the EPA action level). I would definitely recommend Concrete Crawlspaces Corp. to anyone looking to have a great concrete crawlspace."

First you need to consider your goals for the space. How you use the space helps to determine what options are appropriate to deliver a complete waterproofing solution. Consider your goals for your basement and then contact a waterproofing expert to help you tailor the appropriate solution to fit your needs.