If you live in Atlanta or Georgia and you have a basement, there’s a good chance you will need to research basement wall repair. While there are common failures we see, some of those depend on the type of basement wall you have. Here are some of the most common issues by basement wall type:
Block Walls:
- Bowing
- Stair step cracking
- Water seeping in wall
- Water coming from floor
- Water Intrusion around water or sewer lines
Poured Concrete Walls:
- Cracks through walls
- Cracks with Water Present
- Leaning Walls
- Water coming from “floor/wall” joint
- Water Intrusion around water or sewer lines
Brick or Granite Walls:
- Wet or moist walls
- Water seeping through walls
- Cracks through brick or granite
Each wall type has it’s own repairs, but depending on what wall type you have will help determine what type of repair you need. In our following posts over the coming months we’ll address how solve each type of issue. These include both exterior solutions as well as many interior solutions that provide effective water control for your basement.
For structural repairs we will concentrate on the big 3 repairs – Helical Tiebacks, Carbon Fiber Reinforcement and Soldier Beams. In some cases a basement wall failure is not a wall issue but more of a foundation issue where the house or structure is settling. When this is the case underpinning is the more likely choice to stabilize and/or lift the foundation.
In water intrusion, we will examine how the water is accessing the wall, why the water is entering the structure and some easy things to start with for economical resolutions (such as gutters, downspouts and grading). When those have been crossed off the list of possible culprits then we will begin to talk about drainage issues, waterproofing and water control methods.