Basement concrete welding?

[perc-o-prince]

So, with the storms that came through today I decided to take a picture of a leak that we have. It looks, from the inside, as though the garage walls were poured separately from the house foundation, but I can't be sure. There appears to be a little separation between them, and there is a little rivulet of water that comes in a couple of feet from the floor when there's a heavy rain. We've done the standard diverting of the downspouts and all that, but when the rain is heavy I guess it's just too much.

Has anyone had any experience with basement waterproofering companies/foundation "welders?" Or, is this something where I could use the correct "filler" or build a form and mix the proper cement or cement-like product to seal the corner?

Chuck

http://www.quikrete.com/ProductLines/ConcreteBondingAdhesive.asp

 

[whirlcool]

Since it's only a little bit of water coming through I would try one of those canned rubberized spray sealers. I used some on one of our gutters that was leaking at the seam and it has held up for just over a year now. And it works!

Just make sure you clean the crack and remove all the debris out of the way before spraying it. You want a nice clean surface to start with.

 

[wayupnorth]

I have tried, it seems like all of those different sealers to plug around where my well pipe comes into my basement storage room through the foundation. But so far after 17 years of trying, I still get water leaking around the pipe, which is 5 feet below grade, not alot of water comes in but enough to be annoying. Especially when it is really raining hard or in the spring when the frost leaves. My well pump is in that room and when it kicks on and off the pipe does move some and seems to break any seal I make. If someone has another solution that has worked for them, I would love to know.

 

[customline]

What you need to do..........

Is try silicone sealant for concrete. Fill in the crack and work it in with a trowel or even just your hands and don't use it sparingly. It worked for me.

 

[polkanut]

Just make sure that the area that you're going to be treating is absolutely dry before applying any type of sealant.

 

[rocketwarrior]

Source of Water

While sealing from the inside may be of some help, don't forget about trying to deal with the source. You have indicated gutter work, etc. Perhaps some fill, or some grading is in order. Perhaps making a swale or french drain can encourage drainage away.

 

[hydralique]

One thing that must be remembered here is that concrete is porous and does not seal water in or out of anything! Too much water is in fact not good for concrete - it will rust the reinforcing steel inside, which will expand as it rusts and in turn cause the concrete to crack. For this reason below grade concrete walls and floors have to be waterproofed on the outside of the wall or underside of the floor. The waterproofing membrane should then protected by a variety of materials generically referred to as protection boards. Usually these are plastic panels with dimples and some fabric on one side which is put against the wall so the surrounding soil doesn't directly contact the wall; this gives groundwater some space to drain in so it doesn't get forced into the wall through the waterproofing. The waterproofing isn't designed to seal the wall against high pressures which is why it doesn't work correctly if there are drainage problems around the building.

 

If there is good drainage around the building but there are still substantial leaks through the wall then the only way to be sure of a fix is to excavate the soil around the wall, repair the waterproofing, and replace and properly compact the soil.

 

[sudsmaster]

The only completely waterproof foundation would be found on a houseboat... lol...