Great Lakes Waterproofing for Basements and Foundations

REAL WATERPROOFING!©

Serving Minneapolis, Saint Paul, the Metro Area and beyond

  • Wet Basement with beaver dam system

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    Beaver Dam System Leaking Everywhere

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  • Foundation waterproofing using bentonite

    Wet Foundation Holes and Cracks

    Foundation Cracks and Holes Allowing Water Into Bloomington Apartment Building

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  • Foundation waterproofing using bentonite

    University Using Exterior Waterproofing

    Real Waterproofing, On The Ouside!

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  • Foundation waterproofing using bentonite

    Mixing Bentonite for Real Waterproofing!

    Bentonite For Exterior Waterproofing

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  • Foundation waterproofing using bentonite

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    Saint Paul Home With Water Leaks

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  • Foundation waterproofing using bentonite

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    Drain Tile in Older Minneapolis Building

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  • Minneapolis Drain tile is leaking

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    Minneapolis New Drain Tile is Still Leaking!

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    Drain Tile Pipe Is Full Of Sand!

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  • Waterproofing paint is not working

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    Basement Waterproofing Paint Is Peeling Off

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  • Using dimple board for inside the wet basement

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    Dimple Board is Not Working on The Inside of my Basement!

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  • Drain Tile Pipes Are Plugged Up

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    Drain Tile Pipes Are Plugged Up

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  • I Have A Drain Tile But My Wall Is Still Leaking

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    I Have A Drain Tile But My Wall Is Still Leaking

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  • Bentonite, The World's #1 Waterproofing Material

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    Bentonite, The World's #1 Waterproofing Material

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  • Basement Waterproofing Sealing Cracks

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    Targeting The Wet Areas at a Fraction of The Cost of Drain Tile.

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  • Real Waterproofing on The Outside of The Foundation

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    Real Waterproofing Starts on The Outside of The Foundation

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Help! My Drain Tile System Is Not Working

HELP! MY DRAIN TILE SYSTEM IS NOT WORKING

We see it all the time, basement drain tile, cove, beaver, french drain systems that are either plugged up or not the right system for waterproofing a wet basement. We've installed most of them over the years but the right basement waterproofing system should be installed for the right situations.

MY DRAIN TILE SYSTEM IS NOT WORKING, IS IT PLUGGED UP?

Drain Tile System Is Full Of Dirt

About 60% of the wet basements we work on have a drain tile system installed.  It's either bone-dry or running all of the time and the home is still having wet basement issues.


This is the inside of a drain tile pipe where it drains into a sump basket to be pumped back out into the yard.  When the water moves through your wall, it also brings in dirt and sand which can clog the pipes or destroy the pump.  This system would need extensive work to fix the pipe system and would only add time until the system needs to be "fixed" again.  Have you ever wondered why the sidewalk next to your home is sloping towards the house?  The base is "washing" away creating voids and a sinking sidewalk or steps.


Choosing exterior Real Waterproofing from Great Lakes Waterproofing stops water before it can enter your home, it keeps the dirt and sand outside where it should be.  Bentonite injections will help stablize the outside ground.

DRAIN TILE RECIRCULATION, OR WHY IS MY SUMP PUMP RUNNING ALL THE TIME?

Drain Tile Water is Flooding Back  Into The Basement

I love this photo, this is a fully functioning basement drain tile system, the home was built in the 1980's so this system was installed when the home was new.


The wet basement is fairly large with a lot of headroom so the owners had it finished years ago and for a long time it was a nice dry space.  Unfortunately over time, the foundation settled or the extreme ground conditions we see in Minnesota, allowed cracks in the foundation.


The two photos show the same home and the drain tile water management system installed in the basement.  The basement was finished but the flooded after a large rainstorm;  the drywall and some of the insulation was removed.  The box outside is a mouse trap, the arrow is pointing to a crack between two cinder blocks.


During the rain storm, the drain tile system was able to pump some of the wall water back outside, cinder block walls are hollow, they fill with water and it should go to the underfloor pipe system that sends it to the sump basket where it gets pumped outside.


The dark area is water and moss, it loves this area where the drain tile is draining but guess what?  Over time the water has found the outside crack and it flows back into the basement.


Water likes the path of least resistance, it's filling the block cores, some might be getting to the sump basket but most of its moving straight through to the basement floor.  If we had to guess we'd say the blocks have filled with sand and dirt in this area, see the dark stain under the insulation, the water level in the blocks is pretty high!


Real Waterproofing from Great Lakes Waterproofing starts on the outside, stopping water before it moves through these cracks.

BLOCK BASEMENT FOUNDATION WALL IS FILLED WITH DIRT AND SAND

Block basement wall filled with dirt and water

This homeowner had a extremely wet corner in the basement built with cinder blocks.  The home also had an interior underfloor drain tile waterproofing system but they was still getting a ton of water on the floor in the corner.


Trying to get to the source, he found that his blocks had filled with sand, dirt and chunks of mortar from when the block was laid.


These blocks were filling with water but the holes going to the drain tile were plugged, the path of least resistance was to flood the basement above the floor.

Drain tile is not working, basement is getting wet

This is the same corner of the basement but it's the exposed interior drain tile system.  The green hose is there to suck up water that is everywhere.  You can see the wall footing below the busted out floor.


This drain tile pipe is caked with fine sediment and unable to collect the large flow of water during rain storms, surprisingly it's fairly clean on the inside the water just can't make it into this pipe system.


The homeowner went with Real Waterproofing, stopping water outside the foundation, other contractors just wanted to rip out the existing system and start over.

LEAKING BASEMENT WALLS WITH DRAIN TILE SYSTEM

Water Coming Through Foundation Wall Above Floor

If you look close you can see water streaming out right under the gray electrical box.  The white vertical pipe is the discharge pipe for a drain tile pump and the black cord is the power line.  The pump was working but when water comes in the hollow block wall, it also brings in dirt and grit.  Eventually this will fill up the blocks, blocking the water from getting into the drain-tile system or slowing down the flow rate.


This is in an underground parking garage, replacing the drain-tile is not an option since the floor is a structural part of the building.  The owner decided on exterior waterproofing using bentonite to seal up the wet walls and stop the water.

DRAINING SUMP PUMP INTO FLOOR DRAIN WHEN THERE'S TOO MUCH WATER

Draining Sump Pump Into Floor Drain

This home had more than average water flow coming into the basement.  The drain tile system was modified to pump into a garbage can if there was too much flow, it then emptied into the floor drain, which is illegal in most areas.


Besides the wall cracking, the drain tile system was freezing in the winter, causing the sump pump to run continously.  Imagine going on vacation and having to worry about something going wrong with this system?


The solution for this home was exterior waterproofing, sealing up the foundation before water can get through the walls into the basement, water stopped moving through the foundation walls and the homeowner was able to start using the basement again.

THE WRONG WAY TO INSTALL BASEMENT WATERPROOFING

Beaver System is Leaking Basement Water

Unfortunately this customer chose an interior beaver cove waterproofing system but they still had wet basement issues.  First the waterproofer didn't fully cover the area where they buried the sump basket, water can be seen flowing on the bottom right of the photo.


Next the waterproofer put in a plastic channel on the floor, we call this a cove waterproofing system, it's meant to channel water towards the sump basket and sump pump.  These have no slope so stinky water is usually sitting on the bottom.


Lastly, the bubbling and dark staining on the walls, mold and mildew, indicate areas where water is moving through the walls above the floor level, this system will never collect all of that.  When you see that much damage, the bottom blocks are usually full of dirt and sand, water will not flow into the cove system if the channels are blocked.


Yes those floor tiles are asbestos, when any cutting or removal is done, it needs to be done with the proper abatement procedures. 

DRAIN-TILE WATERPROOFING SYSTEM IS OVERFLOWING

Dimple Board Basment Waterproofing is Leaking

The owner of this home had to remove the drywall and flooring in his wet basement due to an overflowing drain-tile waterproofing system.  The black plastic is meant to channel water to a below-floor pipe system but the pipes have filled with dirt and sand and the orange indicates high iron content which will also plug the sytem up with a hard crusty coating.


Staining and efflorescence (the white crust seen on the walls) of this corner show it's had wet basement issues for a long time, the sump pump got tired of bailing out the boat and couldn't keep up with the water flow.  The orange iron ochre is really nasty, a slimy substance, it will clog the entire drain tile system.


The solution for this home is Real Waterproofing using Great Lakes Waterproofing Exterior Waterproofing, stopping the water on the outside.

LEAKING INTERIOR DRAIN TILE SYSTEM

New Drain Tile System is Leaking Water

This home had a lot of water coming through the wall, the home owner hired a "waterproofer" found on Craigslist, after the system was installed the customer had a worse problem then before.  The towel on the right is to help keep the water from spreading across the floor.


The floor was removed in a few places and a sump basket was installed.  Holes were drilled in the bottom coarse of blocks and corrugated plastic was used to channel the water down into a pipe system that connects to the black sump pit in the photo.


The black channel on the bottom portion of the wall wasn't properly sealed up so when the blocks filled with water, the system couldn't keep up with it and they overflowed onto the floor.  

DRAIN TILE SUMP BASKET IS FULL OF SAND AND DIRT

Drain Tile Sump Basket is full of dirt

Along with water, drain tile systems can also bring in dirt and sand, if the exerior foundation and basement cracks are large enough, these will also find their way through.


This drain tile sump basket has a mixture of sand, some small rocks and water, over time the abrasive nature of the sand will wear away the pump internals, most of these are made for clean water.


This home was getting water in another room, seeing the sand is an indication that sections of the pipe are clogged with sand and not allowing it to the sump baskets.  About 60% of the homes we work on have a drain tile and sump pump that are not working.


It's good practice to make sure your pump is working and if you see dirty water to have an extra pump ready to go.  One small rock can jam the pump and it will stop working.

I'LL JUST LANDSCAPE AND PUT IN A FRENCH DRAIN TO FIX MY WET BASEMENT ISSUES

French drain is filled with dirt

A lot of potential customers have been talked into fixing their yard or even putting in an exterior drain system to fix their wet basement water issues.  Great Lakes Waterproofing strongly recommends getting water away from your foundation but if you think that will solve 100% of basement flooding, you may be wrong.


We love outdoor French Drain Systems as long as they are built right, which isn't very often.  Most use 4" diameter corrugated plastic pipe sold in 50' coils.  This pipe will collect dirt in the flutes and eventually will stop working, just like in our photo, this customer had someone install this pipe and it stopped working within a few years of the install.  When the pipes quit working the water stays around your foundation.


Other failures we've seen is that the diameter is way to small, the pipe freezes up in the spring and fall when you need it the most, or it crushes, being a light duty plastic it can't hold a lot of weight.

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