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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Midwest Foundation Construction

Call Now 651-340-2901

Building Foundations Found in The Midwest

FOUNDATIONS

Foundations hold up our buildings, they are usually below grade (the surface) and made of stone, rock, concrete or even wood.  In the Midwest and especially the Minneapolis, Saint Paul Metro Area the two most popular are poured concrete or block (CMU) wall construction followed by limestone block which was used extensively up to 1910 due to the cities being next to the great rivers that had an overwhelming amount of rock to quarry and mill.


In the Midwest we  also experience some of the most extreme weather conditions in the world, during the summer, highs of 90 degrees F and lows of -0 degrees F in the winter are very common.  Rain and snow contribute to wet ground that freezes in the winter, expanding and contracting with the temperature changes.  This constant movement of the ground pushes against your foundation, over time cracks and holes may develop allowing water to get in your home or business. 


Midwest ground can be made up of several different materials including:  soil, clay, sand, rock or a mixture of all of them.  They will all hold water for long periods of time, pushing through your foundation until you have a wet basement. 

FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION FOR HOMES AND BUILDINGS

Typical Home Wall Construction

Most modern foundations are built on a concrete footing, a strip of poured concrete that follows the outside foundation vertical walls.  This base provides a strong support for the rest of the building.  After the footing has dried, a block or poured wall is built and the final step is to pour a concrete floor.  Known as a "cold pour" these seams are potential sources of water intrusion. Since there's not a seal or gasket, it's common to first notice the moisture at the floor level even though the exterior point of entry may be much higher up the wall.


Homeowners may think they have a high-water table since the wet basement water is first observed at the wall/floor junction but in most cases that's the path of least resistance.  Builders and city planners love to have several feet of space under the basement floor before you hit underground water.

BLOCK WALL (CMU) FOUNDATION

Block Wall (CMU) Foundation

Block wall foundations are very popular in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, first a strip of concrete (the footing) is poured around the perimeter and then a block wall is built on top of it.  The hollow blocks are staggered and stacked up to the desired height of the basement.  


Block walls are relatively easy to install and not as costly as a poured foundation.  Any water that gets inside the blocks will flow to the bottom, if cracks or holes develop on the inside wall, your foundation will leak.  If an interior drain-tile system is installed, the bottom coarse of blocks is drilled through to the open cores allowing water to drain into the underfloor pipe system.  A sump basket will collect the water and a sump pump will pump it back outside.

WOOD FOUNDATIONS

Waterproofing Wood Foundation

Wood foundations are much rarer but we do run into them every few years.  The home is built with treated wood that can be buried below-grade.  Since our focus is Real Waterproofing, the main issue we've seen with wood foundations is that they just don't seem to be able to hold back the pressure of the surrounding ground when in contact with water.  The pressure of expanding-contracting soil pushes and moves the joints creating holes.  We've also seen rotted wood even though the wood is sold as rot-resistant.  Most of the homes and buildings we've inspected were built in the early 80's.


In this photo you can see a "dimple board" water drainage membrane attached directly to the wall.  With this type of drainage, the foundation may be in constant contact with water.  Personally I'd love to know how they keep the metal pins holding the membrane on the wall from rusting and creating small holes through the wall.  The water will also move through the seams between the panels with this set up, there should be a seal on all seams.

POURED WALL FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION

Waterproofing Poured Foundation

Poured wall foundations are also very common in the Midwest and over the last 28 years are the preferred method for planned subdivisions.  If your home was built in a subdivision, they tend to have solid poured walls, it's easier and more cost effective for the contractor to do multiple homes using this method.  


The walls are made by filling removable forms with concrete, when dry the forms are reused but they do need to leave sacrificial "tie-rods" in the concrete, metal pins used to hold the forms together.  Most forms are 3' wide, you can see a small vertical seem where the panels are attached. 

RUBBLE WALL WITH CONCRETE COATING 

Waterproofing Rubble Walls of wet basement

Rubble walls are mostly found in older homes and consist of flat rocks stacked on top of each other.  The rock is strong and long-lasting but the mortar joints turn to sand allowing water and dirt to move through the wall onto the basement floor.  Most of these homes have steep roofs and didn't have gutters installed for the first few decades, shedding water inches from the basement wall.


The effects of years of exterior water pressure are clear in this photo, the back wall, on the right side,has a concrete skim coating which still looks good, there's a porch off the back of the home protecting this area.  The wall to the left has been left to the elements and water has pushed through and also pushed off the concrete skim coating that used to cover the rocks, making the mess on the floor.


The skim coating can be redone but exterior waterproofing should be done beforehand to ensure the new concrete coating sticks for a long time, without exterior waterproofing the water pressure would continue to push any surface finish off.

ROUND STONE FOUNDATION WALLS

Waterproofing Stone Walls of wet basement

Found on older homes, usually in farming areas, stone walls have rounded stones stacked up to make up the foundation.  These foundations can be really strong but the mortar joints are the weak point and holes will eventually develop allowing water to run right through the wall.  To effectively fix these walls, they need to be waterproofing on the exterior.  


Water pushing through the walls develops a lot of pressure and any interior fix will only be temporary since they tend to lose their bond with the surface.  When you run your hand across the surface you'll feel a sandy, grainy texture, most paints and concretes like a clean surface to bond to.

LIMESTONE FOUNDATION WALLS

Waterproofing Limestone Walls of wet basement

The Minneapolis, Saint Paul Metro Area has a lot of homes built with limestone block.  Near the rivers, limestone is everywhere and was a perfect building material.


Over time the mortar between the blocks turns to sand allowing water to move through the foundation.


These foundations are pretty easy for Great Lakes Waterproofing to fix if the outside ground doesn't contain too many rocks, with our no-digging approach, we inject the voids and water pathways sealing up the foundation on the exterior for Real Waterproofing.

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