Doug Lacey's Basement Systems Case Studies: Foundation Repair and Waterproofing in Olds, AB
Challenge
The customer had lived in the home for 16 years and was now contemplating selling. This presented a problem because over the 16 years of living in the home they were experiencing water infiltration into the basement. The North-East corner of the home was the worst spot and almost without fail it would leak during a heavy rainfall. Over the years the customer has had to remove and replace drywall and other finishing materials because of water damage. On top of the water penetration issues they are also getting bowing of the PWF walls in the basement. In order to finish the basement and have peace of mind they needed to address the structural bowing of the walls. Once that was addressed they could then mitigate their water issues.
Solution
After a complete and thorough inspection of the house by our System Design Specialist, Eric Hansen, it was determined that our Geo-Lock™ Wall Anchor System would provide the structural solution they needed. The Anchors were recommended because of the homes PWF foundation. Anchors not only arrest further appreciable inward movement of the wall, but in many cases, can improve the walls position and partially or fully straighten it. In order to achieve the desired result the studs were sister-ed to provide additional strength.
In order to give them complete piece of mind when it comes to the water our System Design Specialist recommended a complete WaterGuard® drainage system, as well as wall system. The homeowner also opted to go with a spray foam application in the walls to get a better R value and subsequently a warmer basement as well as a dry basement. When Spray foam is the option selected on a PWF wall we need to make sure that we have dimple membrane from the water guard to above grade between the studs. This way if any water made its way through the PWF wall it would be directed down to the WaterGuard® to be discharged by the new TripleSafe™ sump pump system.
The WaterGuard® system was done around the entire perimeter of the basement in order to get full warranty on the basement. Based on the linear feet around the perimeter it was determined that TripleSafe™ with UltraSump® battery backup was more than adequate to handle the potential volume of water.
Project Summary
System Design Specialist: Eric Hansen
Project Foreman: Shaddy Munir