Some Wet Basement Tips

You probably do not consider the basement to be the soul of your house, but even if not, this is still a room that you need to take care of. Since the rest of the home rests on this part of the structure, you need to make sure that the basement is structurally sound and if it is a wet basement, this may be a real problem.

Water leaking into the basement tends to cause problems with the walls and floors, possibly cracking them and creating a humidity problem. Humidity issues in the basement usually lead to mold growth and this is a problem that no homeowner wants to have to deal with. It can lead to the very structural problems that you are trying to avoid on top of causing health issues for the people living in the house, especially the people who are in the basement the most often.

Controlling the humidity in the basement is not usually a big issue if there are no existing leaks allowing water inside. Installing a dehumidifier could really help with the problem of high humidity and so can putting in an exhaust vent down there. Having an exhaust vent in the basement can be a big help, especially if you use the basement for a laundry room or have another bathroom or shower down there. Without a place to go, steam is absorbed by the rafters or the drywall and usually causes it to become discolored or molded.

Cracks in the concrete walls of your basement where water is leaking in need to be fixed with a concrete injection. You can do this now with a regular caulking gun, but do not try to fix it with caulking that you would use in the bathroom. Neither caulking nor cement will work, since these will eventually become loose and simply fall out.

Keep the rain gutters around your house cleaned out and put some more soil around the base of the house, especially if water is forming puddles around it. This will help stop water from leaking down into the basement.

Having carpet in your basement is probably not that bad of an idea if you are using it for an entertainment or family room, but any wet carpet needs to be taken up along with the padding underneath it. Mold starts to grow after about 48 hours after the item has been wet, so if the basement has been wet for a while and so has the carpet, trying to clean it is probably an inefficient idea. Even if you cleaned the carpet, you would have to take up the padding and replace it, because it cannot be cleaned. The best thing to do is just purchase new carpeting.


Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Connecticut Mold Remediation services and
flood and water damage cleanup companies across the united states.