Start from the symptom
What are you seeing?
You do not need to know the name of the repair. Find the thing you noticed, read what it usually points to, then follow the link beside it.
- Water on the floor after rain
A thin sheet of water spreading out from the base of a wall, some hours after a storm, is ground water. It rises under the house, finds the seam between wall and slab, and stops when the ground drains.
- A trickle from one crack or pipe
When the water always starts at one place you can point to, there is a single way in. Mark it with a pencil while it is wet so it can be found later.
- Damp walls and white powder
The powder is salt. Moisture carried it through the block or concrete and left it behind on drying. It brushes off, and it means the wall is passing water even if you have never seen a puddle. Paint that blisters low on the wall says the same.
- A musty smell that is worse in summer
Smell without visible water is usually damp air. Over a crawl space it comes from bare soil and open vents. In a basement it is often warm outside air meeting cool walls.
- Floors that feel soft, bounce or dip
Over a crawl space this can mean the wood under the floor has been damp for a long while. Shine a flashlight in from the hatch and look for insulation hanging down and dark staining on the joists.
- Standing water under the house
Puddles on the crawl space floor after rain mean surface water is running in at a vent or the hatch, or the ground under the house sits lower than the yard around it.
- A sump pump that runs all the time
A pump that starts every few minutes in dry weather may have a stuck float, a failed valve letting water fall back into the basin, or an outlet pipe that empties so near the wall that the same water returns.
Three things to note before you call
They are the first things a waterproofing company will ask.
- When. During the storm, a few hours later, or the next day. Fast means surface water. Slow means ground water.
- Where. Which wall, which corner, how far along. A photo taken while it is wet is worth more than a description.
- What is outside that spot. A downspout, a planting bed, a low place in the lawn, a driveway, an air conditioner pad.
Montgomery and nearby towns
Ready to have someone look at it?
Call and describe what you are seeing and when it happens. You will be put through to an independent local waterproofing company, and they arrange the visit with you.
Phone calls may be recorded. See the referral disclosure and the privacy policy.