Foundation Stabilization and Exterior Basement Waterproofing in Two Harbors, MN
Challenge
This homeowner was living with a badly cracked foundation that was only getting worse with time. Not only were ther finger sized cracks in the foundation, but one of the foundation walls had begun to bow and water was had been seeping into the basement through the cracks and at the base of the walls. This homeowner had partially finished the basement and wished to use it more as a living space, but with water and air flowing freely through the cracks in the foundation walls the space could not be kept comfortable year round. After contracting relatives to repair the foundation had failed to permanently fix the problems and stabilize the wall, this homeowner decided to see how DBS Residential Solutions could help.
Solution
With a cracked foundation wall, a bowing foundation wall, and a leaky basement this homeowner required several different products to stabilize the foundation and keep the basement dry. Beginning with the cracked foundation wall, DBS employees dug out around the foundation and an additional hole several feet away from the foundation in order to install Geo-Lock anchors. The Geo Lock anchors are installed inside the house and have rod that pushes through the foundation wall and connects to a plate installed on the hole created on the other side of the original backfilled hole. This locks the plates into soil that has been undisturbed and is extremely compacted, making it an excellent anchor point. From inside the home, the rods are tightened in order to permanently stabilize the wall. Next, we used our PowerBrace system to hold the bowing foundation wall in place. This is meant to permanently prevent the wall from worsening and could possibly even move the wall back to being completely straight over time. Now that the foundation walls were permanently stabilized, it was time to waterproof the foundation. This customer chose exterior waterproofing for their home which requires additional digging compared to interior waterproofing, but both are excellent options. The foundation walls were exposed and we applied a waterproof barrier to the exterior of the wall. The final solution implemented with this project was to replace the old sump pump with a new triple safe sump pump which has a secondary back up pump and a third pump which is a battery back-up. This home owner now gets to enjoy a dry basement and a more comfortable year round living space.
