Photo Album: Waterproofing a Basement and Restoring Walls with Shotcrete

Our customer called in with a basement/crawl space combination riddled with problems. There were leaks when it rained, holes in the walls where mice were getting in, and the walls were flat out crumbling. We installed a full perimeter of WaterGuard below-floor drain system and a TripleSafe sump pump to take care of the water problem, and used Shotcrete to build new walls over the existing crumbling walls, stabilizing and strengthening the basement foundation.

Crumbling Wall in Basement

The homeowners said that they had already tried a DIY concrete application to stop the leaks, but like most DIY products sold in stores, it didn't work and the walls continued to crumble.

Poor Insulation

Stuffing fiberglass insulation into the rim joist isn't the most effective way to insulate your basement - especially when it has water problems, as fiberglass insulation harbors mold and will absorb water until it becomes useless.

Closeup of Crumbling, Cracked Wall

Water leaked through these cracks and weak spots every time it rained, further degrading the block walls.

Adjoining Crawl Space Creates Headaches

This crawl space wasn't large or used for anything, but it still caused problems and energy loss due to poor insulation.

Cracked Basement Walls

As water comes through a wall crack, it will widen the crack, thereby letting more water in next time and continuing the process.

Crumbling Basement Walls

When a wall is falling apart like this, it can feel helpless.

CleanSpace Wall System Protects Basement from Leaks

This wall simply had too many fixtures installed to safely remove and use shotcrete, so we installed the CleanSpace wall system to protect the basement from any leaking water and instead direct it right down to the WaterGuard system for removal.

WaterGuard Installation in Progress

WaterGuard and the TripleSafe sump pump are put in place after the floor is removed.

IceGuard Prevents Winter Backup

In the event of a frozen discharge line, the IceGuard system will allow water to exit the grates rather than back up into the basement.

WaterGuard Inspection Ports Allow Easy Access

In the event of any issues or for annual mainteance, the WaterGuard inspection port (top) allows us to access the system and flush it out.

New Concrete Restores Floor

Here, one of our crew members smooths the concrete around the new sump pump.

Discharge Line Routes Water Away

Working with the grading of the lawn, we install a discharge line to send the water outside and away from your home. Using a Lawnscape outlet on the end of the line allows us to bury it and eliminate the eye sore as well as a trip hazard on your lawn.

Building the Shotcrete Framework

We build a framework over top of the existing wall to apply shotcrete to.

Applying Shotcrete Around Doors

We can use shotcrete on walls with doors and windows. We simply build out the doorframe a little so the new thickness of wall doesn't hinder its function.

FrothPak Insulates Crawl Space

This messy crawl space was losing air through the rim joist, so we used FrothPak spray foam insulation to seal it.

Shotcrete Creates New Walls

It doesn't seem like there are many solutions when foundation walls begin to crumble - but shotcrete creates a solution by allowing us to create new walls in place.