Cherry Hill NJ Basement Waterproofing: Is Your Home at Risk?

Waterproofing your basement can be a pretty big investment for most homeowners. While it does pay for itself down the road, you should be well informed before investing in having your basement waterproofed. In Cherry Hill, where many homes are new, most think that they dont need to have waterproofing done. But, even new homes are at risk, especially in places where the population has grown rapidly. In cherry hill, basement wateproofing can actually save your home.  Here is how to know if you need waterproofing and learn how water makes its way into your basement.

Why do basements get wet? In order to prevent wet basements, it is important to understand where the water is coming from. Surface water running down foundation walls Groundwater in water-saturated soils being pushed into the basement by hydrostatic and/or lateral pressure When homeowners experience wet basements for the first time, it is imperative to determine if the water problems are going to reoccur or if it was a one-time event.

Essential to solving this question is determining where the water is coming from. Controlling surface water If this is the first time for basement water problems, the first thing to check for is surface water draining down next to the foundations. Water coming in at one location and only at the exterior foundation wall are typical indications of surface water problems.

Basement waterproofing can help these problems by acting as a barrier between your basement's walls and water/moisture. Here are some things to look for: Are the gutters overflowing because they are blocked with leaves? Keeping gutters clean of debris should be a part of every homeowner's routine maintenance program. Depending on the surrounding trees, gutter cleaning may be required a few times a year. Products are available to prevent leaves from getting into the gutters.

Are gutters overflowing because there are not enough downspouts on the house? Many homes in Cherry Hill do not have this!

If you don't mind getting wet, you can do a self-check (your gutters must be cleaned out first). After at least 15 minutes of heavy rain, check your gutters. If you see any water overflowing, you have a problem. Any water over flowing out of the gutters is running down next to the house foundations. Even if the water is not getting into the basement, it could be causing unseen problems like eroding soil from under the house footings, which can lead to cracking of walls and ceilings. The easiest solutions to overflowing gutters are to either add another downspout on that run of gutter or to increase the size of the downspout.

The best solution between these two is probably adding another downspout because the second downspout can act as a back-up if the other gets blocked. However, if you choose to replace the existingdownspout with a larger one, make sure the contractor increases the size of the corresponding hole in the gutter.

It doesn't do much good to install a larger downspout if the gutter hole is left small. Do the downspouts extend at least 10 feet from the home? While many homeowners do not like downspouts extending out this far, 10 feet is the minimum distance needed to discharge water coming off your roof far enough away from the house. Be careful not to discharge downspouts too close to your neighbor's property. Make sure when you do this you also have your basement waterproofed. Most towns and cities have ordinances that prevent downspouts from discharging too close to the property line and causing water problems for neighbors. Your local building safety or inspections department can provide you with the minimum distance. Do the downspouts drain into the footing tile system?

Basement waterproofing helps in cherry hill by overcoming many of these problems. It protects your home by repelling water and keeping mold and waterdamage away.