Your Trusted Home Seismic Retrofitting & Wet Basement Waterproofing Experts in Troutdale, OR

Water stains along the foundation walls are an easy way to see that water issues are occurring. While water will be present during the rainy months, after years of water leaking through, mineral stains are left behind. This homes basement had a majority of its walls covered with storage shelving, so the homeowner hadn't seen water creeping through. However, after performing a deep clean of the shelves, they noted many of the walls were stained. They called up John's Waterproofing to schedule their in-home inspection. 

To address the homes needs, we crafted a solution. To begin, a full interior perimeter drain system was installed, consisting of a bed of gravel, WaterGuard, and then sealed up. WellDucts were then installed by the windows that showed water stains around them. These will collect the water and guide it down into the drain system. The drainage system is graded to a low spot of the basement where a TripleSafe sump pump is installed, sending all collected water safely away from the home to a LawnScape outlet. We then installed our CleanSpace wall vapor barrier. This thick woven barrier will keep moisture from the wall guided down to be collected in the drain system. A SaniDry dehumdiifer was then installed and an Aspen in the homes living space. These two machines will work together to keep the homes air clean from the foundation up. 

This homeowner called because he suspected "water in spots" and was interested in encapsulation. When our design specialist arrived, it was clear there was more then a little water pooling in this space. One of the telltale signs that a crawlspace has seasonal water intrusion is when layers of silt build up on an old vapor barrier. It can also show how high the water levels get. In the case of this crawlspace, about 2 feet or so during heavy or prolonged rain. Our system designer came out and took photos of the crawlspace so he could show the homeowner how much water was coming in at times and assured him that the water could be controlled with our great warrantied systems. The homeowner was very excited to get going. 

A crew came out later and got to work removing the old barrier and dirty fiberglass insulation that was falling down. They installed a 3" perforated pipe in a silt sock around the full perimeter of the crawlspace and graded it to a SuperSump Pump System which is made up of a primary pump with a battery backup to assure it would continue to operate in the event of a power outage. The water is then properly discharged from here out and away from the home. Following this, they laid TerraBlock, a 3/4" flexible foam insulation sandwiched in a plastic barrier that adds R-value, and is puncture resistant and protects the CleanSpace barrier. This offers padding when walking on the CleanSpace barrier which is installed next. CleanSpace is used to isolate the posts and all the seams are sealed. It is fastened to the foundation walls just under the rim joist. The vents around the crawlspace were sealed using closed cell spray foam on the foundation walls and rim joist, effectively encapsulating the space and insulating the home to industry standards. A SaniDry Sedona dehumidifier was installed to keep humidity at bay and filter the air.  

Many people are not aware that John's Waterproofing offers attic insulating services. This is important to note because when there are water problems in a crawlspace, often mold develops and there is what we call "the Stack Effect" which describes how the air comes into the crawlspace vents and rises through the home and into the attic before leaving via the attic vents. Because of this, mold in the crawlspace can make its way into the attic and into the insulation and wood. This home was suffering just that so John's Waterproofing was called for a solution.

Two crews were dispatched to the home. One to address the crawlspace and another specialty team to address the attic. In the crawlspace, the old barrier and moldy insulation were removed followed by an application of MoldX2 to kill the mold. A 3" perforated pipe drain system was installed around the perimeter and graded to the lowest point of the crawlspace where a SuperSump was installed to gather the water and discharge it out and away from the home. Then a new 6mil plastic barrier was installed on the floor of the crawlspace and attached to the foundation walls to ensure that any water seeping in via the footing or wall was captured and removed by the perforated pipe system. Simultaneously, all the dirty insulation was removed from the attic and it, too, was treated with MoldX2. Lastly, insulation was blown onto the attic floor and the space was air sealed. Now, these homeowners could enjoy a clean, healthy home along with some savings on utilities!

This homes basement was wet to the touch along the base of the foundation walls, with pooling water evident near the basements exterior entryway. The homeowners were ready for a solution so they didn't need to worry about water damaging the items they kept in this space. 

Our crew began by digging a trench along the interior parameter of the space. In front of the exterior doorway we installed a TrenchDrain to collect water, and than installed our WaterGaurd drainage system around the remainder of the basement. These would collect groundwater and push it along to a newly installed TripleSafe sump pump. From here water is diverted out and away from the home to a new LawnScape outlet. 

The customer's basement had been flooding with water within 2-3 hours and they didn't realize it was anything serious. Until they checked their sump pump and found that it was failing every other hour or so. Which led them to want a replacement water removal system.  

To replace the old pump, they got the Ultra Sump pump installed to remove the water. Along with a new discharge line to pump it out of the basement with ease. Giving the customers the satisfaction of a dry and clean basement. 

This customer called us with a discovered water problem. Water was coming into the crawlspace and was causing moisture and mold spores to grow that it was affecting the walls and air of the house. So we sent out one of our inspectors to see what we could do to fix the problem. 

Our inspector went and found standing water in the crawlspace which had started to ruin the old black plastic vapor barrier and create a muddy mess. We would do a crawlspace clean out and remove the wet sagging fiberglass insulation. We installed our crawlspace encapsulation system with our Cleanspace vapor barrier that is 20 mil thick and tacks on the walls of the crawlspace while sealing the vents. We also installed a smart sump pump that will pump all water out along with our SaniDry Sedona dehumidifier that will keep all moisture, dust mites, and mold spores clear from the air you breathe in your home. We then used our spray foam insulation around the perimeter of the crawlspace efficiently keeping warm air in and a nicely sealed space. 

The homeowner was so relieved to have us encapsulate her crawlspace and they don't have to worry about water or mold again. They now can relax knowing their family will always be breathing clean air in their home. 

This homeowner complained that they have some occasional water in the winter and in heavy rains and some puddles in the crawlspace. They figured that summer was the best time to get it taken care of. Our inspection revealed that the problem was much larger than anticipated. The concrete foundation was crumbling due to constant moisture under this home. The lines on the ripped visqueen and the drainage pipe under the home, show the depths that water has sat during the rainy times. Our crews came and installed a perimeter drain and sump pump to ensure they never had to worry about water issues again.