Interior Basement Waterproofing in Brampton
If water shows up along the bottom of your basement walls, the problem usually isn't one crack. It's groundwater pressing up from under the slab, and the fix is to give that water somewhere else to go. It's one of the ways we handle basement leak repair in Brampton.
Interior waterproofingPage 14
What is interior basement waterproofing? It's a drainage system installed inside the basement. A trench is cut along the inside of the foundation walls, a perforated pipe is laid at the footing, and the water it collects runs to a sump pit, where a pump sends it outside. A membrane on the walls directs any seepage down into the pipe.
Below: how the system goes in, when it's the right choice, what it doesn't do, and what it costs.
How does interior waterproofing go in?
- Clear the walls. Belongings come away from the walls. In a finished basement, the lower part of the drywall and framing along the walls comes off.
- Cut the trench. A strip of the floor slab is cut along the walls and dug out down to the footing.
- Lay the drain. A perforated pipe goes in at the footing, bedded in clean gravel so water can reach it.
- Add the wall membrane. A dimpled plastic membrane goes on the walls so any seepage runs down behind it into the drain.
- Install the sump. The drain runs to a sump pit, and a pump sends the water outside, away from the house.
- Close it up. New concrete goes over the trench, leaving the floor flat again.
Think of it like an eavestrough for the bottom of your walls. It doesn't stop the rain. It catches the water and sends it somewhere harmless.
When does interior waterproofing make sense?
- Water comes in where the wall meets the floor, often all the way around the basement.
- Digging outside isn't practical. A driveway, deck, patio or a neighbour's house sits right against your foundation. Many Brampton semis and townhouses have side yards too narrow for an excavator.
- It's winter. Inside work isn't stopped by frozen ground.
- Budget. It usually costs less than exterior waterproofing for the same length of wall.
What doesn't interior waterproofing do?
Here's what most quotes leave out:
- The outside of the wall still gets wet. The system keeps water out of your living space. It doesn't keep it out of the concrete.
- It depends on the sump pump. If the power goes out in a storm, the pump stops. A battery backup pump is worth asking about. See sump pump installation.
- It doesn't fix a structural problem. A bowing wall or a widening crack needs its cause dealt with first.
If the whole wall is soaking through, exterior waterproofing stops water at the source. If the problem is a failed drain outside, read about weeping tile repair. Both systems are compared side by side on basement waterproofing.
How long does it take?
Usually a few days for a typical house. It depends on how much wall is involved and whether the basement is finished.
What does interior waterproofing cost?
HomeStars puts interior waterproofing at about $70 to $230 per linear foot of wall in Canada. For a 1,000-square-foot basement with about 140 feet of wall, that's roughly $10,000 to $32,000 for the full perimeter. Doing one or two walls costs proportionally less.
Our price: from $85 per linear foot, plus HST, for cutting the trench and pouring new concrete back over it. The drain pipe, wall membrane and sump pump are priced on top of that, so compare full quotes, not just the per-foot number. The full breakdown is in basement waterproofing cost.
What do you get when it's done?
A 25-year warranty against water leaking into the basement along the walls the system covers. It transfers to the next owner if you sell. The sump pump carries its manufacturer's warranty.