If you are looking into hiring a company for waterproofing your basement, there are literally hundreds of options for you. The price range between quotes varies considerable from one company to the next. The work they promise to do varies considerable too, and the results may not be guaranteed (nor the work) done by their employees. Here are some questions and answers you may have if you are considering hiring a waterproofing company. Remember, a company that has been in business for a long time with a long history of great customer satisfaction is vitally important for you and your wallet. Call us, we will be happy to offer a free consultation.
Getting by without. If you haven’t yet reached the point that waterproofing is vital, there’s plenty you can do. Roll up any area rugs. Move any boxes, electronic gear, and other items that can be damaged to higher points. If you have any extension cords and other live electrical wires on the floor, raise them also. And if the water coming in fills your basement more than a couple of inches, a sump pump can get the level down to where you can attack the rest with a wet vac. On our Ridgid wet vac, I’ve installed a pump so that we don’t have to carry several gallons of water upstairs after each time the vac is full.
Expect a sales pitch. One company we spoke with described an external excavation/waterproofing job ($45,000 not counting replacing our stoop, deck, driveway and most landscaping) before detailing what they do instead. Their interior French-drain system looked like a bargain after hearing about external work, but the estimate for that system still came in at twice the price of the other companies we consulted.
Watch the extras. One company whose price came close to that of the contractor we chose also tried to sell us an air-exchange system. The reason, it turned out, was that the workers would have left a ¾-inch gap between the wall and the floor along most of the foundation. Fearing greater humidity levels than our current dehumidifier could handle, we decided against that company.
Hammer out the details. How many feet in from the wall would you have to move items? With a huge workbench to take apart and lots of boxes and bins around, even a foot mattered to us. Would they do the job in a day? Ours did. The company we hired also gave us manuals for the installed pumps, gave instructions to pass along to the electrician, and left us with numerous numbers to call if a pump stopped working.
Protect important gear. Even though everything in your basement should be covered by the time workers fire up the jackhammer, expect dust to get into every opening possible. Take computer and consumer-electronic products away, and keep it there till you’ve cleared the air downstairs.
Consider a generator. Whatever you spend on waterproofing is a waste if your power tends to go out and your pumps can’t turn on. Check out our buying advice for generators.
It’s easy, when your home is dry, to think about the waterproofing you need to do “sometime.” Our decision came this past spring, when my wife and I spent round-the-clock days of soaking and vacuuming up water. Never again, we said. If we didn’t do it now, in another 10 or 15 years we might never get to it. And today, we feel more than lucky that it came through for us.
—Ed Perratore
