Many homeowners finish their basements as a DIY project. This increases the home’s living space and increase resale value. Unfortunately many basements have wall cracks that allow water to seep into the living space. Before you remodel your basement inspect the walls to ensure there are no leaks.

If there are leaks, do the foundation repairs necessary to stop any chance of water getting into the finished basement. It is rare in modern homes to find a foundation that does not have foundation cracks in it. Performing a crack foundation repair is quite easy.

Cracking is a normal process of the concrete curing. As the concrete cures it shrinks and the shrinkage causes stresses that that are relieved by the concrete cracking. Placing steel reinforcing bars (rebar) inside the wall to maintain the strength of the concrete foundation helps.

Homeowner’s can repair basement cracks from the inside of the basement using a polyurethane foam injection system. Removing the soil on the outside of the foundation to make a repair from the outside is not necessary.

Polyurethane foam injection is done from the interior of a basement. The polyurethane foam enters the foundation crack in a liquid form. When it makes contact with water in the crack the liquid polyurethane reacts and begins to make foam inside the crack. The foaming action greatly increases the volume of the polyurethane. The polyurethane foam will fill the foundation crack from the bottom to the top of the foundation.

Polyurethane foam injection is better than hydraulic cement for several reasons. First, the foam fills the crack completely. Water will remain on the exterior of the foundation and not enter the crack. Hydraulic cement repairs only get about as deep as one third of the width of the foundation wall. This allows water to continue to enter the crack to seep by the hydraulic cement.

Secondly, eventually salts forms from the water entering a crack that has been repaired using hydraulic cement. These salts cause the bond between the hydraulic cement and the concrete of the foundation to fail. After a period of time, the hydraulic cement will begin to leak again.

Third, polyurethane foam injection is easier, faster and cleaner than traditional hydraulic cement. The homeowner does not have to drill or chisel out any concrete. Polyurethane foam is injected through ports that are easily attached to the foundation surface.

Once the foundation crack is repaired using polyurethane injection the crack is sealed. Water will no longer be able to penetrate through the basement wall. After the foundation repair the task of remodeling or finishing the basement can continue without the possibility of water leakage.

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