basement

[judy winkler]

Since we have had the whole basement waterproofed from the outside,dug down to the tiles and replaced them and then refiled with stones and topped with dirt I have noticed cracks in the basement walls is this the house moving since they removed the dirt from the walls, is this something to have looked into by another company?We have already spent $14,000 on this problem of water in the basement.

[Anon]

Judy…can you give some advice to the boy who posted “Variable Power Supplies” Im concerned about him

[David]

Judy, can you tell us; are the cracks primarily angular, beginning low at corners and angling up and away from the corners? Are they more straight up and down the wall? And where are they located; mid-wall, vertical/horizontal, etc.

How was the backfill done, and by whom? Bobcat, backhoe…done by the waterproofing contractor? Did they compact the backfill near the walls with heavy equipment, or use a power tamper?

Any details like this you can provide will help to prove or disprove suspicions here, and better be able to advise you.

[Dodgeman]

Is a good idea from a drainage standpoint, but can be a problem to the basement walls. If the stone is of the smooth, rounded type, it does not bind together and its weight can push out in all directions, causing undue stress on the basement walls. The stone should be of the cracked, broken type with rough surfaces so that it binds together to support itself. This helps prevent pressure on the walls.

Please respond to David’s questions. That will help analyze the cause of the cracks.

Dodgeman

[judy winkler]

I want to thank you again for your advice. We did have the contractor back out and he told us since they removed the dirt from the walls and put stone that they are in better shape now than they ever have been. If we keep seeing new cracks we will also call in a structural engineer to look into the situation for us. Judy

[judy]

After the blackout we have decided to add some sort of back up system to our sump pump is there more than one way to do this? We have heard of a battery backup. Do they have to dig up the floor again to put this in? Thanks for your time.

Judy

[chuck]

Can anyone tell me what is the best gutter guards there are so many to chose from. We did look into the gutter helmet but they just hook on to the gutter and have no braces inside the gutter to make them stronger. Is this a good choice?

Thanks for your help. How does ice effect these guards?

[charles]

Has anyone had a problem with the gutterhelmet in the winter with a lot of ice hanging on the gutter? Any fixes? Is there a better system?

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