Water is a symptom. Sometimes of poor drainage, or something critical. Water in your basement or crawl space is a foundation problem which normally requires a waterproofing solution. Failure to address this problem can often lead to foundation and structural problems. You may be asking, “What is the difference?”
The difference between foundation waterproofing and foundation repair is degree. If you have water coming though your floor, or wall, or through a crack in the wall, then you have seepage. If the foundation wall starts to bow, or if the crack is displaced a certain degree, e.g. – an inch or more – then you may have a foundation structural issue, which can no longer be ignored, or you risk foundation failure, and tremendous loss of property value.
The repair to a structural problem is determined by its magnitude – the stage that it happens to be in. If your wall has a small crack, which is structural, then the repair is not prohibitive. If the crack widens, and the wall is displaced by a few inches, the repair cost increases. If your wall is about to fall down or collapse, then the repair is expensive, as a wall rebuild is now necessary.
Listed below are indicators you can look for to determine possible expansive soil related movement and / or structural damage. The probability that your foundation has experienced some movement increases with the number of indicators observed, their frequency, and location in the structure.
