Hi all, I'm new here and haven't gotten to introduce myself. I have a pressing concern with cracks in my foundation, and I wanted to share my story to see if you all could help me decide on the right course of action.
In our basement, we have 3 rooms: one "recreational" room, one unfinished room with the water heater and furnace, and one other finished room that we are renting out to a tenant. We were all prepared to renovate the "recreational room" when one of the contractors coming over for an estimate pointed out a grey spot on the wood paneling, and he thought it might be water damage. We had the wood paneling taken off, revealing the concrete block foundation wall behind it, which had several cracks. We knew that there were probably cracks in our foundation, because the second "unfinished" room had a visible horizontal crack. We saw the crack while inspecting the house at purchase and got several estimates from foundation experts that it wasn't serious enough to require remediation. Additionally, we've had no water coming into our basement at all. Even the grey spot on the wood paneling ended up not being associated with any signs of water damage when we removed the wood paneling. Since it was around an electrical receptacle, there could have been another cause.
I did another round of estimates with foundation repair / waterproofing experts so that they could look at this newly uncovered wall in the "recreational" room. I got 3 quotes. All 3 agreed that the wall being revealed needed additional support to prevent the cracks from getting worse. All 3 agreed that we needed to install carbon fiber straps every 4 feet across the wall (across all 3 rooms), and that was guaranteed to prevent the wall from shifting further for at least 15 years (if not longer). These carbon fiber straps are stronger than steel, and it's also a method I had heard of when I got experts to inspect the house before I purchased it. I am confident that the carbon fiber straps are probably enough to prevent the wall from cracking further. The contractors would also repair the cracks and waterproof the interior wall with a thick coating to prevent water or radon from getting in.
However, there's an open question of whether or not we should have a sump pump and interior drain installed. The first contractor said we should do it while we're doing the other work, because it will help prevent any future water issues that might arise. The second contractor said it was necessary. He said that they would drill down to the footer and install a sump pump drainage system with weep holes drilled through some of the concrete blocks. Doing so would relieve hydrostatic pressure building up inside the walls that would otherwise further push the wall outward, despite the carbon fiber straps. He claimed the carbon fiber straps alone are not enough. The third contractor recommended only doing the carbon fiber straps. He said he wouldn't recommend installing a sump pump unless there was water coming into the basement, and he agreed that there's no signs of that. There's also two spots in the wall where holes were already drilled into the concrete blocks to mount the electrical receptacles, and if there were water coming into the concrete blocks, it would have already leaked out there. That hasn't happened, so I don't see how there could be water inside the concrete blocks.
In summary, the estimates were:
#1: $8k for carbon fiber straps only, but recommends a sump pump at an additional cost
#2: $9k for carbon fiber straps and sump pump with weep holes, to relieve hydrostatic pressure
#3: $10k for carbon fiber straps only, sump pump not needed
All of the contractors have a good reputation and business, and #2 came personally recommended by some coworkers.
What's making this tough for me is the price. #2 seems like a good deal. But I disagree that the sump pump is necessary. I don't see how water inside the walls is creating hydrostatic pressure, making the cracks worse. If that were true, we would have already seen water damage through some of the cracks or holes in the blocks. Instead, the cracks are being caused by the weight of wet soil against the exterior of the wall. Drilling holes into the concrete won't help that, and the carbon fiber straps are probably enough to prevent the problem from getting worse. Other disadvantages of installing a sump pump is that there will be an additional repair cost of replacing one interior wall (drywall) that we wouldn't otherwise have replaced. It would also come with increased maintenance costs over time for the plumbing and electricity. Sump pumps sometimes fail or get clogged and need replaced.
The advantages of installing a sump pump are that it might not hurt to have one in the future. It's fairly common in the area where I live due to all the older homes and rampant foundation issues, and it's seen as an advantage to have some waterproofing already done on the home so that the new homeowners don't have to. So it doesn't hurt home values, unless there are signs of water damage. It's also possible that even with the carbon fiber straps, we might eventually have water come into the basement and the sump pump will then make sense. Although all the contractors installing carbon fiber straps will also waterproof the interior wall, making it harder for water to leak in through the cracks.
I'm having trouble making a decision. I've read everything I can online, where some people disagree that installing a sump pump with weep holes relieves hydrostatic pressure. It does seem to make sense if water is coming into the basement.
What do you think? How do I figure this out? Is a sump pump also necessary? Are there any downsides to getting one even if I don't really need it?
In our basement, we have 3 rooms: one "recreational" room, one unfinished room with the water heater and furnace, and one other finished room that we are renting out to a tenant. We were all prepared to renovate the "recreational room" when one of the contractors coming over for an estimate pointed out a grey spot on the wood paneling, and he thought it might be water damage. We had the wood paneling taken off, revealing the concrete block foundation wall behind it, which had several cracks. We knew that there were probably cracks in our foundation, because the second "unfinished" room had a visible horizontal crack. We saw the crack while inspecting the house at purchase and got several estimates from foundation experts that it wasn't serious enough to require remediation. Additionally, we've had no water coming into our basement at all. Even the grey spot on the wood paneling ended up not being associated with any signs of water damage when we removed the wood paneling. Since it was around an electrical receptacle, there could have been another cause.
I did another round of estimates with foundation repair / waterproofing experts so that they could look at this newly uncovered wall in the "recreational" room. I got 3 quotes. All 3 agreed that the wall being revealed needed additional support to prevent the cracks from getting worse. All 3 agreed that we needed to install carbon fiber straps every 4 feet across the wall (across all 3 rooms), and that was guaranteed to prevent the wall from shifting further for at least 15 years (if not longer). These carbon fiber straps are stronger than steel, and it's also a method I had heard of when I got experts to inspect the house before I purchased it. I am confident that the carbon fiber straps are probably enough to prevent the wall from cracking further. The contractors would also repair the cracks and waterproof the interior wall with a thick coating to prevent water or radon from getting in.
However, there's an open question of whether or not we should have a sump pump and interior drain installed. The first contractor said we should do it while we're doing the other work, because it will help prevent any future water issues that might arise. The second contractor said it was necessary. He said that they would drill down to the footer and install a sump pump drainage system with weep holes drilled through some of the concrete blocks. Doing so would relieve hydrostatic pressure building up inside the walls that would otherwise further push the wall outward, despite the carbon fiber straps. He claimed the carbon fiber straps alone are not enough. The third contractor recommended only doing the carbon fiber straps. He said he wouldn't recommend installing a sump pump unless there was water coming into the basement, and he agreed that there's no signs of that. There's also two spots in the wall where holes were already drilled into the concrete blocks to mount the electrical receptacles, and if there were water coming into the concrete blocks, it would have already leaked out there. That hasn't happened, so I don't see how there could be water inside the concrete blocks.
In summary, the estimates were:
#1: $8k for carbon fiber straps only, but recommends a sump pump at an additional cost
#2: $9k for carbon fiber straps and sump pump with weep holes, to relieve hydrostatic pressure
#3: $10k for carbon fiber straps only, sump pump not needed
All of the contractors have a good reputation and business, and #2 came personally recommended by some coworkers.
What's making this tough for me is the price. #2 seems like a good deal. But I disagree that the sump pump is necessary. I don't see how water inside the walls is creating hydrostatic pressure, making the cracks worse. If that were true, we would have already seen water damage through some of the cracks or holes in the blocks. Instead, the cracks are being caused by the weight of wet soil against the exterior of the wall. Drilling holes into the concrete won't help that, and the carbon fiber straps are probably enough to prevent the problem from getting worse. Other disadvantages of installing a sump pump is that there will be an additional repair cost of replacing one interior wall (drywall) that we wouldn't otherwise have replaced. It would also come with increased maintenance costs over time for the plumbing and electricity. Sump pumps sometimes fail or get clogged and need replaced.
The advantages of installing a sump pump are that it might not hurt to have one in the future. It's fairly common in the area where I live due to all the older homes and rampant foundation issues, and it's seen as an advantage to have some waterproofing already done on the home so that the new homeowners don't have to. So it doesn't hurt home values, unless there are signs of water damage. It's also possible that even with the carbon fiber straps, we might eventually have water come into the basement and the sump pump will then make sense. Although all the contractors installing carbon fiber straps will also waterproof the interior wall, making it harder for water to leak in through the cracks.
I'm having trouble making a decision. I've read everything I can online, where some people disagree that installing a sump pump with weep holes relieves hydrostatic pressure. It does seem to make sense if water is coming into the basement.
What do you think? How do I figure this out? Is a sump pump also necessary? Are there any downsides to getting one even if I don't really need it?
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