The process of bentonite injection has been around commercially for more than 80 years and was a prime method for sealing earthen dams and maintaining cofferdams for temporary water containment.
Pack bentonite between basement floor and foundation wall.
Leaking cracks in basement walls are a fairly common problem.
A simple and effective method of sealing off the leak is with the use of bentonite.
3 years ago to inject my basement wall over 10 times with bentonite and.
Sep 30 2015 by matthew stock.
The high bonding bentonite clay expands into the structure s cracks and fissures forming a watertight membrane from below grade to the structure s footer.
This doesn t happen because the wall itself is leaking water or because the basement floor has low points around the edges.
This leaves a small gap between the floor and the walls known as the cove joint.
During wet weather high hydrostatic pressure can easily force water up through cracks in the basement floor and along the floor to wall joint.
The corner leaks along floor wall joint due to exterior cracks and some other openings between top of wall and bricks.
Available waterproof coatings for use on the interior of a basement wall include thoroseal ugl drylok and xypex.
The crack between the basement slab floor and the basement wall.
Don t seal the gap between basement wall and floor to keep out water.
That is reason enough at least for me not to try it.
After your foundation footings are built your basement walls are poured so that they slot into a keyway.
This helps keep them properly aligned.
There are standard measures available.
If there is no drain tile outside the foundation fixing the crack may develop into a frustrating experience.
For example almost all basement waterproofing companies will use sodium bentonite to seal a seeping wall crack that is inaccessible from inside the basement and therefore cannot be injected with expanding polyurethane.
When the slab or basement floor is directly adjoining the stem foundation wall sitting upon the footing it is subject to the same movement that the wall is.
The bentonite clay mixes with the soil and expands up to 1 foot away from the external foundation wall which limits moisture from penetrating the wall in the first place.
If the slab is touching the stem walls.
Our exclusive bentonite injection service has allowed our company to put a warranty on basement walls below grade for more than 30 years.
One of the most common places to find water in a residential basement is in a puddle right next to the wall.