Waterproofing & Underpinning Blog

Main Benefits of Basement Underpinning

newly finished basement

Your basement can be more than just the foundation of your home. It can also provide you with more space for your family to enjoy. If you want to improve the structural integrity of your house or to make the basement more useable, you might consider underpinning or lowering your basement. Underpinning is conducted primarily to strengthen the structure while lowering the basement increases ceiling room and creating more useable space.

Wet Basement Might be Caused by your Neighbour’s Yard

Yard between two homes

Now with summer right around the corner, Toronto is feeling much warmer and not just weather wise. The hotter temperatures give rise to backyard parties and a great opportunity to get to know your neighbours. If you haven’t done so yet, inviting your neighbors over for a backyard bbq or patio party is a great way to instill a sense of community and comradely amongst neighbouring families.

Avoiding a wet basement due to leaky windows

Money going out the window

Now with spring here, you might be thinking about replacing your windows if they’re older or if you’ve experienced leakage issues during the winter months. If the leak has been continuing for some time, the frame around the window is likely damaged and/or rotted which if that’s the case; it will also need to be replaced. Many older homes in Toronto and the rest of the GTA weren’t designed and constructed to have livable basements.

How Eavestroughs Can Cause A Wet Basement

eavestrough installed on a roof

Eavestroughs or gutters as they’re commonly known in the U.S. are part of a home’s water drainage system and consist of a series of narrow channels installed against the edge of a home’s roof – collecting and diverting rainwater that’s shed by the roof. Water collected by the eavestrough is normally fed through a downspout from the roof edge to the base of your house where it is either discharged via runoff or collected.

How to Prevent Sewage Backup

Man in Flooded Room

Most people living the GTA will remember the flood of July 2013, where thousands of houses experienced flooded basements and power outages. The record breaking rains affected more households than ever making this the most costly natural disaster Ontario has ever seen. The Insurance Bureau of Canada reported a whopping $850 million in property damage.