Before & After Photos

Ever notice that painting the basement walls never lasts? The reason is that concrete has lots of little holes in it and the water vapor will always find a way in. The paint chips and peels away because the vapor builds up and pushes against the layer of paint. Brightwall is a great product because it allows the walls to breathe a little while keeping them looking fantastic. You'll never have to paint again with Brightwall.

When a basement floods there are a couple ways to fix things. The water isn't going to just walk out the front door, so you will need to force it out. The sump pumps that DryZone installs everyday are designed to be long lasting and very efficient. But how do you get water over to the sump pump? That is where the WaterGuard system steps in and takes care of business. WaterGuard sits on to of the concrete footer, but still below the surface of the basement floor. What this means is that you won't see it, but it won't be sitting in dirt either. Since the WaterGuard drainage pipes are sitting up out of the dirt under your home, less dirt and debris get into the pipe. Less dirt means less clogging. Just in case there is a clog, the WaterGuard system is equipped with inspection ports. The after photo shows a corner inspection port, which can easily be lifted to show the inside of the pipe. If you ever see dirt or debris, you simply flush it out with a hose. The water goes off to the sump pump and then out of the house.

Most people would look at these pictures and think it was rust or clay coming out of the pipe. I know that's what I thought when I first encountered this problem many years ago. What you are looking at is actually a kind of bacteria in the ground water. It is called iron ochre and gets mistaken for clay all the time. The reason is that it will build up and clog pipes. When this happens the pipes look like they are filled with clay. This homeowner first called because of a leaky basement. He thought that his old waterproofing system was clogged with clay. The first thing that needed to happen was to get a smooth pipe into the sump. The old pipe has ridges and they act like building blocks for the bacteria to build on, this is what clogged the pipes in the first place. A smooth pipe is less likely to clog, and much easier to clean out.

Even if you have a brand new house the basement windows can leak. The problem is that most home builders will install a basement window the same way as a window upstairs. The windows on the side of your home probably don't leak, and that's because gravity and the siding will guide the rain to the ground. Basement windows don't have room under them to let the rain water escape. Older homes will have a much worse problem because of the old single pane glass and rusty metal frames. The dark lines are evidence of a major leak. DryZone installs custom-made basement windows that are sealed and look amazing in Delaware and Maryland homes. They have thick glass and are double paned to make them more energy efficient.

Sump pumps in the basement are necessary to get the water out. DryZone uses a sealed system to keep the water from evaporating into the air. This helps to keep the humidity down and the smelly basement syndrome at bay. Another big part of drying out a basement is a perimeter drainage system which is the grey baseboard thing in this picture. This particular system is an above ground drainage system known as DryTrak.