With the costs of single-family homes climbing out of sight these days, many homeowners have reason to take a long, second look at the house they already have. A full basement is often the largest room in an entire house and offers the potential for serving several purposes — as additional living, working, and storage space. And converting a basement to living space is unquestionably cheaper than buying a new home, with the additional long-run benefit of increasing the value of the house.
If dampness or even occasional flooding is preventing you from enjoying your basement, this booklet will help you identify the source and cause of the wetness and will describe specific remedial action you can take.
First you need to spend some time “down cellah,” as they say in northern New England. In most older homes, the basement was designed only to be the place where the foundation of the house was located. It was never meant to be part of the living space. It was where pipes and wires came into the house and where conduits carried out waste water and sewage. It was where food and other things not subject to rust or mildew could be stored.
When the water table rose during a rapid spring thaw or after a heavy rain, it rose right into the basement. In anticipation of possible flooding, storage space in old basements was on shelves or platforms above the highest water mark.
Today, furnaces, hot-water heaters, and other major appliances are placed in basements and an occasional flood can be disastrously expensive. Fortunately, waterproofing technology has improved with the times so that the homeowner can be assured of getting high-quality products to remedy his particular problem.
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