Thursday, June 17th by Shannon Brelsford
Moisture in a finished basement could quickly result in disaster. Know how to spot, repair, and avoid issues in the future!
A finished basement is a wonderful addition to any home, providing extra space for the whole family to gather and spend quality time, or simply extending the available living space of the home. However, finished basements often fall prey to their own nature--being underground can often lead to water problems within the finished basement.
With a finished basement, this can be a potentially more pressing issue than having water issues in an unfinished basement. In a finished space, there’s typically drywall or sheetrock, flooring and furniture, keepsakes and technology that can be damaged or destroyed. Mold can also more quickly grow in a finished space, as there’s usually more natural material to feast upon than in a bare concrete space.
But how can you tell when you’ve got a water problem quickly enough to step in? Here are a few of the most common warning signs of a moisture problem in your finished basement.
Avoid a serious moisture problem in the basement by watching out for the common signs.
Often the first warning sign will be a slight mustiness or dank odor to the air in the basement. You may find that you feel sticky or as though the air itself is damp, this is a strong indicator that you have a water problem in the basement.
If there is an increased level of humidity and moisture in the air or seeping through the walls, this is a clear sign of the issue within the basement.
Softening wall material in a finished basement is a bad sign. If things have progressed to the walls, door and window frames, and potentially even the support beams becoming compromised, the problem is likely to be costly. Rot weakening the structure of the home could lead to a serious safety risk, so be aware of the condition of your materials as much as possible.
Mold and mildew grow quickly when there is a surplus of natural material to feed upon. It won’t just stop at the walls or flooring, either, it will steadily consume photographs, furniture, books, keepsakes and anything else in its path. Mold can spread up through the home with alarming speed, and cause a massive indoor health issue if not addressed quickly.
Another very clear sign of a moisture problem in your finished basement, is condensation, much like the wet walls and mirrors after a shower, showing up on the walls and floors of your basement. You may also notice beads and streaks of water on electronics, photographs. This can quickly damage and destroy personal belongings and facilitate mold and mildew growth.
When there’s a water issue in the basement, one of the easiest ways, and fastest way to tell is the smell of the air. As mentioned above, you may notice that the air in the finished basement is humid and damp, usually coming along with that feeling, is the smell of stagnant water, or the slight musk of rot and mildew as water soaks into the walls, floors and furniture in the basement.
This is obvious, of course, but standing water in a finished basement is a large problem. While it is possible for water to accumulate very quickly during a storm or with snowmelt in the spring, an accumulation of standing water from rainfall and other precipitation could be indicative of a long-term moisture issue in the basement, which will need wet basement repair.
Ensuring that the basement is fully waterproofed before finishing/re-finishing the space is the key to having a beautiful basement space for years to come!
When moisture issues occur, it’s important to first identify the cause or problem area. In a finished basement, the task of locating the source of a leak is more difficult than in an unfinished basement. There may be wall material, flooring, or heavy furniture blocking access to the area that needs to be addressed. To quickly and easily locate the origin of a leak, as well as properly repair the damage, a basement waterproofing contractor should be called.
With our Total Basement Finishing product line, your basement will be an enjoyable area for the whole family!
Total Basement Finishing is proud to have a network of highly skilled, highly trained basement finishing specialists across the United States and Canada. Our local, family owned businesses under the Total Basement Finishing Network are here for you and all your basement finishing needs!
If you’ve been considering finishing your basement, but are nervous of the potential water issues that you could experience in the future, Total Basement Finishing has the solution for you. Reach out today for your free, no obligation estimate!