Any idea how to fix this?
I was digging the flower beds and discovered this in the fall. The original dirt level was about to the asphalt shingle shown. I have no idea why its there but from the inside of the house i have some pics in the wall where theres the same type of asphalt in the foundation or just above it, it was hard to get a pic but if anyone is interested i can dig it up.
A few weeks later when there was heavy rain water was coming in at a good clip as you can see in the basement pic, i suspect its coming in under the mudsill and through some plaster (parging?) before the dirt trails shown.
I filled it in with dirt which stopped the water coming in but i know thats not a solution (but its frozen at the moment) so come spring i am not sure how to repair it.
This is the south side of the house and the highest grade, it slopes down from here so the foundation is maybe 8 inches above grade at the right side of the house so not all the rest of the sill is exposed to dirt contact.
I appreciate all advice because i am not sure what to do, i presume its been like this for most if not all the house’s life (century old i presume)
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Replies
Alan,
Q. "Any idea how to fix this?"
A. Yes.
1. Lower the grade so that the grade is at least 8 inches lower than the lowest wooden components of the building. Make sure that the grade slopes away from the building on all four sides of your building.
2. Consider installing an underground roof. Here are some links to pages with more information on underground roofs:
An Underground Roof
Inground Gutters
Fixing Those Drainage Problems, 30 Years Later
Ground Gutters
3. Repoint the rubble foundation by repairing loose mortar.
4. Air seal the foundation as much as possible with the usual grab-bag of air sealing tricks.
5. Consider installing closed-cell spray foam on the interior side of your foundation.
Alan , Martin gave the proper advice. The dirt needs to be removed from any wood. I had the same situation when I renovated my house. Luckily I had a heavy white oak beam and white oak is fairly rot resistant. However even without rot you can have issues with termites or carpenter ants. If you can't lower the surrounding grade you will need to install a shallow retaining wall around your house.?hopefully you have a sump pump and existing footer drain. If so you can build your retaining wall and wither backfill with clear gravel or install a vertical drain tile to the footing approx every 8 feet.
I figured i would have to remove dirt, my first thought was a spray on membrane of some kind, i saw a blue one on a mike holmes episode but i'm thinking a vapour permeable one is not a good idea here so i don't know what to use. Ants i have had, killed them off but there is a lot of gaps in this house, not sure if there are termites around here but if there are this house is doomed. I could put cedar in front of this, a few fence boards buried a foot or two in front of this would be simple, but a barrier or something to fill this with would be helpful.
No sump pump or footer drain (i can't be sure theres no drain but i'll bet money there is not), i used a shop vac when i had the water problems, there is no floor drain in the basement. I can't afford to dig up the foundation (i wish i could, i would love to exterior insulate, interior insulation is possibly very risky with being a brick basement and possible freeze damage). The concrete block on the left spans the west side of the house (i assume it was added at some point because of problems like this, on the west side the grade would be higher then the original mudsill).
Thanks for your reply Martin, its a brick foundation, theres a concrete block/slab on the west side that your seeing and the large rocks are actually the sides of the flower bed.
I can get rid of the beds but grading the lot would not be very feasible, at ground level it would reach about the bottom of the mudsill, if i make it lower there rain will pool again. Also should i just clean out the mudsill or is there something i can put on it or fill it in to prevent future rotting?
remove dirt
jack up house
remove wood
replace with either wood or concrete and finish as noted
It is rotten and has to go so I do not see an easy way around it.