Waterproofing The Marlborough Basement

A couple of things have gone on by the time this picture has been taken. The first thing that we did before beginning to frame the walls was to apply DRYLOK Latex-Base Masonry Waterproofer by UGL to the floor and walls of the basement. That is the white stuff you can see on the bottom of the lolly columns. This stuff isn’t cheap. It costs about $100 per 5-gal bucket. If I remember correctly, we used about 25 gallons on this basement which works out to $500 just for the product not including the installation. This might seem expensive but just imagine how much it saves compared to replacing carpets, padding, trim, wallboard, etc. if you do get water in your basement.

This waterproofing paint is formulated to withstand hydrostatic pressure equivalent to water pressure at a depth of 22 feet. If you regularly get water in your basement when it rains I would not recommend using a product like this to solve your problems, however it is a great insurance policy for making sure your normally dry basement stays dry even under extreme weather conditions which can occur every so often. You can apply this product with a simple paint tray and heavy-nap roller but it is a lot of work as the concrete really eats this product up quick.

Never try and put DRYLOK through a normal paint sprayer, your sprayer will need expensive repairs by the time you figure out that it just isn’t going to cut it! We used a texture sprayer, that you would normally use for applying a ‘popcorn’ texture to a ceiling, to get the product on the walls and floor. One guy used the sprayer and the next guy worked it into the concrete with a heavy-nap paint roller. That system worked great.

Although not required by Massachusetts code or by most city/town building officials, I would highly recommend applying waterproofing paint to the floors and walls of any basement finishing project. Some Massachusetts city/town building departments DO require this preventative measure as a way of protecting their resident’s basement finishing investment, so if you are doing the project yourself be sure and check before you start to frame your walls.

You can view more pictures related to this project in the Finished Basement - marlborough, Ma Gallery.