How do you fix cracked mortar between basement wall cinder blocks?
by
Jan
+2
A previous occupant screwed wall units into the basement wall cinder blocks and the mortar between the blocks. This caused cracks.
Because the house is in a valley at the bottom of hills, a lot of moisture collects in the soil around the house and appears to seep in through these cracks, causing unusually high humidity in the basement.
I've managed to remove the wall units but not all of the anchoring screws. The goal: remove the remaining screws and anchors, fix the cracks so they stay fixed and repaint the walls.
A french drain on the outside would help in diverting water away from the house. To repair the cracks you would need to chisel out the mortar to a depth of about an inch. Then use hydraulic cement to fill in. It expands as it hardens fill minute voids. Then use Drylock and paint the walls. It seeps and absorbs deep into the block to seal them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Iw24uT239s
You can do all that to fix the damage, but chances are it won't stop water infiltration. Sounds like you need a french drain along the wall that has moisture to move the water draining from hillside out to the street storm drains.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RosQjZ3-Alo watch his many solutions to water
Another thing you can do is install a vent and fan in one of the foundation windows or vents..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcHyCSYMNUk
My sister had to get sump pumps put in the floor of the cellar because it flooded and uses also a dehumidifier, hope this helps.
How did you remove the anchors and fix the cracks? I have cracks in all the same places you do all over the outside walls in Florida and it seems like nothing keeps the cracks from going away even when you paint them...Thanks
I don't think all of the cracks are from the anchors. You should probably get a mason to check and see if you need to do more than just repoint the block. A French drain sounds good, while you have it dug up around the house, you should paint something on the outside walls. I know that Flex Seal works because a business near use was getting ready for Sandy and used the Flex Seal caulk to seal all of the openings in his store. His business was the only one around him that didn't have any damage. All the other businesses had 3 feet of water in their buildings. After dealing with the outside, I'd paint the Flex Seal on the interior of the walls too. It comes in gallon size containers.