Many people use their basement to store all of their excess belongings and create space in the main part of their home. While you expect your basement to be dry, many end up finding themselves battling with water in their living space. To make sure that your basement stays as dry as possible at all times, there are a few simple steps you can take to keep the water at bay.
Extend your gutters.
Your gutters are responsible for taking rain water and melting the snow away from your home's foundation. However, many have extremely short drain spouts. That means that all of the water that is supposed to be whisked away from your home is going to end up pooling around your foundation. You need to get the water as far away from your home as you can. The best way to do this is to add on to the gutters and extend them out away from your property. Adding on a few feet will go a long way in preventing water from seeping into your basement and ruining your foundation.
Recreate the slope.
Over the course of time, the soil around your home is going to end up eroding. Once the soil wears down around your foundation, there is no place for the water to go but to pool up around your space. To put an end to all of the water pooling along your foundation, you just need to add in some sand around the base of your home. This will allow the water to be seeped up and prevent it from going into your home and trying to destroy your space.
Seal off the cracks.
Countless people will wait until a crack is too far gone in their foundation to be able to seal it off quickly. While it is inevitable that your basement is going to end up with a few cracks in it, that doesn't mean you have to ignore it and not do anything to fix it. The first time you notice any type of crack forming in your basement wall or floor, you need to get to work sealing it off. This will save you time and money in the long run. Sealing the small crack now will go a long way to prevent major damage and even more repair work. Full basement waterproofing is also an option that you might consider.
By doing the three things above, you can prevent your basement from being destroyed by water.
