Crumbling Stone Basement Walls in Philadelphia: One Basement, Before to After
One real Philadelphia stone basement, before to after.
This is what basement repair in Philadelphia looks like when the walls are old stone and they've started to come apart.
A lot of Philly houses sit on stone basement walls. They hold up the house fine, but over the years the surface gets rough, sandy and loose. You brush against it and grit falls on the floor. Below is one real job of ours, a Philadelphia stone basement, from the first look to the finished room. Dependable Concrete LLC is a family-owned company and we've been doing concrete and basement work here since 1984.
Short version: We parged the stone walls, ran a dimple drain membrane along the floor edge, painted the walls white and finished the floor in gray. First photos Oct 26. Parging started later that day and continued Oct 27, along with the dimple drain work. Finished photos Nov 5.
Before: Crumbling Stone Walls and a Cluttered Basement
Here's where it started on Oct 26. Bare stone walls, uneven and crumbling in spots, with stuff stored along them. Dark, rough and not a room anybody wanted to spend time in.
There was also a glass-block window with a dryer vent in the wall, which we had to work around.
If your basement looks like this, you're not alone. It's one of the most common things we see in older Philadelphia homes.
During: Parging the Stone Basement Walls
Parging means putting a cement coat over the wall. On stone basement walls it covers the rough, loose surface and gives you one solid, even face. When people ask us how to repair basement walls like these, parging is usually the conversation.
The crew started parging on Oct 26 and kept going on Oct 27. The wet coat goes on gray. You can see the walls change from bumpy stone to a flat surface as it goes.
We mix our own concrete. We have our own silo and our own mixers, so we can add fiber and control the strength of what goes into the job.
For more on how we parge basement walls, see our parging basement walls page.
During: The Dimple Drain Membrane
Along the bottom of the walls, where the wall meets the floor, we put in a dimple drain membrane with pipes at the wall and floor joint. This is the waterproofing part of the job.
The membrane is a plastic sheet with raised dimples. It sits against the wall so any water coming through has a gap to run down instead of soaking into the room. Then it heads to the drain line at the floor edge. Our basement waterproofing page has more on how we handle basement waterproofing in Philadelphia.
After: White Walls and a Gray Finished Basement Floor
By Nov 5 the job was done. The walls are parged and painted white. The floor is a smooth gray finished basement floor. Same basement, but now it's bright and clean.
Look at the furnace corner above next to the before shot. Same corner, and the stone is now a flat white wall.
A walk-through of the finished room: white parged walls and a gray finished basement floor. Dependable Concrete LLC, family-owned in Philadelphia since 1984. Your written estimate within 24 hours of our visit.
If your floor is the bigger problem, our basement floors page covers that work.
Is Your Stone Basement Wall Ready for Repair?
Some signs it's time to have someone look at it:
- Sand or grit on the floor along the walls
- Stone or old coating that crumbles when you touch it
- Damp spots or water at the bottom of the wall after rain
- A basement you'd like to use but can't stand to be in
If you're seeing cracks, moving walls or bigger damage, read our foundation wall repair page too. We'll come look and tell you plainly what we think it needs.
Your written estimate within 24 hours of our visit.
FAQ
How long did this take?
The first photos were taken Oct 26, the parging and dimple drain work was Oct 26 and Oct 27, and the finished photos were Nov 5. That's the span on the calendar, not a count of work days. Every basement is different, so we'll talk timing for yours when we visit.
Can basement repair be done in winter?
Yes. This is inside work. Parging the walls and doing the floor happen in the basement, so cold weather outside doesn't stop it.
What's a dimple drain?
It's a plastic membrane with raised bumps that goes against the basement wall. The bumps leave a gap so water can run down behind it to a drain at the floor edge instead of coming into the room.
How fast is the estimate?
Your written estimate within 24 hours of our visit.
Get Your Basement Looked At
Dependable Concrete LLC is family-owned and has done concrete and basement work in Philadelphia since 1984. We're open 7 days a week, 7 AM to 7 PM.
Dependable Concrete LLC
7715 Crittenden St, Philadelphia PA 19118
215-821-9779
dependableconcrete.com
Your written estimate within 24 hours of our visit.
Book OnlineCall 215-821-9779dependableconcrete.com
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Basement WaterproofingParging Basement WallsFoundation Wall RepairBasement FloorsAll Articles
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