Sewer smells in the basement happen to more homes than you think. Some of the causes can be a cracked sewer pipe, as well as floor drains, sewage ejectors can leak, and showers, toilets and laundry can off this odor as can private septic systems. To inspect a home sewer pipe, put on a pair of gloves and run a paper towel on the sewer pipes that are above ground to see if they leak....

Most basement water problems are a result of rain. But you can get water puddles in the basement or garage corners even without rain. In the summer A1 Foundation Crack Repair has been getting that call for years. In the basement and garage you get condensation because the surface is cooler than the air. The foundation surface is cooler than the air outside. The condensation creates water build-up. Water can form as dampness or puddling....

We were called by the contractor who was putting in the complete septic system for a commercial facility. They had dug the hole and put the tank in. However, Weston then had a tremendous amount of rain and even though the tank is enclosed, they noticed water leaking into the septic tank. They got our name from another waterproofing company. We discovered a crack in the septic tank that was about 4' long and water...

We had an interesting case study with a stone foundation crack repair problem in Providence, RI this week. We got called by homeowner who said she was getting water in the corner of her basement foundation which is made out of stone. This is a common problem all over New England. We looked at the pictures she sent us and the mortar around the stones in the foundation were crumbling or nonexistent, which is fairly...

We were called to go out on a job in Grafton, MA. Someone listened to the commercial that said Flexseal could fix a leaking foundation. You remember that Flexseal advertises by putting a screen door on the bottom of a boat and spraying the product on it! Flexseal may solve that problem, but it certainly doesn't fix a leaking foundation. We saw the can, and the homeowners said "yup, my dad came over and sprayed...

We got a call from a customer living in Shewsbury. He had three foundation cracks that were leaking. We decided that the cracks needed injection process. That is where we drill at angles to the crack every 6-8 inches, put our ports in, tighten up those ports, and inject a closed-cell polymer resin material. It goes through the ports, through the drilled hole and all the way through to the outside. On our contract we...

Basement windows could be made out of wood, metal or vinyl. Replacing a basement window with a wood window: There are some drawbacks and some positive things to wood windows. A drawback, they rot. There is also maintenance, painting and care. They are also easy to be broken into by a burglar. Usually they are a single pane window which means they are not very energy efficient. However, they are fairly easy to put in...

1. Stop any water from coming in through the foundation. This could mean cracks in the foundation, leakage around water and sewage pipes, tie-rod leaks, leaking bulkhead, and floor wall seams and cracks in the floor. This can all let water in. 2. Make sure the landscaping and soil around your home are pitched away from your house. You don't want your home sitting in water. 3. Take a look at the close dryer if...

This no joke, concrete can heal itself. A Dutch Scientist that a very specialized lime producing bacteria, when put on concrete, can heal itself. In fact, this scientist is a finalist in the European Inventors Award 2015. This specialized bacteria, which forms naturally in high-alkaline lakes can survive up to 200 years without any water or food. The bacteria can be activated when it comes into contact with water and it uses the calcium that...

This week we did a job at a commercial building in Lowell, MA. The business owner has water coming into the building in two separate spots. What was puzzling was that there has been very little rain. We recommended to the business owner that they have the water tested. As it turned out, the water was not rain water but city water. There was a slow leaking pipe underground that was causing water to enter...