Master Plumbers Association

BSA Licence No.

73472

SEEPAGE FROM EXTERNAL WALLS

This is a very common problem in the building industry, it is also one of the most difficult and most expensive problem to rectify.

Signs of seepage

1. Paint peeling on ground level walls which have soil up against the outside of wall
2. Damp carpet in ground level rooms
3. Swelling & paint peeling to timber skirting and bottom of door jambs
4. Wet plaster walls
5. Water pooling against walls after heavy rain

If building or renovating we strongly recomend that you seek advice from several people in the Building industry prior to making the decision to build a lower ground level room, where soil will end up against the outside wall of proposed room. With this job you only get one chance to do the job right, if it is not done correctly the seepage problems never go away and the house will always have a seepage issue. The repair costs to an existing seepage problem can be tens of thousands of dollars.

Our advice is always try and have a walkway between the wall of the house and the retaining external wall, this way you will never have a seepage problem, and there is no need to rely on water proofing membranes to keep the water out of your house.