Foundation and waterproofing work in Saint Francis
Saint Francis is a small city squeezed between Milwaukee and Cudahy on the shore of Lake Michigan, and much of its housing went up in the years after the war. A lot of those basements were finished decades ago with paneling, drop ceilings and carpet over the slab. For a long time they stayed fine. Now the lake-effect weather, heavy spring melt and summer storms have had enough years to work on the walls, and the first sign is often a musty smell, a stain on the paneling or a carpet that feels damp by the wall.
When we look at a Saint Francis basement, we pull back just enough finish to see the wall behind it. Often it's seepage at the floor joint that interior drain tile and a sump pump with battery backup will handle. Sometimes it's a crack that needs sealing, or a block wall that needs carbon fiber straps or a steel beam. Exterior waterproofing, vapor barriers and egress windows round out what we do. You'll know exactly how much of the finished space has to come out before we start, and when the City of Saint Francis requires a permit, we pull it.
