Florida Basement Water Problem

[BB Sig]

So the title should explain half the problem. Hardly any basements in Florida and the few that are here were most likely not done right.

We bought this house back in October. The basement looked nice and had a fresh coat of paint. Should have clued me in! It would have made a nice storage room but the previous owners had it as a small exercise room.

We decided to use it as a storage room and my wifes painting "studio". As she was moving stuff around she found a wet spot. I cut a small piece out and knew there was trouble.

To start off with, one wall was drywall GLUED to the brick wall. Should have been a clue that it was going to be ugly.

The adjoining wall was pressure treated 2x's that were nailed to the wall. Half of them were supported by three drywall!

We've got all three dry wall out of this room and have a dehumidifier going ro try and get the moisture level down.

Any ideas on what to do next?

Barry
North Florida

 

[Higgins]

Notify you realtor, as any moisture issues should have been disclosed, Take lots of pictures, have service pro look at it (DON'T SIGN ANYTHING), locate structural engineer to investigate it. and don't do anything more to the area until resolved!! Identify what the engineer recommended, and associated costs!

And Good Luck ! - AL

 

[Docbentley]

Plaster the walls and floor, fill with water and you have an indoor pool.

 

[MattRMagnum]

Notify you realtor, as any moisture issues should have been disclosed, Take lots of pictures, have service pro look at it (DON'T SIGN ANYTHING), locate structural engineer to investigate it. and don't do anything more to the area until resolved!! Identify what the engineer recommended, and associated costs!

And Good Luck ! - AL

This is the best path forward. You need to take legal action, since repairs will be costly, and they likely knew that, and thus tried to hide it, hoping the buyers wouldn't catch on (or, if they did, it would be several years down the road before they did).

 

[brownbagg]

You need to take legal action,

why, that common construction in north florida, the only error is, they had a basement. That why people on the gulf coast dont have basement. there nothing illegal here. so the wall leaks, its florida, if it not leaking, it will. they all leak

 

[driftpin]

why, that common construction in north florida, the only error is, they had a basement. That why people on the gulf coast dont have basement. there nothing illegal here. so the wall leaks, its florida, if it not leaking, it will. they all leak

Failure to disclose serious structural faults is probably fraud. Obviously the seller knew, because they 'fixed' it enough to disguise it for the sale.

 

[Higgins]

Q. How long was the property for sale? Had the property been listed with multiple agents in the past? Had the property been taken off the market, then relisted? Did you have a home inspector look at the house???

 

[andyvh1959]

Given the potential high water tables in Florida, and the lack of contractor knowledge about proper fill, and drain tile around the outside of the basement footing probably results in water ingression. Up here in Wisconsin very few houses DON'T have a basement. So up here it is common knowledge to have drain tile around the footing, and a sump pit with a pump to collect the water. Even with all that, the walls can be treated inside with a water blocking paint. But the paint alone won't do it. Water WILL always find the path to lower resistance. The whole idea of drain tile and a sump pit is to give the water a designated gathering, and then pump it up and out of the basement and onto the lawn.

In your county, you can find soil maps and water table maps, usually at your local county courthouse or state agricultural rep. Soil maps may tell you the moisture level in the soil or how high the water table plains are. I agree with others though, the realtor representing the home for sale should have addressed these possible issues.

 

[MadMechMaster]

Who knows if the previous seller even knew about that issue. As far as I know, disclosures are only of what they know and not actual fact. Not saying to not chase it.

But, I don't see running water from 1500 miles away. Just some seepage. What I would do is remove all the materials that shouldn't get wet. Watch during storms, and paint if it's not too bad. The HVAC system can handle some moisture. Covering it up with drywall can create what you see there.

If you get flooding, then there is a whole other list of actions to take.

 

[BB Sig]

While I suspect that the previous owner did know, I don't think I could prove it. I think the only people who win in a court case are the two lawyers.

I bought a bottle of Mold Control from Lowes yesterday. Should I remove the old paint first or spray and let it sit before removing the old paint?

The dehumidifier had a good amount of water in it already. We are helping that will help.

We had a company out that had 3 plans:
1. No cost, I do the demo and repaint the blocks. Wait to see if it still a problem.
2. ~$3000, drain system with a sump pump.
3. ~$7000, dig next to the foundation walls and reseal walls and install a french drain system.

The guy that came out said it looks like they used the wrong block treatment when they built the house and no french drain. He said it looks more like a seepage issue than structural cracks. He said I've already done the hard part of the demo and that I should try the first option.

If #1 doesn't work, I'm tempted to do #3 but myself. I've used an excavator before and I know where I have to hand dig for the other utilities. I hope it don't come to that....