Going With the Professional Way.

Well after a lot of thinking and planning I have finally decided that the best way to fix my problem is to seek professional help. So far I have received 3 bids and one guy who walked in and out in 15 mins and said he can't do it.

The first bid was for a waterproofing solution. They would put up I-beams and a interior drainage system with 2 sump pumps. This system sounded good, but, and theirs always a BUT. The 25 year warranty had restrictions like make sure I have 20 foot gutters running away from house at all times. Make sure the ground is graded correctly. All these little things that could easily get the company out of fixing any warranty issues. Not to mention this would all be done for a whopping $25,000.

The second bid was another waterproofing solution. This guy used to be into construction and rebuilding basements but went to waterproofing instead since its easier and cheaper. He would do the same thing; put I-beams in and an interior perimeter drain tile. The main difference, which I was very pleased with, was the warranty. It's a lifetime warranty and it does not matter if I have the gutters out or even on the house and it doesn't matter about the grading of the soil either. This guy says his system is meant to remove that water no matter what and his warranty stands behind it. Not to mention this could all be done for $15,000, $10,000 less than the other guy with a better warranty.

The last bid I got was for rebuilding the basement. This guy said he could only do the 3 walls and then brace the 4th wall. Also redo the entire floor, but one wall is really hard to get access to so it will cost more. This guy pretty much told me the house was not worth putting that much into, since his bid was $35,000, and that the waterproofing idea would probably work for now and the house will last for a long time with that fix.

So, I think I have decided on going with the waterproofing idea from the 2nd guy. If the floor still leaks when he is done I can have him come back and add fingers to help relieve the hydrostatic pressure. We'll see what happens