[Valerie and John]

Our house was built in 1921 and the basement walls are cement (we think) over stone. The cement is crumbling in patches, and in a few areas, the stone is exposed. The previous owners painted over the cement, but the paint is peeling badly. It looked great three years ago when we moved in, but we think it was probably painted right before putting the house on the market, just so it would look good long enough to sell the house. We'd like to patch the wall over the patches of bare stone and then paint, but we aren't sure how to do it so it will last. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Valerie and John

[glavine]

You can use drylock, but make sure you remove any loose paint before you do, this will also help with any moisture problems if you have any,

[Vinchenzzi]

Our house was built in 1921 and the basement walls are cement (we think) over stone. The cement is crumbling in patches, and in a few areas, the stone is exposed. The previous owners painted over the cement, but the paint is peeling badly. It looked great three years ago when we moved in, but we think it was probably painted right before putting the house on the market, just so it would look good long enough to sell the house. We'd like to patch the wall over the patches of bare stone and then paint, but we aren't sure how to do it so it will last. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Valerie and John

I would also suggest a good dehumidifier. Most of the time peeling paint is not from water outside but from moisture inside. Before you use that drylock I hope u are still going to repair the holes and cracks with mortar.

[Valerie and John]

Thank you for the clarification. We appreciate it, because we want to do this the right way the first time! We were wondering what to do before using the Drylok. It didn't make sense to paint right over the stone. Also, investing in a dehumidifier is good advice. Many of our neighbors have them and their basements don't smell musty like ours does.