[Yaquith]

I have a basement that has water seepage at the joint of the concrete block wall and the cement floor. I also have stained and damp concrete walls which would indicate that there is moisture in the walls. The seepage problem only develops during raining periods that last for a couple of days. Which would to indicate that I have a ground water issue, my questions are how do you dry out the concrete walls (if possible) and stop the seepage?

[creahands]

The hard fix, but best way, is to dig down on outside to foundation and water proof from bottom to 6'' below grade.

Install gravel and drainage pipe to move water away from house.

When grading ground pitch away from house.

As added help paint inside with water proofing paint. Will need 2 coats.

Hope this helps.

Chuck

[parttime]

Yaquith, make sure your down spouts are directing the water away from your foundation. A bad gutter job can cause wet basements. Good luck

[joypulv]

I just went through this. 43 year old house. Turns out concrete goes through changes over about 20 years, not just the first few weeks, I've read, and 20 years ago is when this house started leaking. Concrete starts about about 18% porous. It has to be sealed and there is no sealer yet that lasts forever.
Plus the drainage pipe was packed solid with dirt, was improperly put at the wrong level, and didn't run past the edge of the house anyway.
Plus the slab had shrunk away from the wall at one or 2 spots, probably early on, but leaking more and more as drainage failed, into the crack along the wall.
And downspouts were not directed away.
Old tar type exterior waterproofing was almost all gone, barely visible anymore.
So... fix all of the above with various sealants inside and out, tars, crack epoxies, footing drains, gravel, filter cloth, insulation if northern, downspout diverters, and even French drains further out from the house. Some people have to have sump pumps.
It's a lot of work to do it right.
If you can't afford excavation, do what you can.