Will a concrete foundation be damaged by damp or soaked soil?

Question

The 20+ year old foundation has a poured-concrete bottom and "concrete block & motar" walls. There is a seepage problem (through the "concrete block & motar" walls only) when the ground is soaked in heavy rain.

Will the foundation (concrete or motar) crumble if it is periodically attacked by standing rain water? if so, other than regrading the surrounding to get better water-drainage, do you have any suggestion for rehabilitating or reinforcing the damaged "concrete block & motar" walls?

Thanks!

Answer 1

I've found that my foundation is warping,now that I have started watering my lawn. I am sure its going under the foundation and causing some damage to my celerium. My flooring is uneven in the celerium, so I'm pretty sure the water is going under the foundation. I don't know how to get it from doing that. Except to instead of using my sprinkling system to use a rain bird to water around it so it does not touch the concrete. If you find and answer ( and I hope you do) get hold of a good contractor. That's what I'm doing.

Answer 2

Regrading the landscape is the place to start and then move to the gutters and downspouts. In some houses, there may be a subsurface drainage system which will collect the water at the base of the exterior foundation wall and dispose of it by gravity to a lower location on the property (i. e. on the down hill side of the house) or in a sump pump pit. There is a water resistant barrier which is applied to the exterior of basement walls when it is built which can need repair, this is expensive work, so get rid of rain water before it gets to the house first, then see if that solves the problem.
Yes, the wall can be deteriorated by water seepage, more from pressure pushing the wall inward than crumbling from the moisture; water is the most destructive force acting on a house, so deal with it without delay.
Mr. Inspector.net

Answer 3

As someone else said the biggest problem is the hydraulic pressure against the wall. Concrete is porous, so unless it is sealed water will get through. The most effective way to seal it is to apply some sort of impermeable membrane to the exterior surface of the foundation (tar, plastic sheeting, hydraulic cement, etc.). the pressure of the water trying to get through can force any coating applied to the interior of the foundation to fall off. if the water is acidic it will cause damage to the concrete, however, if it is neutral or basic it will not cause any significant damage. the biggest problem would be mold growing on the interior surface of the foundation from the excessive moisture.

Answer 4

Probability of damage depends on the probability of presence of sulphates or chlorides in this rain water ..... if you doubt something like that, you'de better seal your concrete with some bituminous material or whaterver.

If you observe spalling or deterioration in concrete, you should know if that deterioration reached to the steel or not, if yes, you must remove the spalled concrete and clean the rebar and apply new concrete.

If no, you may remove the spalling manually and seal it well

Answer 5

YES