Testimonials

On any rainy day, your home is meant to keep you safe, dry, and comfortable. But every so often, a heavy rain can cause a basement to leak. A homeowner may then discover their basement in a much different state than before the rain: damp, wet, or even flooded!

Each year, thousands of homes experience a wet basement situation. Some flooding situations can’t be avoided, such as from a tidal storm surge or an overflowing river. But generally, your home should be able to keep out the water produced by heavy rain. If it is not doing that, then there is a problem that needs fixing. 

So, what should you do after a wet basement incident? There are steps you’ll immediately want to take to ensure the safety of you and your loved ones. 

• If you can do so safely, turn off the power or call an electrician to do so. 
• Remove the water from your basement with a wet-vac, floor sucker pump, or call a disaster restoration expert in extreme conditions. 
• Move damp items out to either be dried or disposed. 
• Account for all damaged items for insurance purposes if you have coverage. 
• Remove remaining moisture with a dehumidifier. 

But there's bound to be heavy rain again, and that means your basement will leak again. The source or sources of your wet basement problem will need to be addressed so that a repeat scenario does not occur. 

What Could Be Causing My Wet Basement Problem? 

There are several factors that can cause groundwater and moisture to enter your basement. Check each of the following to ensure that they are not contributing to water resting against your foundation. 

Inspect and Clean Your Gutters and Downspouts 

Gutters and downspouts can become clogged with leaves and debris. Once clogged, water may overflow from those gutters and fall to the soil next to your foundation instead. 

Test your gutters and downspouts by checking them during the next rain or using a hose to spray water down your downspouts. Check the downspouts to see how well the water flows out. 

It is recommended that you have your downspout extended. The best distance for the end of the downspout extension would be eight feet away from your home – about how far the soil was dug out when your home was built. This may be affected by the type of soil that surrounds your home as well. 

Check the Grading Around Your Home 

If the grading is poor and sloping towards your home, water will have gravity to guide it towards your foundation. On the other hand, by making sure your grading is sloped away from your home, rainwater will be encouraged to run down away from your home’s foundation. 

How Do I Protect My Basement Against Heavy Rain?

As water builds up against your foundation, it creates what’s known as hydrostatic pressure. This can push the water through the cold joints of your foundation, such as between the foundation wall and floor slab. Without the pressure, that water will have significantly less ability to infiltrate into your basement. 

But to reduce that hydrostatic pressure during heavy rain, you’ll need an interior basement waterproofing system. Here are the components that you will often find in an interior basement waterproofing solution… 

• A drainage channel 
• Sump pit 
• Sump pump 
• Redundant, battery backup pump 
• Discharge drainage pipe 

But no two interior basement waterproofing systems are made equal. Without enough horsepower, a sump pump might not be able to move enough water. Different drainage channels perform differently, and where they are installed can also impact their effectiveness. 

Let’s have a look at how some systems are designed versus what ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing has developed with its 64+ years of industry knowledge and expertise… 

What Do Most Companies Use for Their Waterproofing System? 

There are a variety of drainage channels out there that basement waterproofing contractors may rely on. Store-bought drainage channels tend to be corrugated or round drainage channels with small perforations at set intervals. Some basement waterproofing companies may use a designed drainage channel to help better encourage the movement of water. 

But these drainage channels are often situated  flat and level on top of the footer. This leads to water collecting within the drainage channel. The water follows the drainage channel to the sump pit as it seeks the path of least resistance. In heavy rain, though, this non-pitched channel can become overwhelmed and force the excess water onto your basement floor. 

During heavy rain, efficiency and volume is key to a drainage channel doing its job. From sitting flat to being limited in size, these on-the-footer drainage channels are not effective at moving large volumes of water. 

Move More Water Faster With ’58!

Our ’58 basement waterproofing system, called Channel ‘58, offers several features that make it superior to other typical drainage channel options: 

• Beside-the-footer installation allows our Channel ’58 drainage channels to be pitched, encouraging water to run through the drainage channels faster towards the sump pit and sump pump. 
• Typical drainage channels only have around a 1 gallon per foot capacity. Channel ’58 offers up to three times more drainage capacity with a 3 gallons per foot capacity! 
• Our Workhorse Sump Pump offers more power than sump pumps in other waterproofing solutions. While others use a standard of ¼ hp, our Workhorse Sump Pump provides ¾ hp, providing three times the power of most competitors. This is another important factor in being able to keep up with a heavy rain. What’s more, we offer our Workhorse OT+, which provides an essential battery backup in the case of power outages or mechanical failure! 

How Much Water in a Basement is Bad?  

If your basement gets flooded with an inch or more of water, that’s clearly a bad situation. Anything in contact with the floor and water can now be ruined. Baseboards, drywall, wood framing, carpeting, furniture, and anything else can be damaged by water.

But even with a small amount of water or just lingering dampness in your basement, it can lead to moisture-related problems. Here are just some of the wet basement problems that may occur… 

• Mold growth and allergies/toxins 
• Wood rot 
• Dust Mites and allergies 
• Termites 

Whether you’ve been having a little or a lot of water invading your basement, a wet basement can attract problems. By having your basement protected by ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing, you can keep those heavy rains where they belong: outside. 

Make Those Wet Basement Problems Go Away—Call ’58! 

’58 Foundations & Waterproofing is no stranger to wet basements and cracked foundations. With over 64 years of experience in basement waterproofing and foundation repair, our experts can protect your home against heavy rain and the many problems caused by a basement leak. From high-capacity drainage channels to powerful sump pumps with battery backups, ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing will provide a comprehensive basement waterproofing solution that covers all the bases.

We have local offices throughout the Eastern Seaboard! Whether you live near Knoxville, TN, Baltimore, MD, or Atlanta, GA, there's a team of '58 experts ready to help you!

So, when there's heavy rain and your basement starts to leak, you can always call on the experts at ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing! Contact us today to schedule a free inspection and to receive a detailed cost estimate from one of our experts. When water starts pressing on your foundation, lean on ’58 to stay safe and dry!

'58 Foundations' Todd Prosan on ABC's Daytime Tri-Cities

Todd Prosan of '58 Foundations on ABC's Daytime Tri-Cities. Watch here... Chris McIntiosh: Today I want to welcome Todd Prosan president and co-owner of ‘‘58 Foundations to Daytime. Good morning. How are you doing today? Todd Prosan: Good morning. Thanks for having me. CM: Let's talk about ‘58 Foundations. I think that the name's almost self-explanatory, but you're doing a lot of work with foundations today. TP: Absolutely. The name came about because we started in 1958. We do a lot of structural repair for homes. We waterproof basements, crawlspaces, and encapsulation. And today it's raining and our business can help people whose basements or crawlspace flood. CM: These rainy days are good for your business. TP: The nice thing is that we do some things that are pretty unique. We offer our life-of-the-structure warranty. And most of our products even get a money-back guarantee. So our customers benefit by never having to risk their money. CM: And we got some pictures that we're going to be showing. One of the things y'all do is waterproof basements. And also crawlspace encapsulation, basement crack repairs, putting in sump pumps. So many things that you all do to keep people's homes dry. TP: Absolutely. And in today's economy, one of the most important assets that a person has is their home. And so we want to make sure that they invest their money wisely. And with 63 years of experience, we're a great choice. CM: And y'all offer so many. You got great warranties. You got a really highly trained staff as well. TP: We do. We have a couple of hundred people, which is amazing. We've been in this market for quite a few years and growing every year. Some of the things that are unique to us is that we also do radon removal, mold removal, third-party testing. We try to do everything so that it's easy for homeowners. We also make it so people don't feel obligated to purchase from us. CM: I know you're based in Knoxville, but you have the business here in the Tri-Cities. TP: We see the same kind of topography in both places. CM: What's the overall biggest problem you see when folks make that call to you all. I've got a problem. What's the big problem. TP: The majority of the calls are about the basement. About water leaking in, which typically happens where the floor meets the wall, at the cove joint. There's nothing really stopping water from getting in at that spot. As soon as the water table rises, water forces its way in. In a crawlspace, calls are about encapsulation. 50% of the air that you breathe in your home comes from the basement or the crawlspace. We stop that by putting a liner system in place. Thirdly, calls come from a structural standpoint. People see cracks in their foundation and don’t know whether or not it's something they need to worry about. So we offer a free solution to come out and do an estimate and let them know if it's something they need to worry about. CM: That stood out to me when I was doing my homework on ‘58 Foundations. I was looking at your website and those free estimates, you can just pick up the phone and say, Hey, listen, I've got this going on. Can you come out here and tell me what we need to do? TP: Absolutely. For any of our services, there's a free estimate. As I mentioned before, most of our services also carry a money back guarantee, which says that if the system that we install doesn't do what it's supposed to do, the customer's money is never at risk and we'll refund all their money. CM: How do you like being in business here in the Tri-Cities? TP: I love the Tri-Cities. I'm originally a Florida native. I came up here, went to UTSU, fell in love with the area. CM: Fellow alum. TP: Fellow alum. Absolutely love it here. People are the best. I've always wanted to be in East Tennessee. So I moved here. CM: I was looking on your website and one thing you all made sure to let people know is that you all got some great values when it comes to business integrity, doing things the right way and doing them the right way. TP: We are very unique. We're a family first business. What that means is that I've got two daughters, nine and 10 years old. And I want to see them grow up. I want everybody on our team to see their kids grow up. And I want to protect our customers and their families. We treat every customer like they're part of the family. When they decide to do business with us, they become part of the ‘58 family. CM: And the ‘58 family you're also hiring right now as is a lot of businesses. TP: We are hiring, we're hiring anything from production crew members up through management in the company. We're in a growth mode. I've been very, very fortunate. God has blessed us with the ability to continue to grow. And so, yes, if you're looking for an opportunity for a career and not just a job, reach out to us. CM: The last thing we'll touch on here is safety. You mentioned radon and have it keeping your home safe. That that's the key factor in all. TP: It is. A lot of times I think people believe that waterproofing or structural repair is the actual issue. A little water on their basement floor isn’t the problem. The problem is the health of the home. And so we really focus on that, whether it's the radon or the mold removal. Really, waterproofing in itself, that moisture being brought up into the home, through the stack effect, long-term creates a tremendous amount of issues. And so we're able to eliminate that for our customers. CM: Todd Prosan, thank you so much for telling us the story of ‘58 Foundations. If you want to reach out to ‘58 Foundations, you've got a problem. Maybe you're looking for a job.

'58 Foundations' foreman checking schematic in basement.

  '58 Foundations' new TV spot shows a glimpse into what you can expect when you call us through the installation of the solution.  

“Did You Know… ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing has hundreds of thousands of satisfied homeowners.”

When you call us, we’ll schedule a free inspection to a time that works for you. On that day and at that time, our Foundation Specialist will show up, introduce themselves, and get right to the inspection. We encourage you to come along with our specialist so that you can tell us everything we need to know to discover the problem and create a custom solution for your home.  

“Did You Know… ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing is one of the most trusted names in basement and craw lspace waterproofing, mold removal and foundation repair.”

Once you choose to hire us, the custom solution that was agreed upon is handed off to the foreman and crew who will install your system. These plans are first gone through in the office through our Smarter Way™ process. And then agin at the job site with the team. Here’s what one customer had to say: “The work that was done at our residence was exceptional! The crew was efficient, courteous, expedient and very professional! They took great measures to ensure that I was informed of the progress of the work through every step of the way. In all, I highly recommend them! Steve Odell, Dylan, Devon and Dre are a credit to their company!” Here's what another one said, “My foreman, Richard, and his crew, Rodney and Nicholas, did an "AMAZING" job! They worked for three days in a non-air conditioned crawlspace with outside temperatures in the mid to high 90's. Richard was "fabulous." He was always polite, courteous, and cheerful. He knows his job and does it well. He has a wonderful personality. I was truly blessed to have him assigned to encapsulate my crawlspace. Thank you Richard, Rodney, and Nicholas! I could not be any happier.” And another, “All around Excellent service. From the sales rep to the install crew everyone was very professional and knowledgeable. They even fit our job into an already packed schedule. Very please with the outcome. Richard and his install crew were great. They went above and beyond to ensure my complete satisfaction. This is my second time using [them]. I had a problem in my previous home and they were outstanding then so I used them for this job. I actually interviewed and got estimates from a couple of competitors but so happy I went with them again. I told them that I never want to have to use them again (LOL) but I highly recommend them to anyone who is in need of their services. You will not be disappointed.”  

“Did You Know… ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing has the strongest warranties in the industry with Money-Back Guarantee!”

We’ve been around long enough and have seen enough situations to know whether or not we can fix a problem. If we say we can fix, we’ll fix it. To help our customers to eliminate the risk when they hire us to solve their waterproofing problem, we offer a Money-Back Guarantee that states if we can’t fix it, we’ll return your money. For details, ask our Foundation Specialist about the guarantee when they come out to inspect your home.  

“Did You Know… ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing is now more affordable than ever.”

With multiple payment and financing options* available, our solutions are now more budget-friendly than ever before. (*with approved credit)  

“Now You Know… ’58 Foundations & Waterproofing your first choice for basement, crawlspace and foundation solutions.”