Is your basement floor warping?
Find out why it is happening and how to fix it.
The two main causes of warping and curling in basement floors is temperature and moisture.
When there is a difference in temperature and moisture between the top and bottom of a concrete slab, sometimes this will cause curling.
Some parts of the concrete slab will be dry and some wet. The dry parts contract and the wet parts do not, leaving parts of the concrete wanting to go up and other parts wanting to sink down.
Oftentimes cracks will occur alongside curling.
If you have a hardwood floor installed in your basement, moisture and temperature can also cause warping in the wood.
Moisture collects under the surface. Some parts will be dry or cool, others will not which leaves parts of the wood warped and other parts not.
Warping of the slab, oftentimes known as curling, is when parts of your concrete slab slant up or downwards because of the temperature and moisture difference in separate parts of the concrete. Dry parts will often curl up along the edges, and wet parts sink down in the middle.
Oftentimes cracks will occur when a basement floor curls, but this is not always detrimental. Sometimes cracks will occur, but the foundation load is still okay to hold. It's best to hire a professional to inspect your specific situation.
Some basements floors will bulge upwards, whereas others will sink downwards. The cause of this depends on what the underlying issue is.
If your warped basement floor needs fixing, there may be several options. The cost depends on which option you go with. Foundation repair is oftentimes not cheap, but it can be a great investment into the safety and worth of your home. You can see our full waterproofing cost estimate here.
One thing we know from over 50 years of waterproofing basements is that the issues don't fix themselves, and most of the time they get worse.
The best way to be sure that the issues you are facing will not get worse is to hire a professional team to give you an inspection.
Sometimes there are obvious fixes, and other times the fixes are quite unordinary. Be sure to hire a team that has lots of experience with your specific issues. Here are questions to ask waterproofing contractors.
