Hey Katie,

Hmm, our floor was pretty smooth but our cinder block walls definitely were textured and rough pretty much all over. The Drylok really seeps into every crack after two thick coats, but it doesn’t fill things in or smooth anything that’s rough so you might want to check with your local home improvement store to see if they have any “self leveling concrete” or something else that you can pour over the rough spots of your floor to smooth them out before Dryloking. Hope it helps!

xo,
s

Hey Austin,

Yup, Drylok is pretty much available at any hardware store just remember to get the oil-based kind and to apply at least two thick and even coats to properly seal your space. It also helps if you don’t paint over it so you can reseal things in a decade or two if they need additional protection. Hope it helps! Happy Dryloking!

xo,
s

I think Drylok is the way to go. I guess it’s available at Pleasants or Lowe’s? I’ll look forward to re-reading your articles on how to apply it, and would appreciate any other tips you have in the meantime.

Thanks for the blog post.

Austin

The problems you face mirror our own little brick house, i.e., drain clogs and basement issues.

I call our small basement The Dungeon, although it’s fairly well lit. It’s not pretty, but it’s a safe place to hang out when tornadoes are near.

The Dungeon has been known to host sock hockey, Ping Pong, and a young rock band. It’s major function, however, is storage and laundry.

The Dungeon has a wall of original built-in cabinets, which we use to store luggage, Christmas decor, and more. Our washer & dryer sit near a 6-foot, bright yellow, wooden counter. We’ve deduced that the counter sat upstairs (in the kitchen) before previous owners modernized the kitchen. In like 1950…

Hey Rich,

We actually have exterior drainage precautions already in place (thankfully they were there when we moved in) so we knew that we were only dealing with only small absorption of water since our cinder blocks weren’t sealed (and not major water issues- all of the areas around the basement are graded away from the foundation and all the water coming down the gutters is diverted at least 20 feet away from the base of the house). This is why after weeks of rain we only had small spots of moisture that we clearly saw “sweating” in from the walls and not a monsoon of rain in our basement. Whew! As for the floor shifting, the basement has been poured and in place for around 30 years and it hasn’t shifted yet so we’re hoping that it’s firmly in place for the long haul. Of course if it ever did shift we’d cross that bridge when we get there. Fingers crossed we’re good for a while though!

xo,
Sherry