House built around studio design/build thread

[Gregwor]

Okay. Here's one not so boring picture for you.

This one shows how I made a skinny box to cover up a bunch of electrical and plumbing that goes up/over to our kitchen island on the main floor. You can see some duct work in the joist cavity to the left of the "skinny box" that I need to box in still and you can see that I have a ton of caulking to do yet. For the spots that I do not have my silencer box sleeves penetrating, I will have to build what I will refer to as "lids" to cover up the voids above the main yellow beam. I've added little 2x4's on top of the beam to maintain surface density once I apply the 1" MDF lids. For any of these voids that I have boxed in because mechanical runs through them, I have added two 2x4's in order to maintain the surface density. You can see the two stacked on one another in the void where the duct work is.

Skinny Box.jpg

Greg

[Waka]

Hi Greg,

How's the ceiling going?

You get it all done, the caulking is a killer right?

Dan

[Gregwor]

Working on it tonight again. We went on holidays for a few weeks and I'm being distracted by work (recording and mixing concerts) as well as planning out our landscaping (SketchUp has been very handy for that). I bought a cordless caulking gun to try and help with my arm pains. It's heavy and large but I've squished out a ton of 300ml tubes with next to no additional pain! I also went and saw my doctor today and got a prescription for different pain meds. I'm going to try Lyrica. Still waiting to hear from the neurologist for my appointment date.

Here are some of the "plugs" I made out of 1" MDF to go above the main support beam.

Main Beam Plugs.jpg

I wish I had more to share. I'm hoping to be onto the ceiling insulation stage soon.

Greg

[Waka]

Ah sorry about your medical probs. Hopefully you will get some respite from your new meds.

I'm not sure where those plugs fit into your design, but they look intricately cut and cool.

You'll have to show them in place.

Dan

[Gregwor]

I feel so defeated lately guys. Car problems, street bike problems, preamp problems, etc, etc.

Then, we got a super heavy rain throughout the night. I went down to check if there is any moisture and sure enough:

Foundation Crack and Leak.jpeg

So, I'm back to dealing with the home builder. Can you believe my bloody luck!?!?!?

Greg

[Waka]

Wow Greg, you seem to be having crazy bad luck atm!

They sound like an awful company. Are they obligated to repair these problems?

Dan

[Gregwor]

They sound like an awful company. Are they obligated to repair these problems?

They wrote me this morning and said that cracks over 1/4" in width are covered under warranty. Mine is a hairline crack. So, I looked up the Alberta New Home Warranty coverage and learned that I'm screwed:

Concrete Cracks.png

Basement Leakage.png

So, for now, I'm going to concentrate on fixing my wife's car and figure out an affordable way to fix the crack. I know that the outside of the foundation has a membrane on it so removing it would be silly. A fix from the inside would for sure be the quickest and most affordable. I'm just afraid it will be a temporary bandaid type fix. Sorry I'm not moving faster on this project you guys. 2 steps forward, 1 step back every time.

Greg

[Soundman2020]

The nightmare never stops! I feel for you, Greg. Incredibly frustrating.

I know that the outside of the foundation has a membrane on it so removing it would be silly. A fix from the inside would for sure be the quickest and most affordable. I'm just afraid it will be a temporary bandaid type fix.

I'm wondering if the membrane is damaged. If it is in tact, then there should be no leaks, even with a crack in the concrete. Have you considered digging out to expose the membrane where the leak is, and check it? Maybe the membrane doesn't go up high enough (above ground level), and water managed to get down the inside of the membrane?

If you do a repair from the inside, you fix the symptom, not necessarily the problem. You fix that specific crack, yes, but if there's water getting between the membrane and the concrete, then it will eventually find its way in through another crack, somewhere else. Maybe another hairline crack that doesn't exist yet... I'd suggest finding the original source of the water: How is it getting behind the membrane?

cracks over 1/4" in width are covered under warranty.

Any chance it might accidentally get bigger?

- Stuart -

[Gregwor]

Right now, the humidity is 31% in our house. I got this in a email from the house builder:

"Hi Greg. From the minimal amount of dampness that is there it is entirely possible that it is emanating from the inside. The membrane was installed correctly and was inspected and approved by the city. I’ve attached photos and the city inspection sticker for your records. We would recommend you check your humidity levels on the interior of the basement again"

Here is a pic of the part of the house where the water came through the crack.

IMG_0903.JPG

I see two cracks, one at each end of the house, and after calling around, a repair from the outside will be $2000 each. I do not want to start putting up inside out walls and risk water/moisture getting in so at this point my plan is to suck it up and pay the $4000 for the repair.

Greg

[Waka]

Hi Greg, is there not supposed to be a membrane on the wall nearer you in the picture too?

Funny how the "internal moisture" seems to pool right around a crack to the outside...

Also, is this repair something you could do yourself? If you look into it, it might not be a major job (although the crazy prices you're being quoted suggests otherwise).

Dan

[Gregwor]

Hi Greg, is there not supposed to be a membrane on the wall nearer you in the picture too?

That is the garage so no, it is not needed on it.

Also, is this repair something you could do yourself? If you look into it, it might not be a major job (although the crazy prices you're being quoted suggests otherwise).

I'm sure I could but like recording, a first timer probably won't do a good job. This is one construction process I'm more comfortable hiring a 30+ year professional for.

I'll keep you guys posted. Right now I have my wife's car torn apart so break time is over!

Greg

[richroyc]

I had a moist/leaky foundation wall as well, couldn't figure out exactly where it was coming from...One corner was always slightly damp.

I actually did dig up from the outside to repair the membrane, also I put in a leeching pit and extended the gutter in that corner underground directly to the leaching pit (maybe its called a"Dry Well"?). We also build up the grade against the house so the water drains away from, instead of towards the house.

I think what caused the problem in my situation was just the gutter was draining to close to the foundation, and the grade wasn't right (slight ditch/dip near the foundation).

I'm not sure which of those things fixed the problem but it's been almost a year (maybe more) since I did those repairs and that corner hasn't had the slightest sign of moisture.

I have a few photos of the wet corner and of leaching pit (dry well) before it was complete (plastic container sitting in a hole in the ground filled with rocks and some holes in the sides.

Wet corner:

Wet Corner.PNG

Leaching Pit Installtion:

Leeching Pit.PNG

Here's a photo of one from the internets:

oh18b8e.jpg

I think my problem was cause by

[Gregwor]

Thanks for your suggestion! We do have weeping tile and a sump. I actually had a guy out to give me a quote for a repair and he said I should just do it myself. It's clear that the water is coming in above the membrane so ultimately I think I just need to back fill even higher and more precisely. For the current crack I'll just remove some of the parging, apply some sealant stuff all the way down to and over top of the membrane. This is scary as more cracks will eventually occur so I guess the only thing I can do is ensure proper grading for the rest of my life.

Oh, and I fixed my wife's car. One of the 1000 things I need to get done. I plan to work some on the basement tonight!

Greg

[Waka]

Hi Greg,

How you getting on? Did you manage to get your 1000 jobs done and have any progress on your build?

Dan

[Gregwor]

How you getting on? Did you manage to get your 1000 jobs done and have any progress on your build?

Thanks for checking in dude! Life's been crazy lately. I've taken on too many recording projects (need to record to make money to build my studio and live!) and other things like landscaping have taken over my life. I'm hoping to get back into the basement to build shortly as I'm feeling time slip through my fingers. I wish I had more to share, but you might have noticed I haven't even had time to visit the forum! I apologize and I hope I have more time and energy to put into my build and the forum.

Greg