Detailed installation process

According to the Basement Underpinning contractors at Canada Waterproofers (with over 25 years of experience), this is the process. Canada Waterproofers has underpinned hundreds of basements around the GTA:

• Protect work areas with tarps, all equipment and ductwork is moved out of the way.
• Temporary supports are installed by technicians to stabilize the home while the underpinning work is being done.
• Technicians will excavate and underpin the wall in sections as per the drawings and permits until completely underpinned. Is the soil underneath the foundation strong enough to support the home? That’s a factor to weigh in on when determining the type of underpinning that will be done. In some cases soil that’s deemed to be too weak to support the home is replaced with concrete, a process that’s done section by section. All of this is done by professionals in consultation with structural engineers
• Remove and dispose of soils for lowering the basement to the agreed depth
• Install a new plumbing and interior waterproofing system, including a sump pump pit, to make sure the new area remains dry. Install a battery-powered or water-powered back-up sump pump in case there is a power outage
• Install an interior waterproofing membrane and weeping tile, connected to the new sump pit, below floor level. This waterproofing system will capture any groundwater and pump it out to the exterior of the home.
• Encase the weeping tile with gravel. Pour clear gravel (four inches thick) throughout the completely lowered area of the basement.
• Pour new 25 MPA concrete (higher strength concrete, since it will be supporting greater loads and traffic) throughout the basement with a trowel finish (helicopter when possible)
• Keep in mind the time required to underpin a basement. After the concrete is poured stage-by-stage, the technicians need to give it time for the concrete to “cure”. This process leads to the desired strength and durability. It’s only then that the temporary supports are removed
• Clean-up work areas and remove access debris from the site.

Canada Waterproofers has a 15-year warranty on underpinnings.

Considering underpinning your Toronto home?

House prices in Toronto and the surrounding areas keep rising. As prices rise, usable space becomes premium. Underpinning is an excellent way of making that unusable basement into something that can become part of your home. Underpinning means reinforcing an existing foundation or digging out the foundation to add ceiling height.

Underpinning/ basement lowering your home and finishing that unused space will add a huge amount of value to the property. With house prices at a record high, it is much cheaper to underpin your home than it is to buy somewhere else.

Canada Waterproofers can underpin your home at an affordable price and do it safely, as we have all the skills and training needed.

If you are considering having your basement underpinned, then it is very important to ask all the right questions, as underpinning can be dangerous if it is performed incorrectly. Ask your contractor these questions:

• Are you licensed?
• Do you have all the correct insurances?
• Do you need drawings and permits?
• Do you need the city to inspect your work?
• Do you have references?

If your contractor answers YES to all of these questions, then you are probably safe, but be sure to check all their credentials out before any work is started.

Main stages of underpinning a Toronto home