Is your basement leaky?
Steps to Install the WellDuct® System
We fix leaking basement windows with the WellDuct® Basement Window System to redirect flooding to a perimeter drain or drywell. During installation, our technicians follow these four simple steps:
- Install A Perimeter Drain or Drywell: At The Foundation Guys, we recommend that water from your WellDuct® is directed into a French drain system. Otherwise, a small drywell can be created beneath the leaking window. If your problem is a leaking crack beneath your window, no hole will need to be created.
- Create A Drainage Channel: The installer will create a small hole in the wall -- just underneath the window. If you have block walls, a PVC pipe will be installed in this hole and a grated opening will be installed on the outside of the pipe to help prevent clogs. A polymer will be injected around the outer edge of the pipe to help keep it sealed and in place.
- Direct Water Into Your Perimeter Drainage System: A gray plastic fitting will be placed on your inside basement wall, directing water down into your perimeter drain or drywell. The top of the drain will be sealed off with a polymer injection. Plastic pegs mechanically attach the plastic fitting to your walls.
- Seal The Drain: The edges of the plastic fitting will be sealed to your wall with a polymer injection. Once the workplace is carefully cleaned, your installation is complete!
Old basement window frames easily rust and rot. Combine them with corroded, debris-filled metal window wells, and you have a real eyesore!
To make matters worse, these window wells leak when filled with snow and rain during wet seasons, which can then make its way into your home.
Replace your windows and install new covered window wells for a drier, happier home.
Basement Window Maintenance
Like most things in your home, your basement windows do better with a little maintenance. While your window will still probably leak at some point in the future without a WellDuct®, here are a few things you can do to help keep water to a minimum:
- Routinely clean out dirt, leaves, and other debris from your window wells.
- Keep your gutters clean so runoff water does not pool around your windows.
- Grade the soil around your home so it is sloped away from your windows -- and the rest of your foundation.
It's also worth noting that keeping a window well free of dirt, leaves, and similar debris is a good way to help prevent pest infestations. Ants, termites, and more will often build their nests in debris near a home, and expand from there into your home.