Bathroom Waterproofing:Tips To Cure This Common Problem

Leaking Shower is one of the common problems that you can see in your bathroom. The common symptoms of this include musty smells, even though the bathroom has not been used recently. The tiles change their color to a darker hue and damp patches appear on the wall, which can lead to mold growth and causes diseases in your home. Most people don’t know but proper waterproofing is necessary. Many states have established certain standards for waterproofing work. The person doing this must guarantee their work.

Bathroom Waterproofing

What Causes The Leaks?

Buildings prepared to the proper standards have sufficient waterproofing to protect the walls from water damage. This feature sometimes is not completely observed and is the source of leaks. These cracks are commonly seen in the corners of the bathroom floor and develop considerably over time. The common feature seen in such a situation is the grout cracking up and deteriorating. The grout usually cracks up and falls. This allows the water to enter through these areas and cause corrosion and damage to the waterproofing layer. Faulty or improper waterproofing can allow this damage to spread from the bathroom to the other parts of the house. Hidden leaks can be detected by:

1. Presence of molds: Bathroom Waterproofing commonly show the presence of molds. 

2. Damaged walls: Unreasonably discolored, stained or warped walls often indicate the presence of leaking plumbing. 

3. Damaged flooring: Your bathroom floor faces most of the water damage. So improper flooring can result in cracks which increases the water damage. 

4. Stained Ceilings: Stained and warped ceiling can often indicate the presence of faulty plumbing in the upper levels of the house. 

5. Musty smell: Accumulated water often gathers a musty smell. The persistent stench in your bathroom often indicates the presence of accumulated water i.e. water damage.

Bathroom Waterproofing

Common sources of water damage from Bathroom Waterproofing include:

• Pores in the grout.
• Poor grouting in between the tiles.
• Leaking pipeline.
• The bottom row of tiles and internal corners is not waterproof.
• Water often comes in contact with cut edges of the tiles.

Repairing Bathroom Waterplroofing holds the most important priority in the home improvement checklist. There are certain points which must be kept in mind: 

• Replacing the grout and applying a sealant is a temporary measure and often cracks can develop from it.

• Water always accumulates at the lowest point, so there is no sense in applying these to detect the source of the leak.

• Silicone and polyurethane sealants are often a temporary solutions to the water damage due to Bathroom Waterproofing.

Bathroom Waterproofing

A proper waterproofing solution by registered and trained personnel will have these aspects to their work: 

• Check leak: Detecting a leak completes 70% of the work. They will always try to pinpoint the source of the leak before commencing any repair work.

• De-grout: This is done to see the extent of the damage by removing the damaged grout layer.

• Repair the membrane: Proper repair of this layer ensures the longevity of the work.

• Replacing the grout: The damage grout is replaced with fresh grout along with a sealant.

• The shower walls: Proper workmanship will ensure that the shower wall is coated with a penetrative sealant, ensuring no problems. 

This article can guide through the various aspects of Bathroom Waterproofing. its sources, how to detect and establish that the repair work you just received for your water damage will hold its stability in the future. Ensure that the workman contracted gives details about the job. This will be the hallmark of any genuine technician.

Read More

Necessary Tips To Make Your House Concrete Waterproofing

Waterproofing is the most basic attribute that a modern house can have. Its importance to our lives is immense. You obviously don’t want rainwater dripping upon you while you’re relaxing in front of a fireplace at home. So it is necessary that your house is waterproof. In order to do so, you need to understand and maintain certain relate measures. A waterproof house can be free from the structural damages brought by water penetration and prevents the growth of molds and other life-threatening organisms. It also reduces the chance of infestation by insects.

Concrete Waterproofing

Understanding important types of waterproofing

Concrete Waterproofing, by definition, is the process by which any structure can be made water-resistant. This water resistance stems from the concept of surface tension and hydrophobicity. According to a popular theory in chemistry, water resistance can be only offered by material that has high values of angle of contact with water. This causes the water droplet to curl up which then can be effectively removed. This theory indicates that when such a material is used to coat your house, the surface of the house becomes highly hydrophobic, causing minimal interaction between the wall and water. Such materials and types of techniques are: 

• Bituminous Waterproofing Procedures: Bitumen is been used for a long time to waterproof several huge structures like houses and ships. The procedures involve two different approaches - tar membranes and bituminous covering. The first method involves coating the entire surface with pieces of the membrane which is coated with bitumen. These pieces have an adhesive that helps them to stick to the surface. The bituminous covering method is described as covering the entire surface by liquid tar, making the surface water-resistant. Common bitumen is often mixed with acrylic resins to make the covering sunlight resistant. 

• Cementitious Method: This method involves covering the surface with cement to make it waterproof. This type of waterproofing is used in places like the bathroom which is protected from sunlight and weather. 

• Liquid waterproof compounds: This method employs the use of liquid polymers which form a rubbery coat on drying. It then helps in resisting water. 

• Polyurethane Liquid Membrane: This type of concrete waterproofing solution involves coating the surface (usually flat roofs) with liquid polyurethane. This method has a requirement that says that the surface should be extremely dry or else the film will not set properly, causing warping and debonding of the membrane.

| Read Also: Why Do You Need Balcony Waterproofing For Your New Home? |

Concrete Waterproofing

How to maintain concrete waterproofing solutions?

This segment highlights some pointers which play an effective role in the maintenance of the waterproofing measures. 

• Presence of clogged gutters: The gutters can cause deleterious activity in the basement of the house. Clogged gutters accumulate water which wet walls and cause water damage.

• There should be a distinct slope to reduce the contact time of the water with the surface. For roofs, the slope should lead away from the roof. For basements, the slope of the land should direct the water away from the ground.

• Material used: Materials differ from each other in hydrophobicity. One of the best materials available for waterproofing is polyurethane. This material is usually expensive and requires skilled labor for its application. The lifetime of such a coat is long enough to balance the initial investment.

• Chances of condensation: Poor ventilation can lead to the accumulation of water vapor which condenses the cooler surfaces, increasing the chances of damage from water.

With the distinct advantages of waterproof such as increased property value and the ability to customize the waterproofing measures according to the user’s need, a waterproof house is an absolute must. This article can sufficiently guide you in choosing the right concrete waterproofing solution for your house and its needs.  So don’t adjust with the damp and musty smelling rooms, waterproof your house to feel the warmth and comfort inside.

Read More

Top Tips for The Perfect Bathroom Waterproofing

The bathroom and in particular the shower is perhaps the largest wet area of your property that will do well to have a good coat of waterproofing. Continuous leakage and seepage of water lead to dangerous consequences that inevitably involve costly renovations in the near future. Making use of the technologically enhanced bathroom waterproofing method is likely to be more effective than any other process as bathrooms will not suffice with any cosmetic modifications that are likely to wear out soon.

Leaking showers

The four basic tips to keep your shower waterproof and free from mildew:

The process of correct bathroom waterproofing should begin at the time of construction itself so that there is no need to break your back at a later stage.

• The first step towards making the shower area waterproof is to get the proper slope gradient that will help in the easy drainage without any stoppage.

• In the case of the concrete structures, this gradient can be prepared at the time of casting so that there is less hassle of applying the waterproof membrane at the next stage.

• For the wooden shower room structures, the work involves the critical gradient formation using the cement mortar along with the appropriate placement of the drain.

• There are also the readymade solutions that are available that can be laid on floors to get the necessary waterproof floor area.

Bathroom Waterproofing

The pre-fabricated material use

The floor is the most critical area of the shower, maximum care has to be taken to insure that it is waterproofed to ensure peace of mind.

• Apart from the concrete cast, the modern and prefabricated waterproof floor materials that are available on the market offer foolproof solutions.

• These are technologically enhanced products that are lightweight, can be easily taken out and replaced or reshaped to give the complete waterproofing solution.

• These come in slabs that can be easily cut and installed over the wooden base. Once installed their edges are sealed with the specific sealant used for covering the joints to ensure the complete bathroom waterproofing.

Bathroom Waterproofing

{Read Also: Why do you need balcony waterproofing for your new home?}

The waterproof membrane

The walls are next on the list that has to be properly treated so as to get the complete bathroom waterproofing that will last a lifetime.

• There are two options that can be used for the wall waterproofing and they are the application of the liquid or paint waterproofing material or the application of the special membranes that are available.

• The application of the paint is an easier task as every crevice and crack can be well covered with the help of the paint that also dries up fast under standard weather conditions.

• The other is a special waterproof membrane that already has an adhesive to it that can be pasted against the cement base much like that of the wallpaper glue.

• There are special membrane pieces for the lower ends and the edges that have to be put in place carefully for the complete waterproofing. 

Once the basic coat of the bathroom waterproofing is applied, there is no problem in the laying of the tiles and the stones on top of it in a regular way. But there is surely a word of caution that is to be kept in mind while making the choice of the stones for the final lining. The shower is one area that has to be lined with the non-porous material and not any fancy looking porous stone. It is always better to make the initial investment on the waterproofing material choice rather than tear down and rebuild later.

Read More