Sealing Brickwork

[AlexJ66]

Greetings,

We have a large concreted area downstairs that was built in by the previous owner with brick walls. The side brick walls are also retaining walls, holding back a large amount of soils including the driveway down one side. The problem is of course that water leaks through the brickwork when it rains.

On many of those house renovation shows on Foxtel they show the best way of rectifying this, which is to dig all of the dirt away from the exterior wall then paint with a rubber sealing compound, then install draining and whack dirt back in. Now the problem with this is that I don't want to dig up our driveway.

So, is there any way of sealing from the inside of the brick work? If I use this sealing compound, or render over the bricks, it may hold the water inside the brickwork, is this a problem? There aren't any HUGE torrent like leaks, just a few little squirters :D

Any ideas or suggestions greatly appreciated.

Alex

[brickman]

There is a product from bondcrete called 'silasec' which makes up a cement based waterproof paint which can be applied on the inside of walls to produce a "tank effect". The instructions are on the label and the paint is made up of from memory of 1 part silasec , 7 parts cement and 5 parts water ( could have these around wrong way ). This makes a waterproof cement paint but does produce a light " bagging" effect which can be rendered over or painted over with normal or textured paints . There is a chance this may cause the water to show up somewhere else if it pools behind the wall , but have had great success in the past with this product. It may also pay to silicone cove the wall / floor meeting point as this can be the main entry point for water. Hope this helps

[Planned LScape]

The problem here is drainage, if I understand correctly, the above side of the brick wall has the driveway and fill, and water which filters into this area has nowhere to go and ends up seeping through your wall.

The only solution is to dig behind the wall, install some 90 pvc slotted ag pipe, fill with drainage aggregate nearly to the top then backfill again to the top. Run the pipe to nearest available pit or drain.

If you seal the water in, the weight of the waterlogged soil will eventually cause your wall to crack and start falling over, it needs to be redirected and weight taken away from resting against the bricks.

Some engineers specify to have a waterproof cement sheet membrane behind the wall, which could also be added

[AlexJ66]

Thanks very much for the excellent responses guys.

Brickman, that sounds exactly what I am after, I will have a look around for it :2tsup:

Planned LScape, I am definately going to look into the drainage, and will be installing some drainage down the side of the driveway, then check next time we have some rain to see if it has stopped the seepage. I just don't want to have to dig up the whole driveway and dig down 5 or 6 feet to seal the whole outside of the wall :( I have a couple of options in relation to building in that area, so if it doesn't work then no big deal :)

[Terrian]

The only solution is to dig behind the wall, install some 90 pvc slotted ag pipe, fill with drainage aggregate nearly to the top then backfill again to the top. Run the pipe to nearest available pit or drain.


Flexi Pipe is available in 65mm - 100mm size, great for those 'not a straight line' drainage needs.

Available at the likes of Bunnings or your local garden supplies, a good idea is to buy some weedmat (the woven fabric type, not the woven plastic type) and lay that over the aggy pipe before you cover with stone, helps filter out fine soil that could end up clogging the drainage pipe

Silasec & Bondcrete also avaaiable fro the likes of Bunnings and your local garden supplies

[Planned LScape]

Or you can also buy flexible ag pipe with the sock attached, which also stops silt and sediment from blocking the drain

[Terrian]

Or you can also buy flexible ag pipe with the sock attached, which also stops silt and sediment from blocking the drain

yep, but that use to available only buy the meter, and only for the 100mm size :)