Want to hang on to moisture from outside foundation of bright (old) house - how to do myself? Vapor obstruction? What & how had contractor put contained by 18 piers to stabilize (old) house...
had contractor put contained by 18 piers to stabilize (old) house (cost an arm and a leg) so REALLY want to do this outside work myself! Know I can't put bushes/trees too close to foundation but what else do I need to do to preserve water away?
Answers: You can step to nearly any masonry store, or some hardware stores and purchase a exterior water boom that is applied beside a brush or roller. This is a low end remedy, and only give you basic protection. Sheeting the fringe vith a vapor barrier product will give a hand more than anything. You may also consider installing a french drain along the exterior of the structure for extra protection.
Your first defense should be to make sure you hold good precipitation gutter and downspouts that direct water away from your home.
Dig dry well; two foot wide and two to three foot open gravel-filled troughs that grade downward away from your house for a distance of 5 to 20 foot, depending on rainfall and soil type.
Go to your local Home Labyrinth and ask what they have to trademark the outside of your foundation.
They will sell you something.
To really protect your foundation?
It starts near directing water away from your structure.
Dry well.
I hope this list of standards help:
www.state.nj.us/dep/stormwater/tier_A/... print.pdf
You can go to your local Building Code Dept., and they will administer you your local Dry Well Standards. You don't have to offer them your address. They'll ask for it, but just notify them it's for a few houses you might want to buy, and they'll drop it and give you the local codes.
Go near local codes for rain gutter and dry well. You'll be safe and blissful, and your foundation will be dry.