Home Water and Moisture Problems. Prevention and Solutions

Editorial Review

Practical solutions for homeowners.

The single most common problem facing homeowners is a wet basement and the problems associated with it: weakened and cracked foundation, mold and mildew, loss of storage space, water damage, and odor. Professional fixes are expensive and often involve digging trenches and excavating.

This book explains several ways of diagnosing and fixing a wet basement and other home water problems: leaking roofs, leaky plumbing, and high humidity. The illustrated step-by-step repair and maintenance instructions will save homeowners a great deal of time and money. It covers:

Wet basements
Correcting the grade
Waterproofing a basement
Roof leaks
Vapor retarders/air barriers
Home humidity problems
Windows and doors
Plumbing and moisture
Water conservation
Floods

A variety of practical solutions are offered for home water problems from quick and easy fixes to renovating and landscaping for water diversion and absorption. The book also includes valuable advice for prospective homeowners who want to spot potential water problems before buying a house.

(20031030)
Cached date: AWS Called=true

Customer Reviews

Told me to "consult a professional"...thanks!

2007-01-29
I specifically ordered this book because of drainage from a sloped lot which ends around my crawl-space foundation. When I went to the section on drainage swales which is what's required to reroute the water around the house, it showed me a picture of what one looked like and told me to "consult a landscape architect"; well if I wanted to pay a professional I didn't need to waste money on a do-it-yourself book! It reminded me of medical books that are full of "consult your doctor"...thanks for the info. As for the solutions to other problems in the book, I haven't reviewed them in depth, but they look pretty basic. I suppose it could be useful for somone who want's a basic overview on "what can be done" instead of "how to do it", for example if they wanted to hire a contractor, so I'll give it one star more than the minimum for that.

worthwhile if incomplete

2004-07-17
This book gives a lot of good information on WHY your house is having moisture problems. Whether it's the stream running through your basement, the paint peeling off the walls, or the puddle in the ceiling, he gives you the theory you need to understand how it got there and track down the real problem.
If you own a house, chances are you have a moisture problem and need to know this stuff.
The basement problems discussion is very comprehensive if you have a "standard" block foundation, and the roofing chapters are specific to "asphalt" (usually really fiberglass) shingles. Even though the theory will still apply, you (or your contractor) will have to work out the details if you use an alternative construction technique/material.
The one topic that I felt was under-discussed was the installation of vapor retarders (which the industry tends to call vapor barriers). If you ask 10 experts, you'll get at least 10 opinions. I found it disappointing that there was only one solution presented, with no discussion of the controversies that still exist. His solution may prove to be the best, or it may just be better than what happened to have been put in your house.

Until someone writes a more comprehensive discussion of the subject, get this one and act on as many of the suggestions as you can afford.

The single most common problem of homeowners is water 2003-11-06
The single most common problem of homeowners is water, whether it be mold or a damp basement or a leaky roof. This shares a professional contractor's insights on water, tells how to prevent many water problems, and how to fix existing problems. From ventilation systems to vapor barriers and basement sealers, this covers all the possible tricks to keeping a home watertight.