If anything gets wet which shouldn’t be wet, our immediate reaction is to dry it and remove the moisture. This could be your favorite carpet, a rug, a couch, even water in the car if you’ve left the sunroof open. Water where it’s not wanted is a bad thing, and is potentially destructive.

So if you get water seeping into your property, that’s also a very bad thing, especially if you have a leaky basement, a constantly wet basement, or perhaps a heavy storm has caused other problems such as a completely flooded basement.

Since you home is probably your biggest investment you’ll ever likely to make, you’ll want to do whatever is needed to protect that investment by first drying out that wet basement, and then applying some kind of basement waterproofing to keep it dry in the future. Nothing can be more important, as moisture and wetness in the home can never be a good thing, for a number of reasons.

The first reason is of course wooden beams may have become saturated with water and started to rot. This will make certain types of home unstable. You may also see wet and damp patches intruding on drywalls, which are unsightly and difficult to rectify. All these issues will act negatively on the value of your home, and if you’re looking to sell, you may have to spend money to rectify these issues before you can sell it.

Secondly, moisture and dampness can give rise to fungus and mildew. This will thrive in a wet basement where humidity is high, and if left untreated could give rise to respiratory problems and increased allergic reactions.

In addition, water and electricity never mix, so if you have a damp problem, or more worryingly a flooded basement, you could be at risk of electrocution if you don’t sort out the water fast. Never enter a flooded basement until you‘ve checked the circuit breakers in your home. If in doubt, turn off the electricity to the entire house. Midatlantic Waterproofing cannot stress this point enough, as an electrocution can occur in even minimal flood damage.

Midatlantic Waterproofing can provide advice and services to completely dry out your flooded basement using sump pump systems, and once your wet basement is dry again, we can help keep it dry by providing a complete basement waterproofing service. You should always call us if your basement has been completely flooded, as the first thing to do is inspect the damage. You may not want to quickly pump out water, as if not done properly it could cause major structural damage.

For example, water can put increased pressure on interior walls, so quickly pumping water out could cause a collapse. When pumping water out of a flooded basement, it’s always best to proceed slowly and keep a careful eye on everything as you go. Midatlantic Waterproofing can provide expert advice on this, and you can read all about it at midatanticwaterproofing.com or basement.com