Basement waterproofing in Binghamton, NY
Help for the city at the meeting of two rivers, from the First Ward to the South Side hills.
Binghamton is the Broome County seat and had 47,969 residents in 2020. It began as Chenango Point, a settlement at the spot where the Chenango River joins the Susquehanna, became a village in 1834 and a city in 1867. The neighborhoods grew outward from that river junction: the First Ward and North Side along the Chenango, the West Side and East Side on the north bank of the Susquehanna, and the South Side climbing the hills across the river.
What's different about city basements?
Age, mostly. The West Side has big early-1900s houses and the First Ward and North Side are full of tightly spaced frame homes, many with fieldstone, brick or block foundations that have been patched by three or four owners. Low ceilings, old coal rooms and a floor drain that nobody has scoped in decades are normal. Houses near the rivers sit on the valley floor, where high groundwater after long rains tends to come up at the floor joint. Houses on the South Side and East Side hills are more likely to see water come through the uphill wall.
Jobs city homeowners ask about most
- Interior drain tile where houses are too close together to dig outside
- Repointing and sealing old stone and brick walls
- Replacing tired sump pumps and adding battery backups
- Extending downspouts and fixing grading on small lots
Who issues permits?
The city's Building, Construction and Code Enforcement office handles building permits. City guidance says any structural alteration needs a permit, electrical work needs an electrical permit even for homeowners, and plumbing work, including sewer laterals, must be done by a licensed master plumber.
Common questions
Does waterproofing in Binghamton need a permit?
Structural alterations need a city building permit, and plumbing and electrical work have their own rules. Ask the company which parts of your job need one and who will apply.
Can an old fieldstone basement on the West Side be made dry?
Usually much drier, with drain tile, repointing, a wall membrane and dehumidification. Whether it can be bone dry depends on the walls and the lot.
Services in Binghamton
- Interior drain tileA perimeter drain under the basement slab that collects seepage at the wall and carries it to a sump pit.
- Sump pumpsNew pumps, replacements, battery backups, alarms and discharge lines that carry water away from the foundation.
- Foundation crack repairInjecting leaking cracks in poured walls and repairing joints and cracks in block, brick and stone foundations.
- Exterior waterproofingDigging down to the footing, sealing the outside of the wall and adding a footing drain so water never reaches the basement.
- Basement humidity controlProperly sized, drained dehumidifiers and moisture fixes for basements that are damp, musty or growing mildew.
Nearby areas
Wet floor edge, a weeping crack, or a sump that runs all night?
Call and a Broome County waterproofing company will come find where the water is getting in.