Health Concerns Arising from Foundation Leakage

A wet or leaky basement is dangerous to your health. Why? The presence of dampness and humidity support and encourage the growth of moulds, mildew, bacteria and fungi. These air-born irritants at the least create an unpleasant smell and more severely seriously challenge the respiratory system. Anyone with an existing breathing problem will find it exacerbated when a home has a wet basement and those who have never suffered from respiratory problems may find breathing more difficult. Moulds and other growths spark allergic reactions for many. These can range from sneezing and itchy eyes to tightened chests and more extreme responses. 
 
What’s going on is easy to understand. The moulds and other negative growths require water to survive. That’s why you will often find mould growth on bathroom tiles where there is inadequate ventilation or excess use and bathroom cleaners generally include chlorine to kill the moulds. If your basement is leaking, even the slightest bit of humidity will encourage the reproduction of these unwanted irritants. You can tell if mould-growth associated with foundation leakage is happening by smell, awareness of humidity, and the presence of efflorescence that white flaky mineral salts left behind when water evaporates. Even if you don’t see it, the moulds may be lurking in your basement.
 
The best way to arrest the air quality deterioration is to stop the growth and this is accomplished by removing the water they require to grow and correct clean up measures as specified by health authorities. The problem will not end if you only kill the existing evidence and do not fix the waterproofing problem. As soon as the leakage occurs again, mould growth will rapidly follow. Clearly, concerned homeowners will want to effect a permanent waterproofing renovation by Benchmark Waterproofing.