Foundation Wall Crack Repair System – CrackShield

CrackShield is a 2-part crack repair system that is designed for the most skilled contractor and for the novice looking to step into the repair industry.

Grate Products has combined injection methods with strength additives to repair the wall together into a kit that is intended for foundation wall crack repair.

On the website http://www.crackshield.com/ it goes into a bit more detail about how the products work together in order to form a more thorough wall repair. There are also instructions on how to purchase CrackShield, become a CrackShield contractor, or just to learn more about what CrackShield does for a basement wall.

To anyone wishing to add a crack repair method to their skill set, you can simply contact Grate Products on their site or through CrackShield.com to find out when the next training session is. Don’t think for a second that this is a kit that will magically show up at your doorstep and you can start the next day, there is a very detailed check-list for each job, including how to inspect and assess each crack in each wall.

In the contractor section of Grate Products, there are training videos for further educating staff and technicians on the tools and techniques used with CrackShield. After going through the training at the Grate Products Training Facility in Westport, you’ll gain access to these videos as well as to our network of skilled support staff.

Add to your existing business, start a new one, increase the earning potential for your service staff, whatever the case is, CrackShield is an excellent tool to have in your toolbox as a local professional in your area.


Related Reading and Links

Read about the Top 6 Basement Mistakes that contractors and homeowners make.

Ask Jacob A question Directly on Pioneer Basement's Help Forums!

Crack Repair: Not a total solution for basement waterproofing

Crack repair should never be considered the final solution to solve any wet basement problem. It should only be considered part of the final solution. Crack repair helps to heal and repair the foundation, but there are still many ways in which water can find its way into your basement besides that crack.

A total solution that would involve dedicated crack repair would be that of a crack or two in conjunction with a vapor barrier and drain solution.

The crack repair, even though most come with 10-year warranties, only typically covers the area where the crack was repaired. This doesn’t cover the basement either getting wet or experiencing another crack. The best way to insure that the crack is backed up is to have a vapor barrier and drainage system installed over it.

Repairing a crack, whether it, be by injection or some other method, only fills the void and bonds the concrete back together. Water can still find it’s way through the concrete, rod ties, the floor/wall joint, the joint between the footer and the wall, or if the pressure is enough through a newly formed crack somewhere else in the basement. Crack repair is only intended to repair the crack and stop it from expanding and causing further foundation wall damage.

By having a crack injected the crack will be repaired and the wall will be sound. A vapor barrier and drain can now help to remove, capture and redirect any moisture or liquid water that comes into your basement. If another crack forms due to stress on the foundation, soil movement or settling then the vapor barrier that is installed can and will protect your basement against any moisture that comes through those as well.

Having the combination of a full foundation repair, a crack repair and a moisture control system will ensure that your basement stays dry.

Foundation repair and Crack Repair: problems with thought

So the other day we had our crack repair specialists at Rescon Basement Solutions come out to give a short history and practice lesson on crack repair, do and don't, as well as styles and filling types. For those of you who are slightly obsessed with foundation repair I'm sure you would have enjoyed it. However, for homeowners it might have been quite boring lol.

Ether way it brought up, in conjunction with a few Pioneer Forum posts, the stigma that many homeowners have about basement wall crack repairs: "well if I fix the crack, I solve the water problem".

This is wrong. Dead wrong.

Crack repair is for repairing walls. If used in conjunction with piering or wall anchoring you have some rather robust foundation repair solutions. But by no means is filling a crack the "end all be all" solution for moisture control for a whole basement.

I write more about it on the forums and my blog at pioneer basement.

Basement Blogs: Why I write my blog, basements and all

I’m rather disappointed, personally, on the lack of answers that I find while surfing the web about basements. Everyone has an opinion about what company you should be going with or how to pick a contractor (which in the end always feels slanted towards the company that suggested the “check list”) but it doesn’t seem like many companies are making an effort to really talk about the problems, causes, and the solutions.

Over the past few months I’ve been making a direct effort to answer questions posed to me through email, through talks with homeowners and (the more tricky way) through the Google Search questions people have found my blog with.

People come to my blog for many reason: Finding DIY Tips about how to finish or waterproof a basement, ideas about finishing, design tips, waterproofing questions, price shopping, or just a place to come and read about someone who’s obviously obsessed with everyone else’s basements.

Along the way I’ve met some interesting people and hopefully some good friends.

I look forward to the next year in writing and communicating news and information about basements, foundations, waterproofing, and finishing in hopes that you can walk away confident that you know whom to call, what the answer to your personal question was, or possibly a suggestion for your own design project.

I’m not the DIY network or Bob Villa, so my expertise is pretty limited in that "home repair god" regards, but I’m confident that I can answer your questions about basements, foundations, waterproofing, crack repair, and basement finishing.

The basement isn’t the same as the 1st and 2nd floors and by now I hope you understand that. It needs special attention to handle the moisture and special attention to the products and techniques in installing a finished product.

If you have any questions you can leave them in a comment, email me directly, or link to me somewhere on the web. I also Moderate the Pioneer Basement Waterproofing Forums as well as the hang out around the NAWSRC.org and BasementDepot.com forums as well.

Follow me on Twitter: BasementGods
Follow me on Wordpress: PioneerBasement

Any question, any time, I have your back when it comes to your basement.