Discolored Basement floors & walls - should I be worried? - Reader Question.

Basement walls have been constructed many different ways in the 1900s. Most of the homes we live in have been built to standards created in the 1970s based on the last energy crisis. However older homes have foundations that were created using techniques that predate American History.

With so many different types of basements, wall coverings, and materials used, discoloration could happen for multiple reasons.

The most common foundations that are seen today are: Crawl Spaces (brick, block or poured concrete), Full head height basements (stone, brick, block, or poured concrete).


What having a discolored basement wall could mean:
As I mentioned discolored walls can mean quite a few things. Depending on the history of the house, these stains could be insoluble materials like oil, paint, ink, or anything else that can be washed out of a porous service. The more common cause for discoloration of a floor or a wall is water or fire damage.

Water damage leaves residues behind like efflorescence that is much like a fine powder. Efflorescence is simply the left over minerals from water that has evaporated from the service. Brick or stone foundations that have had plaster laid over it to produce a smooth finish to the wall could also soak up the water, mold, rot and flake off. During this process the plaster will change color. Browns, yellows, oranges and greens are typical to see on a plaster that is coming in contact with water.

Same basic rules apply to the floor.

If you think you have water or fire damage in your home or basement, have your home inspected by a professional to see if there are any possible damage issues that need to be corrected. If your foundation is in fact leaking, or allowing water into your basement, consider correcting any foundation issues that need repair and hiring a basement waterproofing contractor to fully protect the basement from future floods.

Related Reading and Links
Read about the Top 6 Basement Mistakes that contractors and homeowners make. See what other readers have asked in Safe'n'Dry Basement Blog's Reader Questions Section
Ask Jacob A question Directly on Pioneer Basement's Help Forums!
Image thanks to http://www.ehow.com

Reader Question & Answer: Why is my basement wall discolored?

There can be a few reasons why your basement walls might look discolored.

The first major reason would be that the basement wall has gotten into direct contact with a high concentration of moisture. Water build up, rain, flooding, or just the depth of your basement relative to your water table can cause this darkening of your basement wall. This typically doesn’t go away, but it will change with seasons (sometimes).

Second reason this could be happening is that you have Mold growth on your foundation walls. The combination of factors that could be adding to this would be a plaster coating on your foundation wall (skim coating) and moisture contact with that surface. Mold won’t grow unless there are spores present to germinate on the organic material and water to drink. Mold tends to also enjoy darker areas, so this might happen more behind solid objects like a bookshelf or appear in the furthest corners away from major light sources.

Third reason this could happen would be Mildew. Like mold it will need moisture and organic material found in the skim coating covering your foundation walls. It is slick and if forming on your basement floor can be extremely hazardous.

Forth reason is a staining caused by an oil-based product. Heating oil, lubrication oil, paint thinner or gasoline are all things that can cause staining on concrete. These stains are extremely hard, if not impossible, to remove from the surface of concrete. Other things can color your basement walls like paint or wood stains. Whenever working with materials such as this make sure to use a drop cloth to protect from spills.

Other Observations

If you see that the stain is rust colored this could be a sign that your rod ties are leaking/seeping water.

If there are white efflorescent patterns (normally look like ocean waves) on your wall, this is a tell tail sign that water has, in fact, evaporated from that surface. This also means that water is finding its way through your foundation wall, however slowly it might be.

Photo thanks to Mayang.com


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!