Water Proofing Treatment for Basement(This article is specifically designed for Indian continent)A dry basement is a fun place to have. Usually home owners do not care for proper design of the basement at the time of consutruction and face tremendous problems later on. If care is taken initially, a lot of problems can be avoided. ntry of outside water, rise in water level, and seepage from side structure including leakage in pipe and sewer line are some of the problems that one may face.If proper care is not taken for such problems, they may endanger the structure including basement andabove floors. The following methods are applied for water proofing of basement during construction. !. "asement where ade#uate space is available for e$cavation. %. "asement where limited space is available for e$cavationBasement where adequate space is available for excavation The e$cavation of ground for basement is carried out in such a manner that working space of at least &' cm is available around e$ternal walls. If water level is high, the e$cavated area should be kept dry by continuous pumping.The following operations are e$ecuted in water proofing of basement.!)(n dry and leveled ground )* to !'' mm thick lean concrete is laid to serve as a leveling course for water proofing.%) The bitumen based primer is applied with brush on entire area at '.%+ to '.,' liter per s#. meter after cleaning the surface.,) "itumen compound polyester membrane is fi$ed in hot bitumen of grade -*.%* at the rate of !.* kg. /er s#uare meter. This layer should be protected by construction of flat brick flooring.+) After construction of structural slab and walls, water proofing treatment on e$ternal face which is in contact with earth is done.*) After the surface is cleaned, bitumen primer is applied.&) 0elf adhesive 0 " 0 rubber bitumen membrane with high density polyethylene film is applied on vertical walls. )) "efore back filling the soil an outer protective wall leaving a space about !'' mm around should be made and the space should be grouted subse#uently. Basement where limited space is available for excavationThe following operations are e$ecuted in water proofing of basement where space for e$cavation around basement is limited.!) The base slab of lean concrete is laid followed by construction of e$ternal protective wall. Its internal face is rough plastered. 1ori2ontal damp proofing treatment is carried out. %) In the same manner as described in above process vertical damp proofing treatmentis applied on inside plastered surface of the protective wall. ,) The treatment should be continuous on the wall and the floor. +) 3or vertical damp proofing continuous with hori2ontal a fillet )* mm ratios of !4+ cement mortars should be provided at the 5unction of the slab and outer protective wall. *) The hori2ontal and vertical damp proofing is protected against damage during subse#uent operations. &) 3lat brick flooring and an inner protective wall are constructed.)) The space of !'' mm left between vertical damp roofing treatment and internal protective wall is grouted after laying damp proofing membranes. -) Thickness and reinforcement of 677 structural slab and walls are designed according to depth.Basement Basement 7onstruction under natural ground is called 8"asement9. :ow a day due to increasing population there is less availability of land for construction work . The rates of land are very high. To obtain more covered area from same si2e of land, the construction under natural ground level is being done.Precautions for Basement $cavation for 8"asement9 should be avoided in rainy season. ;hile making e$cavation for basement safety of ad5oining buildings and their foundation should be kept in mind.Arrangement for water pump should be made at site for pumping out of rainy water. The bearing capacity of soil should be taken * feet below the level of basement for designing.;ater level of the area should be kept in mind while designing the basement.