Cold Rooms

Cold rooms are all too easy to forget as they are rarely used or accessed. As the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind.

A wet cold room can cause not only structural damage to your home but can also affect the health of those living in your home. Standing water from a leaking cold room can lead to hazardous mould.

What Is Wood Rot?

Wood rot is a condition caused by wet and humid surfaces or wet ground where the cells of the wood cannot breathe.

In cold rooms, if the water can not drain, it evaporates into the wood, where it causes decay of the wood fibres, resulting in holes and cracks at joints, nails, screws and other areas. If you have a leaky cold room, moisture can easily infiltrate your floor joists and cause wood rot. This can eventually lead to sagging or soft spots in your floors above.

Wet Cold Room Causes

Water can easily find its way into your cold room from heavy storms, rapid snowmelt and wet soil.

If your foundation walls are cracked or not properly sealed, water may also seep in from the outside.

Water leaks in your home’s pipes or a malfunctioning sump pump are other potential causes and are often easier to identify due to water spots on the ceiling of your cold room, a flooded sump pit, or a costly utility bill for water usage.

Repairing Leaky Cold Room Problems

Problems can arise in your cold room when water is not being properly diverted away from the area.

Oftentimes, gutters and downspouts are the main culprits. Depending on the severity of the problem, the soil surrounding your foundation may need to be unearthed while we install a more effective cold room drainage system.

In some cases, a subsurface drainage system can dramatically improve the conditions in your cold room. Alternatively, a vapour barrier can be installed to prevent the evaporation of ground moisture. A vapour barrier works by slowing air from passing through the area. As a result, it turns your cold room into a stable environment. Instantly, you will find that your heating and cooling bills decrease.

Finally, if you have a dirt cold room floor where only part of your basement has been dug out, it can be difficult to pinpoint exactly where the water might be leaking in as most of the foundation walls are not visible. In this instance, exterior waterproofing might be the best solution.

Conterra Foundation and Repair has been providing cold room support since 1993. Our years of experience working with homeowners in the Greater Hamilton Area (GHA) including Hamilton, Burlington, Oakville and the surrounding areas and finding solutions to their cold room troubles will help us find the perfect solution for you in keeping your
space dry.

Fix your leaky basement permanently

You’ll never have to worry about a flooded basement again with our permanent solution to ensuring you have a dry basement all year round.

This means you’ll never have to worry about damage to your finished basement whether you install a rental bedroom or in-law suite, use it as a home theatre or for entertaining guests.

We also waterproof window wells and ensure the drains are in proper order. Or, if you are putting a living space into your basement, we can install an emergency egress window. Basement wall crack repair, sump pump installations, foundation wall reinforcement, and weeping tile replacement are several services we offer to keep your basement dry. When you work with us, you deal directly with fully licensed and insured technicians who have been waterproofing basements since 1993.

Call Conterra Foundation and Repair for your FREE inspection and repair quote.

Since 1993 our waterproofing contractors have been servicing the Burlington and Hamilton, Ontario area.

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Not quite sure what you’re looking for?
Be sure to check out these services we also offer:

Rubble Foundation
Exterior Foundation Waterproofing