Waterproofing

Carlstadt, New Jersey-based Hycrete reports that interest in its three-year-old concrete with integral waterproofing product has risen as green building has become a higher priority among builders.

But the main driver, the company says, continues to be cost saving and time saving.

“It allows builders to dual-bid on a project,” says Shane Veranally, the company’s director of sustainability and business development. “Not only do they bid for the concrete work, but they can bid for the waterproofing all in one shot. You don’t have to wait for the contractor to put down the membrane.”

Hycrete, which is based on a decade-old technology, is mixed with liquid admixture to achieve a hydrophobic performance.

Vernally says green building interest has helped drive demand for Hycrete because it helps reduce concrete deposits into landfills – but the ability to save time and costs on projects remains the biggest factor. He says the use of Hycrete saves 40 percent compared with traditional materials on projects.

Many homes in southern Ohio have flooded basements due to cracked concrete foundations caused by the intense summer drought and heavy fall rains, local media reports.

"The ground’s so dry everything has pulled away from the house," said one of the residents whose basement flooded last Tuesday. "There's no expansion in the foundations, nowhere for the concrete to stretch to and that's why you end up with the cracks, that's why the foundations have been cracking."

The falling rain has nowhere to go but through the cracks and into basements, leaving behind a messy and costly cleanup.