What is Hydrostatic Pressure?

The Miami black clay loam is spread all throughout Grand Forks, ND. Clay soils are characterized by their ability to retain water. Homes in Grand Forks often have problems with basement wall bowing because of hydrostatic pressure. Hydrostatic pressure is when so much groundwater has accumulated next to the basement wall, the weight causes the wall to bow inwards. If the soil of the region has better drainage capabilities, then bowing walls wouldn’t be so common.

Bowing walls are not a small thing to overlook. The walls of your basement help support your home, so when one of them has a problem, the rest of the house will begin to deteriorate. Besides bowing walls, hydrostatic pressure can be identified through basement flooding. As the wall bows, it detaches itself from the floor. The groundwater pushing the wall now has a place to seep in from, which is why wall-floor joint flooding is common in those situations.

Wall bowing also creates cracks along the wall and breaks it apart. The groundwater also seeps through these cracks and raises the overall humidity levels of the space. After significant bowing, your floor might be affected by becoming uneven. To stop wall bowing, you can stabilize it with wall anchors or wall braces like SettleStop IntelliBrace™.