Everdry Basement Waterproofing

Do not go with Ever Dry, and here is why - please take time to read in full:

Preface:  Our house has had wet basement since we have owned it (approximately 5 years).  The wetness increased over those 5 years and eventually led to mold/mildew growth, primarily behind/under the furnace area.  We had various contractors provide estimates but went with Ever Dry due to their lifetime transferable warranty and also customer testimonials we read regarding professionalism and quality of service - even though they were by far the most expensive.  My wife recently started working from home and has an office in the basement, and she is also pregnant at this time, so remediation was necessary.  The sales representative came to our house and explained everything that would happen.  We specifically asked if the area behind the furnace could be addressed, and his response was "I don't know how they do it, but they tunnel back there and will take care of it. You won't have any water coming in there anymore".  The sales representative also explained that a small room in our basement would not need the interior waterproofing, as the other areas completed inside, along with the exterior french drain would "catch" any water trying to come in.  He explained he was trying to save us money by doing this.  After some thought, we decided to sign the contract and get the job done with Ever Dry.  After all, we were tired of getting sinus infections likely caused by the mold/mildew, and we wanted our kids to be healthy.  The sales representative was very professional, personable, and seemed honest.  Handshake - signatures - done. 

The job:  The crew arrived right on time, just as advertised.  The worked hard - very hard actually, and explained everything along the way.  I have nothing but the utmost praise for the crew.  They are probably the hardest working crew I have ever seen actually.  At one point the lead member of the crew pulled me aside and explained that the area behind the furnace (the area we were most concerned about) would not be able to be waterproofed, and they would have to install what they called a "dam" to catch water coming in and divert it to the sump drain pipe.  I explained that we were told this area would be done and was part of the sale.  He explained this would not be able to be done.  I would have to independently pay for another contractor to come remove the furnace so they could get behind it, and the dam was the best he could do.  The crew manager reaffirmed this same thing, both to me and my wife on separate days. We were told nothing by the salesman about having to pay a separate contractor to come remove the furnace.  So....in 4 days time the job was done and the basement and exterior were waterproofed, except for the area behind the furnace, as it is still wet to this day and continuing to grow mold, which will likely continue to sicken my family.   

The result:  The same day the work was completed we received a rain storm and it rained hard for approximately 1 hour.  What timing!  I went downstairs to the basement to check out the dryness, only to be surprised by water flowing across the floor.  It was originating from the cold room that the sales rep said didn't need to be done.  It was coming in so fast that I could literally see it flowing across the floor.  I had to use a shop vac and sucked approximately 23 gallons of water out over the next two days.  I had to call off work to babysit my basement and belongings until the flow subsided.  As soon as I noticed the water problem, I called Ever Dry and they were out the following Monday to inspect.  they waterproofed the small room and dug up the exterior drain coinciding with the area that leaked.  To the surprise of the crew (a different group of guys) the exterior drain pipe had been installed incorrectly by the first crew and was actually draining toward the house, not away from it.  In two more days time the entire problem was fixed.  All that was left for me to do was clean everything up, grade around the house, and pick up the discarded razor and saw blades around my property where the work took place - before my 2.5 year old little boy encountered upon them.  Are the remainder of the exterior drains installed correctly?  I wonder this every time it rains now. So far, no leaks. 

Final:  The men that actually performed the work were great.  The quality of the work inside was excellent.  The quality of the work outside was not at first, but was made right.  I understand mistakes happen, and this company was responsive in their efforts.  I woudl have liked to have seen better cleanup efforts (saw/razor blades).  In the process of initial installation they actually broke my exterior hose reel and replaced it immediately with apologies.  I am not offering any significant negative critique of those men.  Hats of to them for working hard and doing what they could.  I understand deadlines, and they clearly were under some significant ones. 

Where I am offering a SIGNIFICANT (if this allowed me to underline and make different colors I would) piece of negative feedback is for the sales staff that first contacted us.  It was because of him we spent $18,000+ of our hard earned money with the expectation we would have a completely dry basement, to include behind our furnace.  It was because of him I did not expect the little room to be waterproofed, and ended up sucking 23+ gallons of water out after work was initially completed.  I would not recommend Ever Dry for your basement waterproofing needs, just because of the potentially false pretenses service may be ordered under.  In our case we still have significant water coming in underneath our furnace, which is running to a dam, and then being sumped out.  Mold still exists, and my family will still be sick until we can save enough money to have the furnace removed, call Ever Dry and have them correct the issue, and then pay to have the furnace reinstalled.  I just checked, and had to bleach some more black mold I saw on the wall.  The simple fact is, the sales staff member that contacted us was/is completely out of touch with the workers that complete the work, their processes, and their capabilities.  He said what he had to say to make a sale, which is sad - very sad, considering you are dealing with large sums of money and the health of folks.  If for some reason you do go with Ever Dry, do yourself a favor and get every single thing in writing up front from the sales person.  Get in writing exactly what they say will be done, or else you may be disappointed like we are now. 

After having five other Waterproofing Companies give me estimates and explain their Waterproofing Process I wanted them to do something on the outside as well as the inside to really prevent my basement from Water damage down the road. I had some minor issues but I knew I wanted to tackle the problem from the inside and outside and no company was able to meet my expectation until I called Everdry Waterproofing of Pittsburgh.  

Everdry came out and I was skeptical at first of them. They showed up in a regular car and I was like this is going to be interesting and thought about just canceling the appointment as they walked up to the house but I decided just to see what they were going to offer. 

They did a very thorough inspection and explain the problems they saw as we walked around the house the basement. The Salesman then asked to show us our options and the first option was just waterproofing the outside of the house which was one of the things I wanted to get done but it would cost $20K for my 1200 sq ft house. The second options was just waterproofing the inside which is what everyone else offered to do and would cost $2500 - $5000. I started to question where they were going with the two options since they were what the other Waterproofing companies offered. But then they offered a third option, which is something that patented and no one else can offer so I was very interested in hearing about. The Salesmen explained that the Multi Step Pressure Relief System included a outside and inside waterproofing that was lifetime guaranteed.  

This is exactly what I was looking to get done and I could not believe that someone actually could do it for a reasonable price. We paid $13k to get our home waterproofed and they did in less a week after we first met the Salesman. 

Although it will be a few years before I will be able to tell if the waterproofing is effective. However, with a lifetime warranty and having the outside foundation and inside waterproofed I feel like I made a very great in decision in choosing Everdry. I also a free EZ Breath System install in my basement family room too.

Joe & Jessica W.

Blairsville, PA

I liked that they worked fast for the amount of work they had to do. They are neat and cleaned up after themselves. They dug about 3 feet down and around the base of the house and they had to jackhammer too. They sealed the foundation on the outside. They guarantee their work for 10 years I think but you have to pay a yearly fee of $75 but it's transferable if you sell your house. They promise you a dry basement after their work.

The actual job was done very well. Clean up was very good. They worked very hard. The avoid coming in to the rest of the house and bringing dirt to the rest of the house. There was a significant breakdown in communication between the salesman and myself on the way the water was going to be sent out. Where there was a real mix-up was when the company manager came to make the decision about the alternate way of doing it they didn't come and talk with me about it. When the job was complete I got water in the basement. I called to have it check because before that I had never actually had water in the basement and had to wait several days to have someone come out and look at it. Now in the mean time the water disappeared. In the end it was probably just residual water because when they were doing the job it was raining but I would've though that right after doing the job if I called and said there is water in my basement they would've come in. I ended up calling and canceling because the water is gone and there has been no water since. 6 weeks after the job is done they come back and follow up.