Garage Experts/Contractors question...

[Rain Man]

What can I do with my 1970's vintage, attached two car garage, with no floor drain, and is fairly level? Of course, besides ripping up the floor and re-doing it right. Snow melt is damaging my walls, and I'm constantly squeeging the water out with this unusual Minnesota winter that has brought rare snow to the state!

 

[Grizzly Adams]

What can I do with my 1970's vintage, attached two car garage, with no floor drain, and is fairly level? Of course, besides ripping up the floor and re-doing it right. Snow melt is damaging my walls, and I'm constantly squeeging the water out with this unusual Minnesota winter that has brought rare snow to the state!

I build in a temperate rain forest and only can offer 2 words. Perimeter Drain!

 

[Puff_N_AK]

You could put in place your plumbing for a central drain or a trench drain and place a topping slab over it to cover it. 3/8ths mud would work good. Central drain you would just have to slope it to the drain, or you could do the trench drains and squeege the water to it.

 

[xrated]

saw a deal where guys said to take garage door seal, that rubber crap on the bottom and glue that around your car. In effect making a pool for the snow melt. Might work to keep the crap from the walls....or you could go diamond plate!!!

 

[Disco Dan Richter]

I will wait to see some of the inevitable genius replies before commenting< LMAO!

 

[woodpecker]

do what most people do, DON'T park in there fill it full of junk!!!



actually I've done lots of these, find the low spot in the floor, hammer drill a whole big enough to fit a 55 gal drum through, dig below said hole deep enough that the drum will be below slab. mount a floor drain in the top of the drum. drill 1" holes in the side of the drum (lots of them). drop drum in hole, fill drum with rock(not dirt) place the top back on (making sure the floor drain is 1/4 below the top of the slab. re pour concrete (slope TOWARD drain). then fill the garage with junk.

By the way why is that plug less then 18" off the floor(code violation)

 

[The Creaper]

you could put down an epoxy floor and use some reinforced tape at the wall to concrete joint , then run the coating up the wall 4 to 6 inches this will save the sheat rock but you will still have to squeege out the water

 

[Himark]

If you want to be cheap and do a quick job to stop it....in our grandparents terms it was called "MOP BOARD" very simple just run a 6" one by around the base board and seal it up. Be sure and use a treated lumber.


The above is cheapest but not best way. As stated there are better ways but this would be the easiest and most economical for your application.

 

[mtn_extreme]

There is an application available that will lift concrete by drilling small holes and injecting an expandable substance (kind of like expanding foam) between the concrete and fill. Just float the back of your garage up an inch or so and let it drain out the door.

 

[X-it]

It almost looks like slab on grade, (the drywall is running right down to the slab). There should be a about a 6" curb of concrete running around the perimeter (4' concrete wall). The drywall should be no where near the slab, i can't believe you do not have mold already. There are a lot of reason for water infiltration. The most important one being the proper slopes. Of coarse i am not familiar with Minnesota building code. There may be no need for frost protection. There is not quite enough information to work with.

 

[Mag]

There is an application available that will lift concrete by drilling small holes and injecting an expandable substance (kind of like expanding foam) between the concrete and fill. Just float the back of your garage up an inch or so and let it drain out the door.

Slab jacking!

 

[icr]

Slab jacking!

Polyurethane foam...nasty stuff...works well.

I say put rubber strips on the walls...4-6 inches tall and seal it to the slab...cheap, easy, quick.

 

[Disco Dan Richter]

Well, there are a few options, hacking a big hole and dropping a drum will work, I have seen it done, cheap and easy fix.
Slab jacking, kinda like that box of chocholates.....you never know what you are going to get. Slab can jump up different in just a few feet, resulting in a even more, uneven slab.

Minnesota has frost protection rules in the IRC. Mono slabs qualify for this. I have builst over 400 garages there and turned away from blocks(to raise walls) because of the severe freezing. It can and always does crak the blocks resulting in air infiltration and water too. I wrap the bottom with ice and water sheild, inside 1.5" under the wall and outside the sheeting 6" all in one peice. By doing this it cannot absorb water, I have done probly the last 100 garages this way.......not one problem. Just keep your SR or what ever 3/4" off the finish floor.

Now, for the main question from Rain Man. You obviously have a wet wall behind the S/R. Tear off that bottom row of Rock, and insulation and see if the wood is wet and moldy. If it is it may not be too late to dry it out, spray it with mold killer and start over. If it has white slimy mold, too late. Tear it down and call me, I will build you another one, even give you a good deal.

The cheapest fix though, of course that the walls are salvagable, is to build a perimiter of seal on the floor where the car parks, seal it down really good, and brak a hole for water to drain.

Hope this helps!

DDR

 

[X-it]

I have to laugh at icr comment, i have done this once before and it worked! It was inside a pulp mill there was a wooden walls and inside that a control room, every day or every second day there was a flood and the tech was stomping in water inside the control room. What i did was run that 4" rubber base board which looked quite nice and attached it with that roofing patch material (fiber gum). From then on 1" of water outside the wall, dry inside the control room. Of coarse in your case there would still be water on the floor inside but at least the drywall (SR) would be protected.

 

[Rain Man]

Thanks for all the info.

By the way why is that plug less then 18" off the floor(code violation)

As I said, 1970's vintage house, don't know what code was then? I bought it in 2004ish. Don't know why sheet rock isn't higher off floor. Bad contracting/installing by previous owner I suppose? Put on new garage doors couple years ago only to find one side garage door opener was anchored in the ceiling sheet rock....ONLY! Thankfully I caught it and anchored it to a stud before it just fell on my vehicle.

you could put down an epoxy floor and use some reinforced tape at the wall to concrete joint , then run the coating up the wall 4 to 6 inches this will save the sheat rock but you will still have to squeege out the water

Something like this is what I was thinking for now. I epoxyed the floor already a few years ago, but it's lifted in spots. All the acid cleaner in the world wouldn't have gotten all the crap off the floor, plus every time I tried to rinse off said acid cleaner, original problem would show itself as I clouldn't squeege fast enough. So I could do another coat and do the tape or rubber seal or base board like someone else said. I don't mind squeegeing to keep it clean if I have to, just want to minimize damage to walls.

Dan I was hoping you'd reply, didn't know if you were still in MN area or not but knew you did this kind of stuff around here. I'll take off the sheet rock sometime and see. That's one of the worst spots, and that's the exterior wall so hopefully it's not too bad. That gives me concern about an exterior corner I have a bunch of crap in, I'll have to look at that as well. Then I'll trim the new sheetrock an inch or so off the floor. The pumping up the slab, putting in a floor drain, etc is all things I'd like to do, yet budgeting is a concern right now, need new house windows, roof. Would LIKE (Not needed) to do several other things and didn't even consider any of the garage, may have to re-evaluate depending on what's behind the wall. Thanks for the offer Dano...you do pole sheds and well? Thanks...

 

[Dartos]

First let's make it clear I am no expert!

Instead of going back with sheet rock how about using cement board?

 

[Disco Dan Richter]

I have built a few Pole Sheds, dont like them, but have done them. Let me know how things look.

D

 

[Ultra]

If you want to be cheap and do a quick job to stop it....in our grandparents terms it was called "MOP BOARD" very simple just run a 6" one by around the base board and seal it up. Be sure and use a treated lumber.


The above is cheapest but not best way. As stated there are better ways but this would be the easiest and most economical for your application.

Or use plastic decking as a mop board