In response to Kimberly G.\r
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We take our reputation very seriously and do everything we can to make the homeowner comfortable using Standard Water. Overwhelmingly, our reviews are positive and our awards for customer service speak for themselves. \r
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I am glad you offered your thoughts on Angies List and then, again, here on Citysearch as it reminds me to talk with our salespeople about such issues to ensure we are communicating clearly with each and every homeowner. We want our customers to understand what a waterproofing system can and cannot do.\r
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To that point, there are no waterproofing systems, installed on the interior of the home, that can prevent damp walls, period. Our salespeople are aware of this and we even note it in our contracts. If a homeowner brings up the issue of damp walls we are careful to point out our system isn’t designed to deal with that, no one’s is. \r
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The only solution for damp walls in cases like this is to install an exterior system as recommended by the University of Minnesota; a report we include with every estimate in the customers folder. The exterior system provides an impenetrable barrier that keeps water from contacting the block walls. There are two reasons the overwhelming majority of homeowners don’t use this system; the enormous cost and the disruption of landscaping around the entire perimeter of the home.\r
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The core filled block is another issue that is easily solved by drilling holes higher on the wall to allow the water to drain out of the block, capturing it with our Diamond Brite vapor barrier and moving it into the drainage field below the footing. Our patented Diamond Drainage Board was designed with this in mind. Right here I’ll note that this solution is still far less expensive than installing an exterior drainage system.\r
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Seeing inside the block is another issue. Since we rarely run into a problem like this it may not make fiscal sense to spend up to $30,000 for the right infrared camera plus the appropriate certifications. This could add a couple hundred dollars -- billable to the homeowner -- for every \r
estimate that we currently do for free. A person can see where most homeowners would decline the infrared scans.\r
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I’m not sure how this homeowner came to the conclusion that our system would solve both the water seepage problem and the damp walls. We are acutely aware of this issue (to the point it is mentioned in our contracts) and it would be bad business practice for us to tell someone our system does something it was not designed to do.
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