Exterior Waterproofing Membranes That Block Water at the Source
Epp Foundation Repair has installed peel-and-stick and spray-applied foundation membranes across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri since 1994.
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Exterior Waterproofing Membranes: how it works and when it's the right call.
Epp Foundation Repair excavates the perimeter to footing depth, removing 8 to 12 vertical feet of soil along each wall face being treated. After the wall dries and the crew cleans, patches, and preps the surface, one of two membrane systems goes on. Peel-and-stick membrane is a 40 to 60 mil cold-applied sheet rubber bonded to primed concrete or block; seams overlap 4 inches and get rolled to fuse. Spray-applied membrane is an asphalt-modified polymer applied wet at 60 to 100 mils, self-leveling across block joints, parge coats, and form-tie patches with no seams. The membrane runs from the top of the footing to a few inches above finish grade. Once it cures or sets, the crew installs new drain tile at footing level wrapped in filter fabric and gravel, then backfills with drainage stone for the first 12 to 18 inches against the membrane before transitioning to native fill. The drainage stone reduces lateral pressure on the wall and gives any water that does penetrate the membrane somewhere to fall to the footing drain instead of building hydrostatic head. The 50-plus freeze-thaw cycles per winter across most Epp service territory cycle expansive clay against the membrane, and the elastomeric properties accommodate that movement without cracking the way a rigid coating would.
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How we install exterior waterproofing membranes.
Step 01.Mark Utilities and Excavate to Footing
Crews call in utility locates 5 business days ahead, hand-dig the first 24 inches around marked services, then machine-excavate the rest of the trench to footing depth. Trench width runs 30 to 48 inches to give a crew member working room against the wall.
Step 02.Clean, Patch, and Prep the Wall
The exposed wall gets pressure-washed or wire-brushed to remove dirt, loose parge coat, and prior asphalt damp-proofing. Cracks wider than 1/16 inch get cleaned and patched with hydraulic cement or polyurethane, form-tie holes get plugged, and the wall is allowed to dry to the membrane manufacturer's moisture spec.
Step 03.Apply Membrane
For peel-and-stick: primer rolled on, then 40 to 60 mil sheet membrane unrolled top-down, smoothed with hand rollers, and seams overlapped 4 inches. For spray-applied: 60 to 100 mils of asphalt-modified polymer sprayed wet across the wall face in a single pass with backroll for thickness verification. Membrane terminates above finish grade with a termination bar.
"I've dug up walls in Lincoln that were damp-proofed with hot tar in 1972 and the tar was hanging off the wall in sheets the day we excavated. A 40-mil elastomeric membrane today is a different category of product, and we still install it the same way: prep the wall right, roll every seam, and don't backfill until the drainage stone is in place. Anything less than that, you're going to dig it up again in 10 years."
Care and expertise from a team that's been doing this since 1994.
Epp Foundation Repair is locally owned and operated, with crews dedicated exclusively to foundation, basement, and concrete work across the Midwest.
Foundation repair, waterproofing, and concrete leveling are our entire focus, not a sideline.
Three decades of experience with Midwest soils, basements, and weather conditions.
Recognized in 2011 and 2016 for ethical business practices and customer transparency.
Every repair comes with a written Epp warranty, from 1 year to the lifetime of the structure depending on the product.
Answers to common questions about Exterior Waterproofing Membranes.
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Basement Waterproofing warning signs this solution resolves.
Each problem sign below is a symptom this solution is engineered to fix. See how we diagnose it before we recommend this method.
Wet Basement Walls
Epp Foundation Repair has diagnosed wet basement walls in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri homes since 1994. BBB A+. BBB Integrity Award 2011 and 2016.
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Basement Flooding
Epp Foundation Repair has diagnosed recurring basement flooding across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri since 1994. BBB A+. BBB Integrity Award 2011 and 2016.
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Water at the Cove Joint
Epp Foundation Repair has installed interior drain systems at the cove joint in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri basements since 1994. BBB A+. BBB Integrity Award 2011 and 2016.
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Condensation on Windows
Epp Foundation Repair has measured basement humidity in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri homes since 1994. BBB A+. BBB Integrity Award 2011 and 2016.
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Efflorescence
Epp Foundation Repair has inspected efflorescence patterns across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri basements since 1994. BBB A+. BBB Integrity Award 2011 and 2016.
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Mold Growth
Epp Foundation Repair has eliminated the moisture source behind basement mold across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri since 1994. BBB A+. BBB Integrity Award 2011 and 2016.
Learn moreServing Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas & Missouri.
Local crews based in five regional offices, dispatched daily across four states. If your town isn't listed, call us: we likely serve your area.
- Omaha, NE
- Lincoln, NE
- Topeka, KS
- Sioux City, IA
- Bellevue, NE
- St. Joseph, MO
- Council Bluffs, IA
- Grand Island, NE
- Papillion, NE
- Kearney, NE
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Expert guidance on protecting your home.
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Five regional offices across the Midwest.
St. Joseph, MO 64506