Basement waterproofing in Manheim Township
Help for the suburban neighborhoods and older crossroads villages just north of Lancaster city.
Manheim Township is Lancaster County's second-largest municipality, with 43,977 residents in 2020, up from 33,697 in 2000. Its southern edge meets the Lancaster city line, and it takes in communities such as Neffsville, Dillerville and Landis Valley. That growth means a mix of foundations: older stone and block cellars near the original crossroads, and poured-concrete basements in neighborhoods built over the last several decades.
What causes leaks in newer basements here?
Poured walls crack as concrete shrinks and the ground settles, and a single crack can leak during long rains. Window wells that fill up, sump pumps that are original to the house and grading that has settled toward the foundation over the years are common culprits too. In finished basements, the first sign is often carpet that's damp along one wall or a musty smell behind drywall.
Sinkholes and drainage
Manheim Township shares Lancaster County's limestone geology, and Pennsylvania's geologists describe sinkholes as a feature of land over carbonate bedrock such as limestone and dolomite, often triggered by concentrated stormwater or leaking pipes. Their advice to watch for depressions in the yard, cracks in walls or floors, and sticking doors applies here. If a low spot keeps forming where a downspout or sump line drains, have it looked at and change where the water goes.
Jobs that come up most
- Sump pump replacement and battery backups in 1970s to 1990s homes
- Crack repair in poured walls and drainage before finishing a basement
- Spreading out downspout and sump discharge on sloped lots
- Stone wall repointing in older houses near the village centers
Common questions
Do I need a permit for waterproofing in Manheim Township?
Ask the township or the company you're connected with. Permits in Pennsylvania are issued locally under the state Uniform Construction Code, and whether a waterproofing job needs one depends on its scope.
Do you cover Neffsville and Landis Valley?
Yes. Call with your address and we'll look for a company that serves it.
Services in Manheim Township
- Stone foundation repairRepointing, parging and rebuilding loose sections of fieldstone and rubble-stone cellar walls with mortar that suits old masonry.
- Interior perimeter drainsA drain channel set in the floor along the walls that collects seepage before it spreads and sends it to a sump.
- Sump pump systemsPits, pumps, check valves, battery backups and discharge lines routed so the water does not come straight back.
- Exterior excavation waterproofingDigging down the outside of the wall to add a membrane, footing drain and better backfill where the yard allows it.
- Basement moisture and mold controlDehumidifiers, vapor barriers in dirt-floor cellars and crawl spaces, and cleanup advice for musty basements.
Nearby areas
Stone walls weeping, a wet floor edge, or a pump that never rests?
Call and a Lancaster County waterproofing company will come find where the water gets in.