Water coming through cinder block foundation

The bulk of our house is built on a poured foundation and that's fine. There's no water getting through it during rain. However, under the laundry room, it switches to a crawlspace and uses a cinder block foundation. Between the two foundations is a gap and water has flown in an eroded most of the dirt fill supporting the foundations. We happened to have a heavy rain a few days ago and I opened up the crawl space and I noticed there was water coming through the cinder blocks and pooling in the crawl space/

Is this something I need to be concerned with? I plan on adding more back fill to replace the missing dirt. I should also add that the joints on the cinder blocks need to be repointed but I'll get to that some day.

 

You need to regrade on the outside to move the water away from the wall in the first place. Yes, this is something about which you should be VERY concerned.

 

Is this gap original to the addition of the laundry rm or has something besides the dirt moved?

 

I think that it was built that way. The gap is equal all the way down.

 

We did add some dirt to move the water away but it's still coming in.

 

Unless the gap is sealed it will always allow water to get in once the dirt is saturated.

 

What should I seal the gap with? Mortar? I'm seeing that I should use type S mortar for cinder block walls.

 

How wide is the gap? nnnnnnnnnnnn

 

How far below grade is the gap? I would dig/excavate on the outside so you can fill the crack from both sides using type S mortar. Then I would apply a damp proof coating (tar) to the exterior before back filling.

 

Maybe an 1/8 of an inch? I can check when I get home.

 

The gap goes from the top of the foundation and most likely goes all the way to the bottom of the foundation. Would I also need to apply the damp proof coating to the cinder blocks that are on the garage? I'll post some photo's later.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/UGL-White-W...-fl-oz/3073099 I found this. Would this work?

 

I'm waiting for pictures before responding again....

 

Here's a photo. The stuff in the gap was a temporary solution so please don't ask about it. It will get removed when I mortar the gap.

 

Caulking is fine for a gap like that but you need to excavate and seal it lower.

 

I agree, time to dig it out.

 

I talked to my dad about what we need to do and he figured that we'd have to do this. This is my basic plan. Is there any other steps that I should do?

1. Excavate the foundation
2. Remove loose mortar and clean the the area of dirt and debris
3. Fill the gap with mortar and repoint any loose joints on the cinder blocks
4. Let the mortar dry and apply one or two coats of damp proofness
5. Backfill
6. Done!

Also, what tool do you all recommend to apply the mortar? There's a tool for repointing but I don't remember the name.

 

I'd just use whatever trowel you have handy or one that you are comfortable with. The mortar you apply below grade doesn't have to be pretty. Just be sure to force it into the gap.

 

You can use a grout bag to squirt mortar into the crack but I generally use a trowel. Or if you wear gloves you can use your hands to pack it in.

I would use a wire brush to clean the foundation on either side of the crack to get it good and clean before applying a damp proofing. How far you go away from the crack depends on your energy level but I'd go 6-12".

 

Alright. I'll get to this in the dryer months since I'm going to be digging a deep hole. Thanks