Benchmarks to minimize water leakages in basements

Basement defects such as water seepages/leakages are tedious and expensive to rectify. Intensive research has been conducted to study the problem type, their causes and preventive measures. The study explored 987 water seepage/leakage cases in 61 buildings. Eleven significant factors leading to the occurrence of water seepage in basements were identified. The implications of six benchmarks, namely: degree of water‐tightness; safety measures for structural concrete; performance of waterproofing systems; integrity of basement structure; provision for movement and quality of compaction in concreting, for minimizing four types of water seepage/leakage problems in basements are discussed.