saturated CMU wall - official references?

[SLTA]

Hi folks,

I did an investigation on a building where the basement was a last-minute change order from a slab foundation, and with the weeping of water down the inside of the CMU walls I've seen, it's clear those walls are SOAKED. Only one detail in the whole change-ordered basement foundation system shows a hint of waterproofing. Moisture content was about 20% all over (where water wasn't literally seeping down the wall). I was hired to write a report to help the non-profit that owns the building get a grant for repairs.

So, does anyone have good official references on why having your solid-grouted CMU retaining foundation wall saturated for about 13 years so far is bad, and what will happen to the CMU if the walls continue to be saturated? The more official, the better. Google wasn't much help tonight.

Thanks!

 

[concretemasonry]

Arbitrarily grouting the walls solid is not a good thing to do. - Is this a basement or a true retaining wall?

What was the "hint" of waterproofing? Apparently, you had a simple surface moisture meter.

It is obvious there is something wrong with the walls, either from the original design/specifications or the construction methods.

Google is not a substitute for getting more experience.

Dick

Engineer and international traveler interested in construction techniques, problems and proper design.

 

[SLTA]

Dick, for clarification: the non-profit needs my report to hand to the bankers to get a grant for repairs, and while I have plenty of experience, my opinion carries less weight than that from an organization like NCMA, for instance. I am asking for help finding references to explain officially to the bankers why leaving CMU saturated for extended periods of time is bad. The as-builts showed all of one detail referencing waterproofing on the exterior of the CMU wall, which is a basement wall and is fully retaining. The walls were fully reinforced and grouted at time of construction. Yes, I have a surface meter, but the water running down the wall was another indication of issues.

Do you know of any such reports/articles/papers? I'd appreciate the help in finding them.