New Foundation Waterproofing & Drainage

Exterior System for Brand-New Construction

The Waterproofing Package Built For New Foundations, Not Repairs

Most of the waterproofing calls we get start the same way: a finished basement, a landscaped yard, and water finding its way in years after the house was built. This service exists to make sure that call never happens. We install a complete exterior waterproofing and drainage package directly on brand-new foundations — while the walls are still exposed and before the builder backfills — so the two systems that actually keep water out of a foundation are both in place from the very first winter.

The combination that works long-term is not complicated, but it has to be done in the right order and at the right point in the construction schedule: a continuous exterior waterproofing membrane on the wall, and a footing drain at the base of the wall that gives water somewhere to go instead of somewhere to push against. Skip either half, and the system is incomplete — a membrane with no drain still lets hydrostatic pressure build against the wall over time, and a drain with no membrane still lets water track through hairline cracks and cold joints in the concrete itself.

This is new construction work, not repair work. If you already have a house with a leaking or damp basement, that is a different job with different methods — see our exterior waterproofing and interior waterproofing pages for retrofit solutions on existing homes.

What’s Included

Exterior Waterproofing Coating & Membrane

A spray-applied or rolled waterproofing system suitable for new concrete, applied directly to clean, cured foundation walls — full coverage below grade, including corners and cold joints where separate concrete pours meet.

Footing Drain / Perimeter Drain System

A continuous drain pipe run along the full perimeter of the footing, tied into the foundation drainage system, giving groundwater a controlled path away from the wall instead of a path to build pressure against it.

Proper Stone & Gravel Envelope

The drain pipe is bedded in a clean stone or gravel envelope, not raw clay — this is what keeps the pipe from silting in and losing its capacity to move water over time.

Discharge to Daylight, Storm, or Sump

The drain’s outlet is engineered to fit your site — running downhill to daylight where grade allows, tying into the storm sewer where the municipality permits it, or discharging into a sump pit and pump inside the foundation.

Clean, Coordinated Backfill Timing

We coordinate directly with the builder’s schedule so the membrane has cured and the drain is stoned and protected before a single scoop of soil goes back against the wall.

Documented, Warrantable Work

Photos and documentation of the completed system before backfill, so builders and homeowners have a record of exactly what’s in the ground — useful for buyers, inspectors, and warranty purposes down the road.

Why This Matters on New Foundations

New Concrete Still Needs Protection

Foundation walls shrink as they cure and settle, and hairline cracks and cold joints between separate pours develop naturally — exactly why an exterior membrane matters before the wall is ever tested by groundwater.

Michigan Soil Doesn’t Care If It’s New

Southeast Michigan’s clay-heavy soil holds water against a wall rather than draining away, and our freeze-thaw cycle expands and contracts that saturated soil against the foundation dozens of times each winter.

Doing It Now vs. Doing It Later

Waterproofing exposed foundation walls before backfill is straightforward construction work. Fixing a leak after the house is finished means excavating around a landscaped, occupied home for the same result.

Buyers & Inspectors Expect This Now

Documented exterior waterproofing and drainage is increasingly what buyers, home inspectors, and municipalities expect to see on a new build before they consider the foundation work complete.

New Construction Waterproofing & Drainage Work

Exterior membrane application and footing drain installation on new foundations before backfill

Crew spray-applying exterior waterproofing membrane to a new foundation wall before backfill — Spray-Applied Membrane on New Concrete

Installing a perforated footing drain pipe into a gravel-lined trench at the base of a new foundation wall — Footing Drain Set at the Base of the Wall

Placing the stone and gravel envelope around a new footing drain pipe — Stone Envelope Placed Around the Drain

Worker rolling exterior waterproofing coating onto a new foundation wall corner — Coating Applied Corner to Corner

Full perimeter footing drain and gravel envelope installed around a new foundation before backfill — Full Perimeter System Before Backfill

Footing drain discharge pipe running to daylight at the edge of a new construction site — Discharge Line Run to Daylight

View Our Work Gallery

Ideal For

New Home Construction

Individual custom homes and standard new builds where the foundation is exposed and ready for waterproofing before the builder backfills.

Spec Homes

Builders constructing homes for future sale who want documented exterior waterproofing and drainage as part of the finished product buyers and inspectors will evaluate.

Custom Builds

Homeowners building a custom home who want to make sure this step is done properly and not shortcut by a builder managing a dozen other trades.

Foundation Contractors & Builders

General contractors and foundation crews who want a clean, warrantable waterproofing and drainage system installed on schedule, coordinated directly with their crews.

Additions With New Foundations

Home additions poured on their own new footing and foundation wall, where the new section needs the same protection as a full new build.

Anyone Who Wants to Do It Once

Property owners who understand that exterior waterproofing done during construction is a one-time job, not a maintenance item to revisit every few years.

How We Work With Your Builder’s Schedule

Coordinate the Window Before Backfill

We work directly with the builder or general contractor to confirm when the foundation walls will be formed, poured, and cured, and we schedule our crew to hit that window before backfill happens — the single most common reason this step gets missed or rushed.

Confirm the Wall Is Ready

The foundation has to be clean, cured, and free of form ties, debris, and standing water before coating goes on. We inspect the wall on site and address anything that would keep the membrane from bonding properly.

Apply the Exterior Membrane

The waterproofing coating or membrane is spray-applied or rolled onto the full below-grade wall, with particular attention to corners, cold joints, and any penetrations, and allowed to cure fully before backfill.

Install the Footing Drain

Perforated drain pipe is run continuously around the perimeter of the footing at the base of the wall, sloped to move water toward the discharge point rather than sitting stagnant.

Place the Stone Envelope

Clean stone or gravel is placed around and over the drain pipe to keep it from silting in with fine soil, preserving its capacity to move water for the life of the foundation.

Set the Discharge Path

The drain is routed to daylight, tied into the storm sewer, or connected to a sump pit and pump — whichever fits your site’s grade and your municipality’s requirements — and tested before it’s covered.

Document & Release for Backfill

We photograph the completed membrane and drain system, sign off with the builder, and clear the site for backfill — clean, professional, and on the record before the ground closes over it.

Why Builders and Homeowners Choose Us for New Construction

We Work Your Schedule

We coordinate directly with the builder so the crew is on site exactly when the walls are ready — not weeks early or after backfill has already started.

Membrane and Drain, Done Together

We install the coating and the footing drain as one coordinated system, because a membrane without drainage or a drain without a membrane is only half a solution.

Documented Before It’s Buried

Every job is photographed before backfill, so there’s a clean record of exactly what was installed — useful for the builder, the buyer, and any future inspection.

Licensed, Insured, and Experienced Underground

The same crew that handles complex exterior waterproofing retrofits on existing homes applies that experience to getting it right the first time on new construction.

New Construction vs. Retrofit Waterproofing

Both use waterproofing and drainage to keep a foundation dry, but the method, cost, and disruption are completely different depending on whether the house exists yet.

New Construction (This Page)

Foundation walls are already exposed — no excavation required
No lawn, landscaping, driveway, or hardscape to protect or restore
Membrane and drain installed together as one coordinated system
Scheduled around the builder’s pour and backfill timeline
Prevents a leak from ever happening rather than responding to one

Retrofit on an Existing Home

A wall is already leaking, damp, or showing efflorescence
Requires excavating around a finished, landscaped, occupied home
Interior drain tile is often the practical alternative to full exterior dig
Triggered by a visible problem, not scheduled in advance
Camera and moisture inspection usually comes first

Not Sure Which One Fits Your Project?

We will walk the site with you or your builder, confirm the grade and discharge option, and give you an itemized written estimate. No charge for the assessment.

Call (586) 345-7292

Frequently Asked Questions

Because the whole point is to make sure it never does. New concrete is not a solid, sealed shell the day it’s poured — it shrinks as it cures, cold joints form where separate pours meet, and the wall develops hairline cracking as it settles into the ground over its first few seasons. None of that is a defect, it’s just how concrete behaves. An exterior membrane bridges those cracks and cold joints before they ever have a chance to let water through, and a footing drain gives groundwater a path away from the wall instead of a path to build pressure against it. Waiting until after the house is finished to address a leak means excavating around a landscaped, hardscaped, occupied home — often far more disruptive and expensive than doing it during construction, when the walls are already exposed.

Two systems working together. First, an exterior waterproofing coating or membrane applied directly to the clean, cured foundation wall — a spray-applied or rolled system suited to new concrete, covering the full below-grade wall including corners and cold joints. Second, a footing drain (also called a perimeter drain or French drain) running the full perimeter of the footing, bedded in a stone or gravel envelope that keeps the pipe from silting in, and discharging to daylight, a storm system, or a sump pump depending on the site’s grade and the municipality’s requirements. We also coordinate backfill timing with the builder so the coating and drain are fully protected before soil goes back against the wall.

An existing basement almost always means the ground is already excavated for us — either from the outside because a wall is already leaking, or from the inside with an interior drain tile system because full exterior excavation isn’t practical around a finished, landscaped home. New construction waterproofing is the opposite situation: the walls are already exposed, there’s no lawn, driveway, or foundation planting to protect, and the drain trench is being dug as part of the normal construction sequence rather than as a repair. That makes it dramatically less invasive and less costly to do it now than to come back and do exterior work later.

Southeast Michigan’s soil and climate make this closer to a requirement than an upgrade. Much of the region sits on heavy clay that holds water against a foundation wall rather than draining away from it, and our freeze-thaw cycle expands and contracts that saturated soil against the wall dozens of times a winter. A foundation with no membrane and no drain is depending entirely on the concrete itself staying crack-free forever, which it will not do. Builders who skip this step are betting the first hard winter or two won’t find the weak point — and increasingly, buyers, home inspectors, and even some municipalities expect to see documented exterior waterproofing and drainage on a new build before they’ll call it done right.

That depends on the lot’s grade and what the site allows, and we confirm it before installation rather than assuming. If the lot has enough natural slope, the drain discharges to daylight — simply running downhill to an outlet at grade, away from the foundation. If the property is flat or the discharge point would sit too close to a neighboring lot or a low spot, the drain ties into the storm sewer system where the municipality allows a connection, or it discharges into a sump pit inside the foundation with a pump lifting the water up and out. Each option has different permit and inspection requirements, and we handle whichever applies to your site.

After the foundation walls are formed, poured, and cured, and before the builder backfills. That’s a narrow window, and it’s the reason this work gets skipped or rushed on a lot of builds — if the waterproofing crew isn’t scheduled to hit that window, builders sometimes backfill before the coating and drain go in, or with a partial job. We coordinate directly with the builder’s schedule so the walls are ready, we apply the membrane, we install and stone the drain, and we sign off before a single scoop of soil goes back against the wall. Once backfill happens, this becomes exterior excavation work instead of a routine construction step.

Both. We regularly work directly with builders, general contractors, and developers on new home construction, spec homes, and custom builds, coordinating waterproofing and drainage into the broader construction schedule rather than treating it as an add-on. We also work with individual homeowners building a custom home who want to make sure this step doesn’t get missed or shortcut by a builder juggling a dozen trades. Either way, the work is documented so it can be referenced at resale or during a future inspection.