Brick Basement Repair Questions

[Broadside]

I am living in a house that is over 100 years old and has a brick basement. A few additions were made to the house since then removing the windows and leaving them open for crawl spaces. The additions have block foundation but the crawl spaces are dirt ground. Also there is a small entry in the back where they used to bring in coal but the brick around that door jam is pushing out and some brick is missing. The stairs at that rear entry are wood and have water damage when i removed the bottom step it was just dirt below. The brick walls for the most part was thinking on using a wire brush to clean them and using some sort of permanent floor sealer like a shop floor and do the basement floor as well. Upstairs there is cracking on the older walls in spots and i'm not sure if that is just do to the foundation or the fact that roughly 50 trains go by a day and the tracks are only a block away.(As trains go by at night you can feel the house rock a bit but that may just be the bed. ) The questions i have are as follows.

1. Can i remove that rear door and cut the brick back smooth and block it up then back fill that rear entry all together?

2. Is there anything i can do to the dirt floor crawl spaces? I was hoping maybe make them concrete.

3. Can i use concrete to fix any areas where mortar has dropped away then apply a floor sealer?

Any input would be great i am going to get working on it soon and its going to be a DIY project as i can't afford to have professionals come do the work.

[JacobPM]

Well I can't say anything about the door, because I'd need to look at it. When it comes to brick foundations even slight adjustments to the foundation can lead to cracks and other things upstairs (as you've experienced already).

For the crawl space, since it is a dirt floor, I'd highly recommend Encapsulating it. Again, I'd have someone come out and look first. There are a few criteria that need to be met before something like that can be installed. But basically consists of a thick vapor barrier covering the floors and walls to seal off the space from the outside (ie: this will keep bugs, odors, moisture and humidity from being a problem in that space).

Floor sealants can't fix everything, but patching the floor will help a little. Make sure to let the concrete dry for at Least 30 days (follow instructions) before applying anything.

You mentioned that the steps had water damage, is that because the basement flooded? or that section of the basement doesn't have a floor?

[Broadside]

The wood stairs that were wet were built right on top of soil i cant build up the ground around that area the door is so low in the ground is why i planned to just remove the bad brick and put up block in its place closing it off permanently and then grading the area better. As for the crawl spaces i am not sure yet what to do i was thinking on laying chicken wire fence or some sort of wire mesh and pouring concrete so i can make them less muggy i don't like the idea of an open earth area in the basement. I want to make to make use of the basement and finish it is why i thought about using a shop sealer on the floor and walls that way i would not have to paint the exterior walls or mess with the floor any further other then laying carpet. I do plan on getting a dehumidifier down there to dry it all out real well before starting the cleaning and patching part then seal it. The house will most likely not be sold to anyone for we have heard that our zone has been changed to commercial zone and will be purchased sometime within the next 15 years so the repairs are more of a clean up feeling rather then spiffing it up for future owners.

[JacobPM]

I agree. dirt floors in basements and crawl spaces aren't a good idea. Allows moisture to build up directly under the house and actually speed up the process of rotting the floor out...not good (even if you're not selling any time soon).

Sounds like you're head is in the right direction it's about working out the process and getting down to business.

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