1950's back extension

[coconino]

10' X 10' back of the house extension built in the 1950's on a 1925 house. What we call a "mud room" for coming in the back door and then either going up to the kitchen or down to the basement.

We think the extension was built flat on the ground, except for the stairs leading down to the original 1925 basement.

The exterior of the extension is old, cracked and falling off in chunks insul-brick.

We've noticed a small (6" by 8") damp patch on the wall of the lower stairs which lead from the mud room to the original basement.

We were thinking that the insul-brick needs to be replaced, but at the same time we should have waterproofing done below ground level of the extension. We suspect, given the age of the extension, this was never done.

We think the damp spot on the wall is just the wet solid earth behind the wall of the extension where it is below ground. We have no dampness at all in the original basement area.

[coconino]

We're looking for comments/ideas on the cause of the damp spot on the wall and how to fix it.

We think that behind the cement/concrete wall is just earth.

Do we just dig out the damp section, patch and seal?

[tbasc]

That dampness comes from some place. Check for sources. There are many threads in this n.g. for damp basements. TB

[djay]

Is there a question?

[Joseph Meehan]

Just start tanking things apart until you find all the known and suspected problems. You won't know until you look.

[Colbyt]

Pretty much. You are going to need to do exploratory demolition to discover the cause and then take whatever steps needed to correct the problem.

It may be really simple or quite involved. There is no way to know until you explore.

Colbyt