Choosing a waterproofing company

You are the one hiring, so you are the one checking. In New Jersey that begins with a registration number you can look up yourself in a couple of minutes.

Call (973) 555-0118

You will be put through to an independent local waterproofing company. Calls may be recorded.

Look up the registration

The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs lists basement waterproofing among the trades it treats as home improvement. A business doing that work on houses has to be registered with the Division, and the Division says unregistered contractors will not be issued municipal construction permits.

Ask the company for its registration number. Then search for it on the state licence verification page, or ring the Division on 800-242-5846 and ask whether the business is registered and whether complaints have been filed. The name on the registration should match the name on your contract.

The Division is plain that registration is not an endorsement. It tells you the business is on the state's record. It does not tell you the work will be good.

Ask for the insurance certificate

The Division's guidance says the contractor must give you a copy of its commercial general liability insurance policy and the insurer's telephone number. Ask for both before the contract is signed, and phone the insurer if the job is a large one.

What a proper inspection includes

An inspection that takes ten minutes and ends in a price is a sales call. Look for these.

The inspector goes outdoors first and looks at gutters, downspouts, grading and window wells.
Every wall is looked at, not only the one you pointed to.
You are asked when the water shows and how long it stays.
A moisture meter comes out, and readings are taken in more than one place.
The wall type is identified, because block, poured concrete and stone are treated differently.
Any existing pump is tested and its discharge is traced to where it ends.
The cause is explained before the cure is named.
You hear about a smaller option as well as the full one.
Nobody needs your signature that day.

Put it in writing

These points come from the Division of Consumer Affairs' guidance for homeowners.

A written contract

Required for all but the smallest jobs. It must carry the contractor's legal name, business address and registration number, a start date, a completion date, a description of the work and the total price.

Materials and warranties

Have the brands or grades of materials named, and every warranty written into the contract, not left as a remark at the kitchen table.

Three days to change your mind

You may cancel a signed home improvement contract for any reason until midnight of the third business day after you receive your copy. Cancel in writing and keep proof it was sent.

Payment

The Division warns against contractors who ask for more than a third of the price before starting, who want cash, or who say a written contract is unnecessary. The last payment is due when the work is finished.

Permits and inspections

Make sure the permits the town requires are taken out. In Clifton that is the Building Department, 973-470-5809. Any final municipal inspection should be passed before you make the final payment.

Questions about the warranty

Does it cover the whole basement staying dry, or only the stretch of wall that was treated?
Does it pass to the next owner if you sell, and is there a fee or a form for that?
Is a yearly service visit required to keep it valid?
Is the pump covered by the company or only by its manufacturer, and for how long?
Who honours it if the company is sold or closes?

Get more than one price

The Division's advice is to get written prices from at least three contractors. A call to the number on this website puts you in touch with one company. Nothing stops you from asking others, and a company confident in its proposal will not mind.

When the prices arrive, compare what is in them before comparing the totals. What affects the price lists what to line up.

If it goes wrong

Give the company the chance to put it right first, in writing. If that fails, a complaint can be filed with the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs online or by asking for a form on 800-242-5846. This website cannot settle disputes about work, because it is not a party to your contract.