Concrete Block on Poured Concrete

The walls of my basement consist of about 5 feet of poured concrete with 3 courses of concrete block on top. I am getting water leaking in to my basement in a couple of locations at the seam of the block and the poured. I've talked to four different contractors and have received four different solutions. I was wondering if someone can answer some questions for me to help decide what action I should take.

1. Why would the basement walls have been constructed this way?

2. Does the water entering the concrete block lead cause any damage to the concrete? Can I just focus on stopping the water from entering the interior of the basement or do I need to stop it from entering from the outside as well? (ie. would interior gutters, drain tiles or drain pipes be a good fix)

3. Is polyurethane grout injected into the soil around the exterior a good long term fix?

4. Is there a way to fill the cavities of the concrete block? Is this an appropriate fix? Should they have been filled already?


It seems like this is a unique problem and I've only been getting "cookie cutter" solutions for it so any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Dan

[TJ1962]

Your problem is not unique at all.Possibly they only had four foot forms, and it then makes since to block up.The seam at poured at block is the weak point but no different than a standard masonary wall. Damage is debatable long term. Gutters and down spouts may help. Polyurethane is a good product, however this is a blind injection. Filling cavities is difficult and dose nothing for seam. In short this can be treated as a standard masonay wall.

Thanks for the reply! You stated that "this can be treated as a standard masonay wall". What do you mean by this? And how would you recommend to correct the problem?

[TJ1962]

I am sorry, what i mean is there are several options, the most common is interior or exterior.There are pros and cons to both. Interior wont stop water from entering block, and exterior is more disruptive and expensive.There is no 100% answer. Weigh cost vs value of home .