POINT 01
Access and lighting
Show the stairs and lighting into the basement, and any area too dark or unsafe to enter.
Brick steps lead down into a lit cellar.
Form library · Housing and property
Basement inspection checklist
A condition inspection of a basement or cellar for damp, water ingress and flooding. Record the property, how the basement is used and its waterproofing type, then whether access is safe and each room or vault: walls, tide mark height, floor, standing water depth, where water appears to get in, ventilation, mould, timber and moisture readings, with photos. Check the sump, channel and pump, services and anything stored at risk, then the likely cause, a recommendation, a summary and actions. Every question is listed below, and you can fill the live form in on this page.
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Why do basements and cellars flood?
Water can come from groundwater, surface water, leaking pipes or condensation. The Environment Agency says groundwater flooding happens when the water table rises to the surface, and that cellars and basements are particularly at risk. Signs are water coming up through the ground or the floor rather than through doors, usually days, weeks or months after lots of rain, lasting weeks or months. Record where water gets in, how high the tide marks are and when it started, so the cause can be found.
Last updated . Facts checked by the SiteSurvey team on 17 October 2026 against GOV.UK (Environment Agency): groundwater flooding and Property Care Association: basement and cellar waterproofing.
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Open the completed example to see fictional readings, notes, photos and calculations. Choose Blank form to try entering your own answers.
Want to see one filled in? See a completed basement inspection report (PDF), made by SiteSurvey from a fictional site visit.
Walk Cam route · four guided clips
Record the basement inspection on video
Go down with good light and film walls, floor, drainage and services, tying each mark to a wall and its height.
Record the property, access, date and recent weather. Name any area too dark or unsafe to enter. The four AI-generated clips illustrate one route, not a real basement.
POINT 02
Walls and tide marks
Film walls for damp, salt deposits and tide marks, keeping height above the floor in frame.
White salt deposits and a tide mark show low on the cellar wall.
POINT 03
Floor, water and drainage
Show standing water, staining, the sump or drain and any pump.
Water stands on part of the cellar floor near a drainage channel.
POINT 04
Services and storage
Film meters, pipes and anything stored that could be damaged by water, without touching services.
A gas meter and pipes are fixed to the wall above stored boxes.
See the footage in a report
A fictional six-page example with the four points, twelve stills from the clips, observations, follow-up actions and the limits of a visual record.
View the visual evidence (PDF) ↗ · Download the full sample report
Video records visible signs of damp and water. It does not find the source, test any waterproofing system or check gas and electrical services. Example footage was generated in Google Flow and the observations are scripted; no real site is shown. Walk Cam works inside any form in the app. How Walk Cam works · All visual inspections
Every question in the basement inspection template
A basement and cellar condition inspection: access, waterproofing type, each area's walls, tide marks, floor and standing water, where water gets in, sump and pump, services and storage at risk, likely cause and next steps. 3 sections and 54 questions. Follow-up questions and guidance appear only when an answer calls for them, so the person on site never sees the ones that do not apply.
Make it your own: every question is editable
This is a starting point, not a fixed form. Once it is in your SiteSurvey account you can reword any question, add or remove questions, sections and answer options, and add your own logo, so it fits the way your team works and the jobs you do.
Details you only enter once
Add this form to a project in SiteSurvey and it fills in what the project already knows, so nobody on site retypes it and every form on the job uses the same names. Anything filled in can still be changed.
- Project: the project name
- Client: the project's customer
- Site: the site, when the form is opened for a space or a product
- Site address: the site address, from the space or the project
Property
- ProjectShort answerFills in from the project name
- ClientShort answerFills in from the project's customer
- Site*Short answerFills in from the site, when the form is opened for a space or a product
- Site addressShort answerFills in from the site address, from the space or the project
- Inspection date*Date
- TimeTime
- Surveyor*Short answer
- PropertyChoose one
- House
- Flat or maisonette
- Commercial building
- Mixed use
- Other
- How the basement is usedChoose one
- Storage only
- Habitable room or conversion
- Plant or services room
- Not used
- Waterproofing systemChoose one
- None known
- Type A (tanked protection)
- Type B (water-resistant structure)
- Type C (drained cavity)
- Not known
- GuidanceBS 8102:2022 (Protection of below ground structures against water ingress) sets three types of waterproofing protection: Type A, barrier (tanked) protection that relies on a membrane; Type B, a water-resistant structure, usually reinforced concrete; and Type C, drained protection, a cavity that leads water to a drain or sump. The Property Care Association says waterproofing failures are largely due to poor workmanship, the wrong materials or bad design.
- Weather captureAnswer
Record estimated current conditions for this visit. Keep your observations, visibility and local site conditions in the existing field below.
- Recent rainfall or flooding nearbyShort answer
Condition
- Stairs, headroom and lighting safe to enterChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- WarningDo not go in if the access is unsafe, the lighting does not work or there is deep water. Record what can be seen from the stairs.Shown when “Stairs, headroom and lighting safe to enter” is “Defect”
- What is wrong with the access?Short answerShown when “Stairs, headroom and lighting safe to enter” is “Defect”
- AreasRepeat for each area. Each one asks:
- Room, vault or area*Short answer
- Length (m)Number
Measuring from a photo gives an estimate. Check critical sizes with a tape or laser.
- Width (m)Number
Measuring from a photo gives an estimate. Check critical sizes with a tape or laser.
- Floor area (m²)Worked out by the formShown only when the answers above make it relevant
- WallsChoose one
- Dry
- Damp patches
- Tide mark or salt deposits
- Running water
- Highest damp or tide mark above the floor (mm)Number
Use a tape, or measure from a square-on photo with an A4 sheet (297 mm tall) taped to the wall as the reference. Measuring from a photo gives an estimate. The tool rounds to 10 mm.
Shown only when the answers above make it relevant - FloorChoose one
- Dry
- Damp or stained
- Standing water
- Depth of standing water (mm)NumberShown when “Floor” is “Standing water”
- Where water appears to get inTick all that apply
- Up through the floor
- Wall and floor junction
- Through the walls
- Around pipes or service entries
- From above (pipes, drains or windows)
- Not seen
- VentilationChoose one
- Ventilated
- Poor or none
- Mould growth?Yes or No
- Timber (joists, stairs, shelving)Choose one
- No timber
- Sound
- Damp or decayed
- Moisture readings (meter, units and where taken)Short answer
- Photos (with the floor in frame for tide marks)Photos
- Areas inspectedWorked out by the form
- With standing waterWorked out by the form
- With mouldWorked out by the form
- With damp or decayed timberWorked out by the form
- Highest tide mark (mm)Worked out by the form
- Floor area (m²)Worked out by the form
- Floor area damp or wet (m²)Worked out by the form
- Is there a sump or drainage channel?Yes or No
- Sump, channel and pumpChoose one
- Clear and working
- Silted or blocked
- Pump not working
- Not tested
Shown when “Is there a sump or drainage channel?” is Yes - High-water alarm fitted?Yes or NoShown when “Is there a sump or drainage channel?” is Yes
- Meters, pipes and electrics clear of water and damageChoose one
- OK
- Defect
- None present
- CheckLook at services without touching them. If water is near electrics, keep out and report it.
- Is anything stored where water could damage it?Yes or No
- Walk Cam: basement and cellar inspectionWalk Cam video with voice-to-text
Optional. Film the four guided points on the SiteSurvey app; each clip keeps its spoken note.
Actions and sign-off
- Likely causeTick all that apply
- Groundwater (rising water table)
- Surface water or blocked drains outside
- Leaking pipe or service
- Condensation
- Failed waterproofing
- Not yet known
- CheckGOV.UK (Environment Agency): groundwater flooding is when water under the ground rises to the surface, and cellars and basements are particularly at risk. Signs are water coming up through the ground or the floor rather than through doors, usually days, weeks or months after lots of rain, and it may last for weeks or months.Shown when “Likely cause” includes “Groundwater (rising water table)”
- RecommendationChoose one
- No action needed
- Monitor and re-inspect
- Repairs needed
- Specialist waterproofing survey
- Summary of findingsNotes
- Re-inspect byDateShown only when the answers above make it relevant
- Are further actions needed?Yes or No
- Further actionsRepeat for each action. Each one asks:Shown when “Are further actions needed?” is Yes
- What needs doing?*Notes
- PriorityChoose one
- Urgent
- High
- Medium
- Low
- Who will do it?Short answer
- Due dateDate
- StatusChoose one
- Open
- In progress
- Completed
- Inspector name*Short answer
- Position or companyShort answer
- Inspector signatureSignature
- CheckSigning records what was found on the day. It does not make unsafe equipment safe or replace a thorough examination, design check or service by a competent person.
Scope and responsibility
This is a visual condition inspection, not a waterproofing design to BS 8102, a flood risk assessment or a structural survey.
What a useful entry looks like
Where water gets in and the likely cause
Record each area's tide mark height and standing water depth, and where the water appears to come from. Say what points to the cause and what still needs investigating.
Front vault: water coming up through the floor and at the wall base after three weeks of heavy rain, tide mark 350 mm. Sump silted. Specialist survey recommended.
Fictional example of record wording. Use the actual evidence and approved arrangements for your job; this is not a completed report or an instruction to carry out the work.
See it filled in
A completed basement inspection report, made by SiteSurvey from a fictional site visit: every answer, the photos, the guidance that applied and the sign-off, ready to send as a PDF.
Basement inspection FAQs
What are the types of basement waterproofing?
The Property Care Association describes three: Type A, tanked protection that relies on a waterproofing membrane; Type B, a water-resistant structure, usually reinforced concrete; and Type C, a drained cavity that leads water to a drain or sump, removed by gravity or pumping. The form records which is fitted, if known.
Is this the same as a cellar management check?
No. A cellar management check is a pub's beer cellar record. This form records the building's condition: damp, salts, tide marks, standing water and drainage.
How do I tell groundwater from a leak?
The Environment Agency says groundwater usually comes up through the floor, days to months after heavy rain, and can last a long time. Water from above, around pipes or soon after a shower of rain points to other sources. The form records where water appears to get in for each area.
Why do waterproofing systems fail?
The PCA says basement and cellar waterproofing failures are largely due to poor workmanship, the inappropriate use of materials or bad design, and that basements must comply with BS 8102:2022. Recommend a specialist waterproofing survey where a system has failed or a conversion is planned.
What if it is not safe to go in?
Do not enter if the stairs, headroom or lighting are unsafe or there is deep water. Record what can be seen from the stairs, and look at meters, pipes and electrics without touching them.
Can I film the basement?
Yes. Add the optional Walk Cam route on the SiteSurvey app: access and lighting, walls and tide marks, the floor and drainage, and services and storage, each clip with its spoken note.
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