We see stone foundations all over New England, from MA to RI, CT, it doesn't matter. From Hartford to Boston we see these stone foundations. There are 3 primary problems that we see.
The first is that there is mortar missing or crumbling from in between the stones. That's when you go in the basement and you see a powdery material on the floor, or when you touch it it just comes off. The mortar is put there to keep the stones in place. You want to keep the structural integrity intact, so we "re-point" or "put-back" the mortar that is missing. This is a maintenance issue, if you let it go, eventually you are going to have structural issues.
The second common problem with stone foundations is if the stone seems to be wet, deteriorating, or has excessive moisture. In this case there are a couple things to be checked. Make sure your gutters are clean and the downspouts run away from the foundation and be sure the soil is pitched away from the foundation. Also, put a true dehumidifier in your basement, not just a little one, but one that removes about 105 pints of water a day.
The third most common problem is when there is parging over the stone years ago or paint over the parging that appears to be trapping water or loose. You need to remove all the loose cement or paint and let the rest flake off over-time. This allows the stones to breathe.
For more information on basement waterproofing, contact A1 Foundatoin Crack Repair.