How do I reseal an old basement? There is what looks like paint with tar under it on the cement?

We recently purchased an older home. The basement is unfinnished. The walls are covered with what looks like paint with tar under it. My husband is trying to chip the paint off to clean the walls and reseal them. Is this the right way to do it? We are having a problem getting the paint off? Do we need to take it off to reseal it?How do I reseal an old basement? There is what looks like paint with tar under it on the cement?
A lot of older homes have Henry's (a tar like substance) used as a water sealant on cement or slump block walls. If there is paint over that, it was probably DryLock which is a paint on newer sealant. You probably will have quite a chore removing the Henry's because it bonds with cement. I would try sanding it before resealing with a product like DryLock because you probably won't be able to chip off all of the tar.How do I reseal an old basement? There is what looks like paint with tar under it on the cement?
The tar is on the inside of the wall? I have never heard of that. The tar is supposed to be on the outside. We plaster the outside wall with mortar and then tar it. I don't know if you will ever get that tar off. Are you getting water in the basement that you need to reseal it?


If so, you should dig all around the foundation and replace the tile or put some in, if there isn't any tile. Then cover the tile with gravel. The more gravel the better, because it lets water filter down to the tile. After that is done, I hate to say this, but you may need block replaced. If so, do what I said about plaster and tar.


Again, that tar is supposed to be on the outside of the wall. So I don't really know what to tell you about that. Sorry, but good luck.