The kiln provides “a connection with people in the past. They created the bricks with their hands,” says archaeologist Elizabeth Monroe.

If your basement walls are made of concrete, brick, or other masonry ... If your basement is leaking, or if cracks in the foundation are allowing water in, adding an extractor fan won’t solve ...

Efflorescence is the white powdery substance you might notice on basement walls ... moves through a porous material like concrete or brick, carrying dissolved salts with them.