Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
indiangum

Wet basement...who do I call

indiangum
17 years ago

Our basement leaks when it rains. I don't think it's a grading problem and am having the gutters cleaned as they could be clogged. Other than that who is the best person to call to look at this?

Thanks! Chris

This is the basement sorry you'll have to look sideways

{{gwi:1383324}}
This is outside where I believe it corresponds to the damage inside--notice downspout which I don't think is clogged as I dug it up a little

{{gwi:1383325}}

Comments (9)

  • logicalone
    17 years ago

    It could be that it dumps the water too close to your foundation....I'd try putting an extension on it or a splash-block under it to get the water well away from the house

  • indiangum
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    The downspouts are connected underground.

  • logicalone
    17 years ago

    I missed your note about the digging...I see they go underground now. What is above the area...does the stone go up under an overhang or is there maybe a joint to siding where water is getting in behind the stone? It just doesn't look like groundwater to me with it up so high on the wall. Where is the ground relative to the top of the block wall?

  • sweet11395
    17 years ago

    I agree with logicalone....the wate appears to be entering near the sill plate (between the joists and foundation) high on the wall....lead me to believe that maybe the ground outside is piled up against the house higher than the foundation wall...furthermore mulch up against any house evn the foundation holds water VERY well so in a heavy rain you will have an abundance of moisture in the mulch resting up against the foundation allowing migration into the pourous block. The other possibility as logicalone said is there may be a break in your exterior siding,flashing or leak in the gutter allowing water to run down the side of the house onto the foundation wall....check all of these.

  • indiangum
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Here's another pic that shows the length of the drainpipe and the gutters. The place in the basement corresponds exactly where the corner and the downspout are. I think I need to dig down farther to see if the downspout underground maybe has a hole. I climbed a ladder to look at the top of the blocks in the basement and there is no moisture there. I'm stumped. I called a home inspection co. and they aren't sure if they would be any help, am waiting for the owner to call tomorrow. I really don't want to call a waterproofing co as they tend to want to SELL their services and will find a way to make me have to pay lots of $$$$.
    {{gwi:1383326}}

  • jejvtr
    17 years ago

    Indiagum

    I just went through this last yr w/our home -
    Here's what I found in my research
    1. Check all downspouts
    - those that are running underground go to what? drywell is it possible drywell is having problems
    - I'd suggest running a hose down the one that correlates to basement water seepage

    2. grading should be pitched away from foundation
    3. Plantings should not be close to foundation as they draw water towards them, established root systems will bring water towards your foundation... Looks like you have a lot of plantings

    4. ***This one was our issue - your home looks like relatively new construction - mine is 75 yrs old - I had a guy come to the site, he said imagine the home prior to them backfilling - you have no way of knowing what they backfilled with or if it was tampered down properly - perhaps that area has some "holes" there
    We dug up an old brick patio right outside the bilco doors and voila found an old septic tank -

    took all downspouts out of the old terra cotta type piping (filled with dirt, roots etc)- ran extensions from spouts out away from foundation

    So far so good -
    You may want to go to concrete.com - or a foundation type site - they go into detail on orig construction of what should be done, tarpaper, drainage, etc prior to backfilling.

    Good luck
    the white you see is effervesence an indicator of water seepage.
    Eileen

  • sweet11395
    17 years ago

    indiangum,

    I agree you should dig down deep and make sure the pipe still has its integrity and then do as "jejvtr" suggested....run a hose in that pipe and see if you get a water backup fairly quickly indicating some kind of blockage (roots craking the pipe, drywell clogged, or what my neighbor had....blockage caused by earth from penetrating mole!!!)

  • indiangum
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Hey thanks all,
    I'm going to dig a little more and along the length of the downspout drain pipe...see what I find. The gutter cleaners are supposed to be here maybe today so I'll see if there are any issues with that. It is supposed to rain this wkend so I'll go outside and see if water is pooling or anything.

  • Brad Elwood
    4 years ago

    It is better to hire someone, they can do properly like assessment and inspection of the damage, Removal of stagnant water, Drying and containment, Monitoring and Completion. In my opinion, a better option is to hire a water damage restoration company.