water in our basement
#1
03-06-04, 03:30 PM
water in our basement
We recently bought a 3 year old custom home with a finished basement apartment.
We recently received a lot of rain with the ground still frozen, which resulted in 2-4 inches of water in one part of the basement.
It happened again today when we received 2" hard rain in an hour. This time only about 1" of water in the basement. The first time water came in through the window well, which was frozen, and the foundation. The house had 6" of standing water around it.
Today It seems to be seeping in from below or from the foundation. There was no standing water in the yard today. Theres been about 4 weeks between the 2 incidents.
In a new home like this, with no previous signs of water damage, what do we do? And how can we prevent this?
Help us Please!!
We recently received a lot of rain with the ground still frozen, which resulted in 2-4 inches of water in one part of the basement.
It happened again today when we received 2" hard rain in an hour. This time only about 1" of water in the basement. The first time water came in through the window well, which was frozen, and the foundation. The house had 6" of standing water around it.
Today It seems to be seeping in from below or from the foundation. There was no standing water in the yard today. Theres been about 4 weeks between the 2 incidents.
In a new home like this, with no previous signs of water damage, what do we do? And how can we prevent this?
Help us Please!!
#2
03-07-04, 04:17 PM
From your post, my opinion would be that the draintile installed during construction of the home is either A) cracked/crushed (which happens during construction and backfill) or B) clogged with silt/settlement. Normally, this does not happen that early in the life of the home, but much of this depends on teh conditions surrounding your home.
There are a couple ways you can fix the problem. The first involves outside escavation. A company would come in with a backhoe and dig the dirt out from around your house. Next, new draintile would be installed, and the dirt around your home would be replaced. This is a pretty large project, normally. In my area, the cost is typically $4-7K per wall, depending on the size of your home. The warrenty is typically 1 year, but some companies offer a 5 year warranty.
Another option is to do an interior system. This is much less costly, less disruptive, and comes with a much better guaranty. The standard method involves using perforated piping and gravel to collect the water, then lead the water to a sump pump. There are other, more advanced products available that work better and do not clog with dirt.
The first step for you is to contact several waterproofing contractors and get bids on the project. Go with the option you feel most comfortable with. Service is a big issue with this business. If there ever is a problem with your repair work, you want a company that's established and will be there when you need them!
There are a couple ways you can fix the problem. The first involves outside escavation. A company would come in with a backhoe and dig the dirt out from around your house. Next, new draintile would be installed, and the dirt around your home would be replaced. This is a pretty large project, normally. In my area, the cost is typically $4-7K per wall, depending on the size of your home. The warrenty is typically 1 year, but some companies offer a 5 year warranty.
Another option is to do an interior system. This is much less costly, less disruptive, and comes with a much better guaranty. The standard method involves using perforated piping and gravel to collect the water, then lead the water to a sump pump. There are other, more advanced products available that work better and do not clog with dirt.
The first step for you is to contact several waterproofing contractors and get bids on the project. Go with the option you feel most comfortable with. Service is a big issue with this business. If there ever is a problem with your repair work, you want a company that's established and will be there when you need them!
#3
03-08-04, 08:38 AM
I just had an inside system installed in my basement about a month ago and haven't had any water in the basement since. The sump pump was running like crazy when we had a big snow melt, but the basement stayed dry as a bone.
One thing to keep in mind, the installation of an inside system is indeed disruptive, especially if you have a finished basement. Depending on the layout of your basement, the waterproofing company may have to cut the bottom of any finished walls to get to the cinder block and cement floor. In my case only one finished wall was affected. They cut thru the panelling and removed about the bottom 12" of studs and pulled up the bottom plate, so I have to do some serious rebuilding of that wall. Also, if you have wall to wall carpet, that will need to be pulled up. You'll have to move everything away from the walls that will be done and make sure you cover everything in plastic, there will be cement dust everywhere. All in all it was a lot of work for me before and after the job, but there is not really any way around this, and considering my basement has been dry after a big snow melt and several rains, it was well worth the work involved.
CCM
One thing to keep in mind, the installation of an inside system is indeed disruptive, especially if you have a finished basement. Depending on the layout of your basement, the waterproofing company may have to cut the bottom of any finished walls to get to the cinder block and cement floor. In my case only one finished wall was affected. They cut thru the panelling and removed about the bottom 12" of studs and pulled up the bottom plate, so I have to do some serious rebuilding of that wall. Also, if you have wall to wall carpet, that will need to be pulled up. You'll have to move everything away from the walls that will be done and make sure you cover everything in plastic, there will be cement dust everywhere. All in all it was a lot of work for me before and after the job, but there is not really any way around this, and considering my basement has been dry after a big snow melt and several rains, it was well worth the work involved.
CCM
#4
03-08-04, 08:51 AM
It happened again today when we received 2" hard rain in an hour. This time only about 1" of water in the basement. The first time water came in through the window well, which was frozen, and the foundation. The house had 6" of standing water around it.
Water came in the window from the window well????? Are there drains in them ???
ED
#5
03-08-04, 09:03 AM
If you're getting tons of rain the ground may be completely saturated and has nowhere else to go but up.
Grading of the land may be an issue here also. If the slope points back towards the house, that may be the reason for the 6" of water from a 2" rain.
An interior system certainly isn't fun to do (thats why they call it construction work), but it's much less mess than exterior work. Dust is usually expected, and drywall normally has to be cut to access the wall itself.
Grading of the land may be an issue here also. If the slope points back towards the house, that may be the reason for the 6" of water from a 2" rain.
An interior system certainly isn't fun to do (thats why they call it construction work), but it's much less mess than exterior work. Dust is usually expected, and drywall normally has to be cut to access the wall itself.
