Q: When it rains, I have a problem in my basement. After the earth is saturated, water enters through the foundation. I have an attached house and live on a hill. We have two bedrooms and a bath in the basement. The water flows under the floor, which is elevated about 4 inches. I haven’t had any mold problems because I put towels against the foundation wall to soak up the water. But sometimes I don’t get it all and it travels down the sloping floor to the drain in the middle of the garage. It looks as if the previous owners have tried a patch or two with little success. Any ideas?

A: There are a couple of ways to stem the floodwaters, but there is no easy fix. Both solutions require a significant investment of time and money.

We believe that installation of a French drain around the outside of the foundation is the best choice. If done properly it will direct groundwater outside of the house where it belongs.

Another, less desirable solution is to install a sump pump inside the basement to direct water to the outside.

We surmise by the description of your house that it is built into the side of the hill. That means that in order to install a French drain, you must excavate a trench directing the water to the street. The trench should be at least as deep as the bottom of the foundation.

Install drain tiles in the bottom of the trench and backfill the trench with gravel. This will allow water from the saturated earth to percolate through the gravel into the drain tile and empty into a catch basin or the street.

You’ll probably have to excavate a trench at least 10 feet deep at the deepest point. That is a lot of dirt to move and involves more work and expense than you might want to undertake.

If you do decide to go this route, we recommend that you undertake the project during the summer.

When the foundation and basement walls are exposed, apply a good moisture barrier on the concrete walls.

If you install a sump pump inside the basement, you would need to dig a trench around the interior perimeter of the basement, install drain tile on the bottom, backfill with gravel and discharge the pipe into a sump. A sump is merely a hole in the ground that acts as a catch basin for the water.

Place a sump pump in the catch basin and run a discharge line from the sump pump outside. Make sure the water discharges away from the house’s foundation.

Water will still seep through the basement walls, but if you opt for this choice it will be directed out of the house as quickly as possible.

You might be tempted to forgo the sump pump and discharge an interior drainage system into the garage drain. We do not recommend this.

The condition of the old garage drain is unknown, and it is always best to direct water away from the house.

***

What’s your opinion? Send your Letter to the Editor to opinion@sandbox.inman.com.

Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×