# water in basement



## Red Squirrel (Jun 29, 2009)

Corners seem to be bad, I have two corners that are bad too. I guess it's where there's more movement. Pretty much have to dig it out to the footing and see what the wall looks like. I think older houses used to just use plastic, it's possible water is getting behind it. Would need to use a product that sticks on such as blueskin or tar spray (I forget the name, but it's like a spray that creates a tarish surface). Wall needs to be sealed as good as possible. It's a pretty big job, I was going to do it myself too and decided against it. Have to consider the cost of renting equipment and what not. How much gravel to order, what to do with the old sand, etc.... lot of logistics things that can be tricky.


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

Before you spend any money you should clean the block really well with something to eat the mold (Zymeaway) maybe.
Look where the damage starts,and look at the coarse of block,it is right about outside grade.
I would say that not having the down spout hooked up to anything dumped all the water right onto that corner.
If it were anything else the whole wall would look like that.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

Ravenworks said:


> Before you spend any money you should clean the block really well with something to eat the mold (Zymeaway) maybe.
> Look where the damage starts,and look at the coarse of block,it is right about outside grade.
> I would say that not having the down spout hooked up to anything dumped all the water right onto that corner.
> If it were anything else the whole wall would look like that.


i do have extention on now though and i still get a lot of water. my guess is having to dig it all up. if i got someone to do it, whats a price estimate on that?


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

I would be first taking a closer look at the way that brick wall was capped off.
It looks like a stone cap. Was it set at an angle away from the wall?
How was it flashed at the top of the wall.
Done wrong and water can just run down the back side of the brick.


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## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

How wet is the area just outside after a good rainstorm? Is the hose at the bottom of the downspout effective without letting out a lot of water just where it begins?

THe need for a perimeter drain system with sump pump cannot be rules out. If needed it's your choice whether it goes around the outside of the foundation or just around the inside. If there is just one corner that gets wet inside you might dig a sump pump pit there and that might work with no perimeter drain or just 2 or 3 feet worth of perimeter drain attached to it.

When correcting the grade of the land, use dense soil, not gravel. A gravel bed around the foundation acts as a water holding area right there, not a means of carrying water away from the house unless there is a downsloping channel (French drain) away from the house explicitly put in for the gravel bed to drain with. With a gravel bed, the "official" grade or level or contour of the land for drainage purposes is the bottom of the bed.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

AllanJ said:


> How wet is the area just outside after a good rainstorm? Is the hose at the bottom of the downspout effective without letting out a lot of water just where it begins?
> 
> THe need for a perimeter drain system with sump pump cannot be rules out. If needed it's your choice whether it goes around the outside of the foundation or just around the inside. If there is just one corner that gets wet inside you might dig a sump pump pit there and that might work with no perimeter drain or just 2 or 3 feet worth of perimeter drain attached to it.
> 
> When correcting the grade of the land, use dense soil, not gravel. A gravel bed around the foundation acts as a water holding area right there, not a means of carrying water away from the house unless there is a downsloping channel (French drain) away from the house explicitly put in for the gravel bed to drain with. With a gravel bed, the "official" grade or level or contour of the land for drainage purposes is the bottom of the bed.


i never really looked outside afterwards. from the pics you can see even with gravel there isnt much there, you can see the underlayment pretty easily. it is just that one corner that gets water. my sump pump is brand new but i dont really hear it ever kick in.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

Ravenworks said:


> Before you spend any money you should clean the block really well with something to eat the mold (Zymeaway) maybe.
> Look where the damage starts,and look at the coarse of block,it is right about outside grade.
> I would say that not having the down spout hooked up to anything dumped all the water right onto that corner.
> If it were anything else the whole wall would look like that.


ya thats what i thinking too, is it possible before i put the extentions on that the ground could have made like a stream and made almost like a river or easy way for water to keep flowing?


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

Okay,story time,when I bought my house I had very severe water problems,that the previous owner tried to fix but only made worst.
I dug all the way down to the footers,installed drain tile,I then back filled tamping the dirt in 6" lifts and then installed over 400' of rigid pipe for my down spouts along with 6" spouting with leaf relief.
Everything was great until the next spring when I had WATER in the one corner,I was besides myself. So here we go, I dug up the problem corner only to find nothing,now I am really mad.
I spent night upon night out there with a flash light watching the rain,only to find out that the down spout and a rip in the seam that was towards the top and it followed the corner channel down to the block.
My whole point is investigate before you act because, if I didn't have access to equipment and the know how I would have been paying some to do this for nothing.
Joe made a valid point in his post.
Look closely at your wall it is telling you its story,I read it as that is the problem area in itself if it wasn't everything would look like that.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

Ravenworks said:


> Okay,story time,when I bought my house I had very severe water problems,that the previous owner tried to fix but only made worst.
> I dug all the way down to the footers,installed drain tile,I then back filled tamping the dirt in 6" lifts and then installed over 400' of rigid pipe for my down spouts along with 6" spouting with leaf relief.
> Everything was great until the next spring when I had WATER in the one corner,I was besides myself. So here we go, I dug up the problem corner only to find nothing,now I am really mad.
> I spent night upon night out there with a flash light watching the rain,only to find out that the down spout and a rip in the seam that was towards the top and it followed the corner channel down to the block.
> ...


wow, i would have been so pissed too!! did you get it fixed then now? i will go outside and take a look and see what i can see, thanks


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

i think im going to go to menards today and get alonger extention. the grading is terrible and maybe the water from the gutter is pooling up there and going right back into the house


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

jhack836 said:


> did you get it fixed then now?


Yes,put in a new piece of down spout.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

i just went outside, it hasnt rained since friday but ground is soaking wet and muddy! i also notice the underlayment stops about 4 inches from the block. i kicked back some of the stone and saw there was a huge hump in the ground. ( you can kind of see in the underlayment on pic 2) but that hump is pretty big and it slopes inward towards the foundation. the corner where the brick siding is there is no underlayment at all against it the ran it 4 inches away from there too and it is soaking wet right there. i think i got a big project ahead of me this spring but i really dont want to have to dig too much or do drain tiles. if i can regrade new underlayment and extend the water farther away im hoping that will fix the problem. is bark good to use for grading??


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## jomama45 (Nov 13, 2008)

jhack836 said:


> i just went outside, it hasnt rained since friday but ground is soaking wet and muddy! i also notice the underlayment stops about 4 inches from the block. i kicked back some of the stone and saw there was a huge hump in the ground. ( you can kind of see in the underlayment on pic 2) but that hump is pretty big and it slopes inward towards the foundation. the corner where the brick siding is there is no underlayment at all against it the ran it 4 inches away from there too and it is soaking wet right there. i think i got a big project ahead of me this spring but i really dont want to have to dig too much or do drain tiles. if i can regrade new underlayment and extend the water farther away im hoping that will fix the problem.* is bark good to use for grading??*


Absolutely NOT.

Here's what I suggest:

- Pull ALL of the stone out of this are, and the other area's where you need to raise the grade.
- Pull out landscape fabric.
- Cut downspouts & raise the bottom elbow at least 8-12"
- Dig around corner and find the obvious section of the wall that's letting the water run in freely. If you can't find it easily, it may take two people. The second person should be able to faintly hear the water on the interior if holding their ear close to the wall. Move the garden hose util you pinpoint where it's leaking in. Fortunately, it looks to be in the third course, so darn near at grade.
- Put in short window wells, 12" are typically the shortest you'll find.
- Bring in good soil (I prefer a clay-topsoil mix, and it's easy to find here) that will compact relatively tight.
- Raise the grade to get the soil at least 4-6" higher in the first 10' from the house. More is always better.
- Installing new fabric is up to you, it doesn't help shed water. Whatever you use for mulch/stone/etc., MAKE SURE the soil underneath it pitches well away from the house. Stone WILL NOT shed water. Wood mulch isn't much better, especially when it's fresh.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

jomama45 said:


> Absolutely NOT.
> 
> Here's what I suggest:
> 
> ...


thats for the advice, where in wisc do u live? im from wi, in hartland/merton. those steps are all things i had in mind and will try. i hope that will fix the problem. hopefully just a small problem, nothing major, thanks


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

jomama45 said:


> Absolutely NOT.
> 
> - Put in short window wells, 12" are typically the shortest you'll find.
> - Bring in good soil (I prefer a clay-topsoil mix, and it's easy to find here) that will compact relatively tight.


Sounds good to me,I thought about the window well,OP will gain a lot of room for grade.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

how would a window well help since no water is coming in around it and my window is above grade level?


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## jomama45 (Nov 13, 2008)

jhack836 said:


> thats for the advice, where in wisc do u live? im from wi, in hartland/merton. those steps are all things i had in mind and will try. i hope that will fix the problem. hopefully just a small problem, nothing major, thanks


NE of you a ways, between Mil. & Sheboygan, near the lake......




jhack836 said:


> how would a window well help since no water is coming in around it and my window is above grade level?


It would allow you to raise the grade several inches without having to bury the window, which could potentially leak, take away extra light, etc....


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## bbo (Feb 28, 2010)

jhack836 said:


> how would a window well help since no water is coming in around it and my window is above grade level?


you can see darkness around the inside of that window currently.

a window well would get the water from the outside of the window forced down at least the depth of the window well.

the first and easiest thing to do would have been cutting the 12" off the downspout and attaching the extension there.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

bbo said:


> you can see darkness around the inside of that window currently.
> 
> a window well would get the water from the outside of the window forced down at least the depth of the window well.
> 
> the first and easiest thing to do would have been cutting the 12" off the downspout and attaching the extension there.


ya im going to do that before tuesday, its suppose to rain. that is easy done hundreds of downspouts before.

just an idea, if i took a tarp and covered that area and pitched it away from the house i shouldnt get anywayter correct? the front yard about 15-20ft from the extention drops down alot into a ditch so that is nice


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

i cut the downspout down and put it a window well. i tried to grade a little bit quickly, took me about 25 min to do it all so no big deal if it doesnt work. i tried building it up in the corner and pitch it away, i know this probably wont fix the problem but i only had less than a hr to do anything tonight and its going to rain alot tomarrow, so we shall see. i went to menards for a longer extention but my lucky day, they didnt have any left!


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

it rained out this morning, it rained pretty good, not hard but pretty consistant for a hr or so and i didnt have a drop of water in the basement! i'll see what happens next time it pours out though. im sure there will be water then


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

Looking good,you may wish to fill up the inside of the window well with dirt to the bottom of the glass block.
And on the outside of the well I would raise the grade to the top of the well,I think your water problems will be gone,if not the next step will be to look into that brick cap,but I don't think you will need to do that.


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## bbo (Feb 28, 2010)

Looking good.you are certainly going in the right direction.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

Ravenworks said:


> Looking good,you may wish to fill up the inside of the window well with dirt to the bottom of the glass block.
> And on the outside of the well I would raise the grade to the top of the well,I think your water problems will be gone,if not the next step will be to look into that brick cap,but I don't think you will need to do that.


thanks, yea i know i just didnt have time to do that that night but i will, i hope it works next time it pours out! i looked over the cap and caulked any possible leaking points. so far so good!


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

i forgot to mention that alot of times when it doesnt rain the bottom block seems to be holding water as you can see. would it be a bad idea to take a hammer drill and drill a 5/32 hole into the block to let or see if the water will come out?


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

No you *DO NOT* want to drill holes into your clock.
Concentrate on one thing at a time.
I think once you get things graded out around your house the problems will go away.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

Ravenworks said:


> No you *DO NOT* want to drill holes into your clock.
> Concentrate on one thing at a time.
> I think once you get things graded out around your house the problems will go away.


ok thanks, i wasnt sure if it would be a big deal or not to get the water out of there, i wont do it then


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## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

jhack836 said:


> how would a window well help since no water is coming in around it and my window is above grade level?


The purpose of a window well is to keep the soil from caving in around the window when you build up the soil above window level.

A window well does not have a bottom, the ground on the inside remains below window level and bare.

The only significance of having the window well sides go below the level of the window is because the window well comes in a one size (height) fits all and you position it vertically to look good which is with the rim at or just a few inches above the ground outside it.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

well we finally got rain since i put the window well in, cut the downspout caulked flashing and siding and did a half a-- job of grading but no water in the basement at all!!!!!!:thumbup: i walked outside and even 6 inches away to from the house is dry too!! i hope i may have fixed it. we will see when we get downpours, i know i have to still do a lot of grading and finish it but thats definetly a good sign just by those small fixes it may have fixed it already


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

See how that works when you start with the basics first.
Glad to hear it!


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

Ravenworks said:


> See how that works when you start with the basics first.
> Glad to hear it!


thanks, that is what i was hoping for. is there anything i can do about that bottom block holding water?


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## bbo (Feb 28, 2010)

jhack836 said:


> thanks, that is what i was hoping for. is there anything i can do about that bottom block holding water?


Non invasive? I'd put a dehumidifier by out for a few weeks and se what happens.maybe out just needs to dry out if you have in fact addressed the issues by grading and getting a better run on the roof water


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

bbo said:


> Non invasive? I'd put a dehumidifier by out for a few weeks and se what happens.maybe out just needs to dry out if you have in fact addressed the issues by grading and getting a better run on the roof water


i posted a pic of the bottom block. currently it does look like its drying up but you can still see its holding a little water. its been downpouring for the past few hours and no water at all is coming t hrough the wall!! im sooo happy right now


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## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

There could be an underground void at that corner that fills with water, and some water percolates into the concrete block before it all percolates into the soil below.

You would need to either use extreme measures to reduce ground water from the surface, or dig up the ground and fill that void and backfill the foundation again.


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

AllanJ said:


> There could be an underground void at that corner that fills with water, and some water percolates into the concrete block before it all percolates into the soil below.
> 
> You would need to either use extreme measures to reduce ground water from the surface, or dig up the ground and fill that void and backfill the foundation again.


i will probably keep working on the grading because with all the rain we got this weekend the block never got any darker so that is a good sign


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## Ravenworks (Oct 31, 2010)

:thumbsup:


jhack836 said:


> i will probably keep working on the grading because with all the rain we got this weekend the block never got any darker so that is a good sign


:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

i put a huge fan in front of that bottom block today and let it run on high, the block was all dry. i turned it off for the past 2 hours and i can see small dark wet spots, hopefully it just needs to dry out from all that water down there for the passed year. the house was a forclosure that sat from last jan to sept when i bought it with NO downspouts, the elbows ran straight into the ground and flooded the basement! i did alot of work already on teh house. had to put a new furnace in and 6 glass block windows in teh basement, the old ones were rotted out and some had just that black backer board that had holes in it.


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## jomama45 (Nov 13, 2008)

I could probably write the pre-face to a novel on how water migrates through the interior of a block basement, mortar daming and options to drain the interior cells of block, but it's been a long Spring already. I think you're on the write path with allowing the basement time to dry out & correcting the exterior grade & gutter issues, although I wouldn't be completely surprised if you continue to have issues with that corner in the near future......


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## jhack836 (Feb 11, 2012)

jomama45 said:


> I could probably write the pre-face to a novel on how water migrates through the interior of a block basement, mortar daming and options to drain the interior cells of block, but it's been a long Spring already. I think you're on the write path with allowing the basement time to dry out & correcting the exterior grade & gutter issues, although I wouldn't be completely surprised if you continue to have issues with that corner in the near future......


yea i wouldnt be surprised either but it is a good start, the real tests will be when it downpours for a week straight this summer


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