Author Topic: Basement water seeping? Please Help!  (Read 3699 times)

swick

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Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« on: June 22, 2015, 10:47:14 PM »
Hi everyone!
we have had some water... seeping? in the our cold room and we are not sure what we can do about it. There doesn't seem to be any cracks in the foundation or any other obvious source of water. It isn't running down the walls or anything...just seems to be wet floor.

Was hoping the collective wisdom of the DIY MMM community could take a look at a couple of pictures and let us know if you have any ideas. Not sure if it is something we need to get fixed or can do it ourselves - or what questions we should be asking.

Thanks for your time!
« Last Edit: June 22, 2015, 10:56:26 PM by swick »

MDM

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #1 on: June 22, 2015, 11:15:34 PM »
You might start at the roof: are you collecting all the rain that falls there and discharging it well away from the house?

E.g., do you have unobstructed gutters around the perimeter, and downspout extensions going a decent (6 feet?) distance away from the foundation?  And does the ground slope away from the foundation so the water doesn't run back toward the house anywhere?

There could be much more to the situation but those are some things to check.

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #2 on: June 23, 2015, 07:04:05 AM »
How old is your house? I have a thin layer of concrete over plain dirt, and water seeps through the floor all the time.

fiftyincher

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #3 on: June 23, 2015, 07:08:56 AM »
What MDM said. We have a fieldstone basement and if the gutters are clogged, the basement gets wet. I'd start with the gutters/getting water away from the house and slope. It's the easiest.

swick

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #4 on: June 23, 2015, 07:32:58 AM »
Thanks everyone, we'll pop up and take a look at the gutters.

Roof was replace within the last two years. The home inspection that was done when we bought it in Dec and didn't note any major concerns, and it was done by someone who has built his entire reputation on being nit-picky....but it was in December. The house is a 1940's build.

 He did note that we should remove all of the flower beds that are up against the house. We have been working on that...not sure what to fill them with now that all the plant material has been removed.

If anyone else has any ideas or things to consider that would be awesome!  We're discovering how little we actually know, being first-timers.

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #5 on: June 23, 2015, 07:50:55 AM »
Do you now have a dip in the topography where the flower beds used to be? That would cause water to pool.

swick

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #6 on: June 23, 2015, 07:56:15 AM »
Do you now have a dip in the topography where the flower beds used to be? That would cause water to pool.

I don't think so, we haven't removed anything from that side of the house. Most of the basment other then the cold room and hallway to a workshop has been converted to an inlaw suite. When they did it they put in a sub floor with venting to keep everything dry and air flowing. Haven't noticed any issues with the rest of the basement...other then there seems to be a very high number of spiders and wood bugs finding their way into the basement.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #7 on: June 23, 2015, 10:01:19 AM »
Does your basement have a sump pump?  Was it built with a drain tile and gravel around the foundation?

swick

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #8 on: June 23, 2015, 10:45:46 AM »
Does your basement have a sump pump?  Was it built with a drain tile and gravel around the foundation?

Honestly, I'm not sure...where would we find the sump pump, if there is one?

Really, it is not a lot of water - we just don't want a bigger problem on our hands.

zolotiyeruki

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #9 on: June 23, 2015, 09:17:25 PM »
Usually sump pumps are in a corner of the basement.  They're hard to miss, since they usually sit in a hole about 24" across and 24" deep.

archben82

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Re: Basement water seeping? Please Help!
« Reply #10 on: June 26, 2015, 08:06:59 AM »
So I agree with the earlier post.  In situations like this eliminate the easy stuff first and work towards bigger issues.  So check that downspouts are not clogged, that splash blocks are installed below them, and that water is directed away from the foundation.  All soil around the house, including flowerbeds needs to slope away from the house.  If all that checks out OK, then it's probably a foundation drainage issue.  Have you had a lot of rain recently?  The water table could be elevated if you have, and then imagine all that water (hydro-static) pressure pressing in on the foundation.  If you have the proper drain tile/ gravel around the perimeter of the foundation then that pressure is relieved and the water gets drained away, if not, well you can get water in your house.  Water can also force its way up through the floor as your photos show.  As you can imagine, if the foundation drainage is not adequate or there to begin with it could be costly to fix, but definitely work on all means to divert water away from the house first as this can make a huge, and sometimes all, the difference.