Correcting basement leaks from subsurface water?

[fallstoclimb]

We bought a house two months ago and twice have had standing water in the unfinished portion of our basement.  The first time, we couldn't tell how it was getting in (didn't find it until the next day after brief very heavy rain), so we just mopped it up, and stupidly did not get a dehumidifier.  Last night we had very brief but very heavy rain again and so kept monitoring the situation.  The walls stayed dry, so its clear that the water is coming up through the basement tiles -- we had a few standing puddles and after mopping it up there was still evidence of water under a few of the tiles. 

Of course we also discovered some mold, so we now have invested in a dehumidifier.  **rolls eyes at self**

So, my question is how can you frugally deal with subsurface water leakage.  We are going to move a downspout away from the house but I am doubtful that will really rectify the situation.  Someone at Lowe's said we could put down self leveling underlayment topped with Drylok, but then sort of backtracked and said what we really need to do is put in a sump pump.  I think we could not DIY the sump pump, though.   

We don't have a lot of money to spend on the situation now but I am looking for kind of a longer term plan....to confuse matters further, the basement tiles are definitely asbestos.  That makes me like the idea of covering them with underlayment (they are cracking in places which is probably fine but still makes me nervous), but I do not know how effective the underlayment + drylok will be when we also have the furnace in that section of the basement and will have to work around that.

Does anyone have experience with this, or advice?

[fiveoclockshadow]

It might help to describe where you live and the soil type.  Also what the surrounding grade is like (e.g. are you on flat ground, at the bottom of a hill, on a ridge).

I dealt with a thankfully rather simple leak in the past year - stupidly located entry conduit for heat exchangers that had cracked filler.  Some genius had located it just a few inches below grade, WTF?  What was amazing was how much water could get in.  When Sandy came through and dropped 5 inches on us I had wet walls and at least 50 sq ft of puddled water soaking carpet and pad.  Fortunately I found it hardly before any power was restored and could get to the rental shop while under carpet blowers and a big dehumidifier were still available.  Was puzzled as wet walls seemed to indicate entry near the top of the foundation wall but the entry conduits for power and phone/cable looked fine and were a few inches above grade.  Later I discovered the idiotic slightly buried entry for gas and heat exchangers.  The exchangers had just been replaced in the past year and when they did that likely it cracked the filler in the conduit.

Anyway, my situation not relevant to yours, but in doing research on what might be happening to me it became very clear that the first line of defense is always proper grading around your house, functioning rain gutters and drain pipes running at least 7 or 8 feet away from your down spouts.  If you don't have that then it is likely any sort of sealing fix with be only temporary.  The lower the leak the greater the potential hydrostatic pressure to force water in - best defense is to make sure there is no water against your foundation to begin with.  So I would recommend implementing that first as it is completely DIY and inexpensive.  Get out your umbrella and galoshes and the next storm you have spend it outside watching what is happening with surface water around your house.  The heavier the rain the easier it will be to find places you need to improve.

Best of luck!

[Micheal]

Couple of things to do.  First and foremost, make sure that the water runs away from your foundation, make sure all drain pipes come out at least a few feet from the foundation and your gutters are clean and maintained, and that the ground slopes in a direction that would let water run away from the foundation, a quick rental of a bobcat will make this easy, and you might as well do some landscaping while you have it :).  The cheaper and more temporary fix is to dig a 3' wide x 3' deep trench along the problem area, line the bottom with gravel, and getting drainage pipe (you can buy this or make it by drilling many holes into 3" abs pipe)and laying it along the trench.  Then dig a trench that slopes down from the bottom of the other trench away from the house lay drainage pipe along it, connect the pipes together, and cover it up with more gravel (make sure the gravel is large enough not to go through the holes in the pipe) then cover with soil and it will work for a while at least.  The thing not to do is try to water seal the floor of the basement as this will lead to water buildup and cause major problems including foundation cracking, and causing the ground under the home to become unstable.  Be sure to check the building codes for your area, as their may be requirements you have to follow and if you don't will bite you in the ass if you try to sell later.

Edit:  Just reread your post and noticed you have tile in your basement.  If there was plastic water barrier run under the tiles this can cause a water buildup via condensation as well especially during a rain.  Also if you dig anywhere in your yard call to make sure that you do not hit any pipes or buried cables as this could kill you or cause you a vast loss of money.

[GuitarStv]

Aside from the good recommendations for grading/gutters away from the house and trying to direct water away from your foundations, it really sounds like you need a sump pump.  What you're describing is exactly what they're designed for.  If your basement floor is below the water level after a rain, no amount of water proofing will work as a long term solution.  Concrete is porous.  The constant pressure from the ground water will find a way into your basement.

[Micheal]

To install a sump pump you really just need t dig a hole.  Ok its a little more involved than that.  First Buy a sump pump.  They are not too bad at your local Hardware or Big Box store, and plug inot any handy outlet.  Dig a pit at the lowest part of the basement, about twice as deep as the pump, and about 3footx3foot wide.  line with concrete, put two bricks at the bottom, spaced so the inlet is unobstructed.  Run the hose up the wall and outside, or into the sewer (depends on where you live).  Plug in and your done.  Check your building codes, and you may need to rent a jackhammer, but its about an afternoons worth of work, rental fees, 1 pump, and 1 bag of concrete, and a lot of sweat.

[stinkindog]

My basement still leaks after 20k of work. My house was built in the 50's so there was no waterproofing at all on the block walls of the basement. Luckily the water came in only after the ground was thoroughly saturated- but it still came in and made for very unpleasant smells and mold.

I had to dig out 3 walls all the way to the footer and repair all of the cracks in the block. Then it was waterproofed with spray and a membrane over that. Gravel was poured in the bottom of the trench and then black pipe was laid and straw was put on top as a filter.  (You're getting the cliff notes here. It took a LONG time to get all of this completed and the vibration from the backhoe trying to shake the rock loose cracked some of the seams in the drywall. Fun all around! )
All of this helped, but since I live on good old Kentucky limestone it was merely a very expensive band aid. I no longer have it pouring in like a fountain but I still get water seeping up through the floor. I can divert water away from the foundation as much as I want but that is never going to fix this problem. Water will find it's way through all of the rock and into my basement.

It may be that pumping the water out is all you can do, but you really have to find the source of the leak to make that determination. Frugality is always a goal but money spent now can save you much more later. I get quite a bit of rain here so I had to fix mine but how much you do could depend on your average annual rainfall.

Was this not disclosed when you bought the home? Was it inspected before you bought it?  If not, is there any recourse?

[SnackDog]

If it was not disclosed and the previous owner lived there, you might need an attorney.

[GuitarStv]

Our house had undisclosed basement leaks that the home inspection didn't turn up.  Our attorney told us that we would lose in a lawsuit as we didn't specifically ask the seller in writing about leaks in the basement (if we had, and they had lied we would have had recourse).  Caveat emptor.

The good news is, installing a sump shouldn't be a particularly expensive job.

[fallstoclimb]

Whoa, for serious?  You have to specifically ask in writing about leaks?  What is the point of seller disclosures if they don't actually have to disclose?  We actually did ask our realtor if we had any recourse and she forwarded my question to the real estate lawyer (supposedly) but I never heard back. 

We had an inspection but it didn't turn up anything since it was dry.  I live in MD, and we have had an unusually rainy spring. I'm hoping it won't usually be this bad but stinkdog I'm afraid we're gonna end up with a situation like yours....house was built in 55, so no proper waterproofing I assume.  Has a sumppump not helped you? 

[swiper]

Whoa, for serious?  You have to specifically ask in writing about leaks?  What is the point of seller disclosures if they don't actually have to disclose?  We actually did ask our realtor if we had any recourse and she forwarded my question to the real estate lawyer (supposedly) but I never heard back. 

We had an inspection but it didn't turn up anything since it was dry.  I live in MD, and we have had an unusually rainy spring. I'm hoping it won't usually be this bad but stinkdog I'm afraid we're gonna end up with a situation like yours....house was built in 55, so no proper waterproofing I assume.  Has a sumppump not helped you?

An inspector should be able to find signs of subsurface water intrusion even if it is currently dry: Efflorescence on floors/walls and rust/marks around metal jack posts. We faced/are facing similar issues in our current home. I'd look at the following options (in order)

• Proper downspout placement, which puts water away from foundation
• Ensure eavestroughs are free flowing
• Ensure grading around property slopes away from foundation
• Look into building outdoor french drains if you have pooling water (if you have clay soil &|| grading problems)
• Sump pit

Is your home hooked up to city storm sewer? Is this connection working? Normally the weeping tiles under your home should discharge into the storm sewer system, so the water has a place to go. In the country where no storm sewers exist, many people have sump pits to collect the water and pump it away (into ditch or down a hill). On my property I added an "exterior" sump pit which collects water from the footers and pumps it away, added a picture for fun

[stinkindog]

Moisture is my main problem now. Standing water still occurs when we have higher than normal rainfall (like now!) so I don't see the need for the expense and ordeal of putting in a sump pump just yet. If I keep the floor cleared and use the dehumidifier clean up isn't nearly as bad as it once was.