Looking for words of wisdom on effective drainage systems to retrofit a new construction home. We have a full basement with all sorts of problems with the walls & slab floor – cold joints, rock pockets, no gravel or vapor barrier under slab. When it rains for a few days we’ll have 1″ standing water in our “new” basement/pool. Have received 2 quotes on internal & external systems plus one on drilling/injecting sealant every 6″ or so. thanks
Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Up Next
Video Shorts
Featured Story
By considering things like energy-efficient mechanicals, window orientation, and renewable energy sources, homes can be evaluated to meet the energy codes. Here's what the IRC has to say.
Featured Video
SawStop's Portable Tablesaw is Bigger and Better Than BeforeHighlights
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Replies
Have you thought of putting a horse's head in the builder's bed one night? Maybe a horse's a$$ would be more appropriate.
Short of removing the slab and doing it correctly you probably will have long term problems. If there is no gravel under the slab I'm guessing there is no drain tile and the pour along the foundation is so thick removal is not an option. This would also eliminate interior mitigation.
Without a vapor barrier expect to run a dehumidifier full time spinning the elec meter like the money wheel at the carnival and you are always the loser.
Here's hoping you didn't go for the big cheap house. There is a reason you get more house for the money, you get the problems of cheap construction.
On the bright side maybe you could raise trout down their for stocking the local stream and get a tax break.
Edited 10/1/2002 9:52:44 PM ET by GEOB21
Sounds like the best quick fix would be to return to the old days and build a sump pump. Cut a hole in the lowest point of the slab, dig down, gravel, insert tile, place pump and run pipeline up and out away from the house. Designate basement as utility area only, vapor barrier between basement and first floor. Keep plenty of air flow down there, a dehumidifier, a wood burner for the winter to help keep'er dry and the idea of a horse's head was a good one.
Half of good living is staying out of bad situations.
Forget the primal scream, just Roar!
Start with the basics: where is the water coming from: do you have a full gutter system with downspouts at least 10' long? Is the soil positively sloped away from the house?
On a 30x40 house, about 840 gals will come off of the roof. If you don't get that past the foundation overdig area, it'll end up around the foundation and then in the basement.
You get about the same amount in the 6' perimeter around the house.
As a general rule, interior treaments treat the symptoms, not the problem.
There might lso be a problem under the slab, depending on your ocal water table height.
Bob Walker is right on - Start with the basics. Get the ground water away from the house.
Do you seriously have a basement with no sumo and no floor drains? Can't imagine that. But I don't see how else you could get an inch of standing water otherwise.
What about your drain tiles around the footings? Are there any there?
Political speeches should be like pizza - Delivered in 30 minutes or less.
thanks for all the feedback. A few more details: there are exterior drain tiles around the footings - but there are not any drain tiles inside the footings/under the slab. What is standard practice? The exterior grading is not yet complete & there are a couple low spots and areas that drain toward the house. The gutter system & drain tile systems are tied together & flow into the storm drainage system (~3000 gal!) Don't know if having the systems tied together causes a bottleneck during heavy rain. Something else that may be adding to the problem - the house is built on a slight slope around 8 degrees. Drain tiles on the uphill side are 5-6 feet higher than the drain tiles on the downhill side. Seems this may be causing added water pressure under the slab which is level with the downhill side.