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How bad is this? (Moderated by Deepika, EleanorSews)
Posted on: 7/24/08 12:08 PM ET
So, we had a torrential downpour last night and I got water in my basement from two sources.
One from my basement window wells. They are old and wooded and not really sealed so I think that's to be expected.
While my sump pump kicked on in the front basement area, I did get water in the back basement along an interior wall I share with a neighbor (whose basement regularly floods) and one exterior wall.
My basement hasn't flooded/ gotten water in years. Is it common to get water in your basement when there is excessive rain, or should I be concerned that *any* rain came in?
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One from my basement window wells. They are old and wooded and not really sealed so I think that's to be expected.
While my sump pump kicked on in the front basement area, I did get water in the back basement along an interior wall I share with a neighbor (whose basement regularly floods) and one exterior wall.
My basement hasn't flooded/ gotten water in years. Is it common to get water in your basement when there is excessive rain, or should I be concerned that *any* rain came in?
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www.missceliespants.com
Posted on: 7/24/08 12:32 PM ET
You should be concerned about ANY water that comes in. You need to fix your windows ASAP.
There are some companies that specialize in drying basements. They can seal the walls, so you won't get water in from your neighbors. Not cheap, though. One of the joys of home ownership
If you continue to get water in your home, you will (WILL) end up with a mold problem. Where ever its leaking/seaping in from will stay wet much longer than the visible floor. Your house will start smelling damp and you will loose all that space as storage.
I know, probably not what you want to hear.
There are some companies that specialize in drying basements. They can seal the walls, so you won't get water in from your neighbors. Not cheap, though. One of the joys of home ownership

If you continue to get water in your home, you will (WILL) end up with a mold problem. Where ever its leaking/seaping in from will stay wet much longer than the visible floor. Your house will start smelling damp and you will loose all that space as storage.
I know, probably not what you want to hear.
Posted on: 7/24/08 12:37 PM ET
In reply to MissCelie
Sorry to hear about your water problems.
I am by no means an expert on basement water issues but we've had to deal with a few of them since moving into our new home seven years ago. We did not have it built for us but we bought it new.
Our basement is not finished -- we only have studs, insulation and a vapour barrier. We had water in one corner seeping in whenever we got a significant rain -- I don't know the techical name for it but there are some kind of ties that are put in when they pour the cement and that's where the seepage was. It was in an area under where our back deck is. Turns out that the builder (don't get me started on them) didn't properly grade the dirt under the deck -- we fixed that when we dug the hole for our patio base. Have not had any problems since and will now be sealing all those "concrete tie" areas before we finish the basement -- water free for 5 years so we're good to go and shouldn't have any more problems that way.
We almost had a disaster two weekends ago when our sump pump seized (sp) up but luckily we caught it before it resulted in water in the basement and have since replaced the sump pump. My understanding (and I could be wrong) is that the sump pump when working properly should assist in water drainage by pumping the water away from the foundation all around the house.
My daughter and son-in-law had a huge water problems several years ago and had to have the earth dug up along one wall and part of a second wall to have a crack in the foundation fixed and their weeping tile replaced. They've been problem free since then.
I would definitely be concerned with any water coming in -- water soaking into flooring or drywall, etc. can result in mold problems which can lead to health problems. We have had some torrential downpours here over the past couple of years (one that resulted in a flowing river down one of the side streets that had sufficient strength to push a small car down the road -- we don't have any rivers close by from that direction). We also have an area between our house and the neighbour to the north which is almost like a small drainage ditch. That can be overflowing and we still don't get water in our basement.
Perhaps you can have someone come in and take a look at things and give you an idea of where the water is coming from. Quite often they will do free estimates (at least they do here).
Good luck with your water issues. Basement flooding is a huge fear of mine since I store all my overstock of fabric and finished products down there on shelving units and in rubbermaid containers.
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I am by no means an expert on basement water issues but we've had to deal with a few of them since moving into our new home seven years ago. We did not have it built for us but we bought it new.
Our basement is not finished -- we only have studs, insulation and a vapour barrier. We had water in one corner seeping in whenever we got a significant rain -- I don't know the techical name for it but there are some kind of ties that are put in when they pour the cement and that's where the seepage was. It was in an area under where our back deck is. Turns out that the builder (don't get me started on them) didn't properly grade the dirt under the deck -- we fixed that when we dug the hole for our patio base. Have not had any problems since and will now be sealing all those "concrete tie" areas before we finish the basement -- water free for 5 years so we're good to go and shouldn't have any more problems that way.
We almost had a disaster two weekends ago when our sump pump seized (sp) up but luckily we caught it before it resulted in water in the basement and have since replaced the sump pump. My understanding (and I could be wrong) is that the sump pump when working properly should assist in water drainage by pumping the water away from the foundation all around the house.
My daughter and son-in-law had a huge water problems several years ago and had to have the earth dug up along one wall and part of a second wall to have a crack in the foundation fixed and their weeping tile replaced. They've been problem free since then.
I would definitely be concerned with any water coming in -- water soaking into flooring or drywall, etc. can result in mold problems which can lead to health problems. We have had some torrential downpours here over the past couple of years (one that resulted in a flowing river down one of the side streets that had sufficient strength to push a small car down the road -- we don't have any rivers close by from that direction). We also have an area between our house and the neighbour to the north which is almost like a small drainage ditch. That can be overflowing and we still don't get water in our basement.
Perhaps you can have someone come in and take a look at things and give you an idea of where the water is coming from. Quite often they will do free estimates (at least they do here).
Good luck with your water issues. Basement flooding is a huge fear of mine since I store all my overstock of fabric and finished products down there on shelving units and in rubbermaid containers.
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Sheila
"sewing very slowly to fill an empty closet"
Stash Tally: net +46.375 yds (2014 to 2020); net +48.0 (2021); net +57.125 (2022); net +109.875 (2023)- Stash Tally 2024: 77.5 yds out/90.375 yds in (net + 12.875 yds)
2025 Stash Busting:
0 yds sewn (as of 01/01/25)
0 yds purchased/received (as of 01/01/25)
"sewing very slowly to fill an empty closet"
Stash Tally: net +46.375 yds (2014 to 2020); net +48.0 (2021); net +57.125 (2022); net +109.875 (2023)- Stash Tally 2024: 77.5 yds out/90.375 yds in (net + 12.875 yds)
2025 Stash Busting:
0 yds sewn (as of 01/01/25)
0 yds purchased/received (as of 01/01/25)
Posted on: 7/24/08 7:28 PM ET
In reply to MissCelie
Does your neighbor have a sump pump for their water/flooding? Perhaps it did not function last night.
Could there be a clogged gutter or downspout that spilled over next to the foundation?
Any landscaping or construction done lately that created a new diversion for the rain water?
Ideally one should never have water in their basement. That said, some homes end up with moisture and/or water coming in, depending on a lot of varying factors, not always the builder's fault.
Good luck! I hope you find the source and can get it fixed.
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Could there be a clogged gutter or downspout that spilled over next to the foundation?
Any landscaping or construction done lately that created a new diversion for the rain water?
Ideally one should never have water in their basement. That said, some homes end up with moisture and/or water coming in, depending on a lot of varying factors, not always the builder's fault.
Good luck! I hope you find the source and can get it fixed.
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iPad's auto-correct is my enema.
Posted on: 7/24/08 9:57 PM ET
In reply to MissCelie
Well we had a flooded basement and garage last winter after we got a foot of snow then temps went up and it all melted in 8 hours. Water poured down our driveway into the garage and basement.
We filed an insurance claim ($500.00) deductible, as carpets, furniture and a quite a few personal goods were soaked. We did learn a few things.
1: Outside water is considered to be dirty and no attempt is make to salvage soft goods. (if it had been a burst pipe they would have cleaned and dried the carpets and furniture).
2: It is a huge job to dry a basement even with the carpets removed. It took a couple weeks.
3: If mold had set into the walls we would have had to have everything ripped out to the studs. We were lucky.
We live in an area that gets lots of rain, we do not get water ingress from rainfall not matter how heavy. If you are getting water coming in during a rainfall there is something wrong with your drainage system.
If your neighbours basement floods regularly and they have not solved the problem there could already be mold in your shared walls. You need to have that checked as black mold is a serious health threat.
And why on earth have your neighbours not done something about the flooding in their place?
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We filed an insurance claim ($500.00) deductible, as carpets, furniture and a quite a few personal goods were soaked. We did learn a few things.
1: Outside water is considered to be dirty and no attempt is make to salvage soft goods. (if it had been a burst pipe they would have cleaned and dried the carpets and furniture).
2: It is a huge job to dry a basement even with the carpets removed. It took a couple weeks.
3: If mold had set into the walls we would have had to have everything ripped out to the studs. We were lucky.
We live in an area that gets lots of rain, we do not get water ingress from rainfall not matter how heavy. If you are getting water coming in during a rainfall there is something wrong with your drainage system.
If your neighbours basement floods regularly and they have not solved the problem there could already be mold in your shared walls. You need to have that checked as black mold is a serious health threat.
And why on earth have your neighbours not done something about the flooding in their place?
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Living life to the fullest.
Who knew being a Granny was the best thing ever?
Who knew being a Granny was the best thing ever?
Posted on: 7/25/08 8:02 AM ET
In reply to MissCelie
The house we bought had water in basement issues the first winter we were in it. We tried to keep up with the issues by moving everything up on blocks and using portable pumps and pushing water toward the drains on those times that heavy rains forced the water up through the cracks in the basement concrete. After a few years of that and one Christmas season of particularly heavy rain which caused me to spend a full 24 hours manning the pumps, I call a company called B-Dry. It is one of those nationally franchised companies that specializes in wet basement problems. I also called three other companies of a similar type, but settled on B-Dry to do the job. They came in with a crew of guys and dug a perimeter around the entire interior of the basement and laid drain pipe inside the hole and connected it to a drain which takes any accumulated water back outside to get rid of it. In the three years since we have had the work done, there has not been a drop of water inside the basement and I no longer get cold sweats whenever it rains. I have some experience in the home construction business, and I kept an eye on what they were doing and they performed the whole job as specified and did it within the specified time frame and quoted price. I would recommend contacting a number of these types of companies in your area and getting competitive bids and go with the one you feel is best for your situation. I chose B-dry and have been satisfied with their work, at least here in North Central Ohio. I am not affiliated with them in any way, just a satisfied customer. It wasn't cheap, about $5000 if I remember right, but it was worth every penny not to have to be down there and fighting mother nature during every heavy rain. Just remember, water is supposed to stay outside the house. If it gets inside, it's called a swimming pool.
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Posted on: 7/25/08 11:00 AM ET
In reply to neither
The work you had done is what we call French Drains in our area. If Cidell is in a townhouse/condo, the entire building needs to be treated and then the Homeowners Association should (hopefully) be the one to do it. If the neighbor doesn't care (and many don't) then Cidell is up the creek without a paddle. No pun intended.
I know some people who had French drains installled and they still had problems. The lived on the bottom of a slope. A codes dept. engineer said that with enough rain, the water will travel downhill under the soil and come in between the footings and foundation in spite of the French Drains and waterproofing. Sump pump was the answer in that case.
Cidell, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. Perhaps the HOA will look into it. Take lots of photos... and be sure the date is included in the picture.... to document this.
-- Edited on 7/25/08 11:01 AM --
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I know some people who had French drains installled and they still had problems. The lived on the bottom of a slope. A codes dept. engineer said that with enough rain, the water will travel downhill under the soil and come in between the footings and foundation in spite of the French Drains and waterproofing. Sump pump was the answer in that case.
Cidell, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. Perhaps the HOA will look into it. Take lots of photos... and be sure the date is included in the picture.... to document this.
-- Edited on 7/25/08 11:01 AM --
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iPad's auto-correct is my enema.
Posted on: 7/25/08 1:36 PM ET
In reply to Doris W. in TN
I used to call French drains those that surrounded the outside of the house around the perimeter. The ones I had done were around the interior of the perimeter and solved the problem of the outside the foundation drains by accepting the fact that the waters path would eventually pass under the foundation and stopping it once it went under the foundation by placing it within the interior perimeter and then discharging it back into the exterior drain/sewer system for the whole house. We have had some Frog Strangler Rainfall this year and nary a drop has emerged from the system that we had done. It has been 4 years since we had the work done and I think we have solved the problem for all time. While we don't live at the bottom of a slope, we do live on the side of a slope and there is a serious amount of water that passes our way. The major problem we had was when the ground was covered in snow, frozen in winter and then it rained on top of that. That is the most adverse conditions for this kind of problem and not a drop has ever appeared, since we had the work done. The same thing could be done in her situation around the interior perimeter and then it wouldn't matter what the neighbor did or didn't do. I still think she should get in some professionals in her area and explore all the possibilities, as water within the basement is something that makes the house deteriorate over time and must be disclosed on any home sale or the seller is liable for the cost of fixing it ,if the new purchaser can prove that the previous owner knew about it.
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Posted on: 7/25/08 4:18 PM ET
In reply to MissCelie
I live in the same area as you and we also got flooding even though we usually don't. I think it was too much rain in too short a time. Our sump pump was working overtime and then it clogged. So I had to unclogged lest our whole basement flood. Our water came in from the doorway. That was some storm.
Posted on: 7/25/08 5:38 PM ET
Cidell,
You really have to worry about mold -- it's an incredible health threat. Besides fixing up what needs to be fixed so this doesn't happen again, throw away EVERYTHING that got wet.
We just went thru this last month and the rate of mold growth in only a few days was incredible. Unfortunately, we had to call out the specialists who deal w this stuff and it was $3500!! Uninsured! You need flood insurance AND sewer back-up insurance.
Sorry you had to go thru this, but get on top of it as fast as you can.
Nina
You really have to worry about mold -- it's an incredible health threat. Besides fixing up what needs to be fixed so this doesn't happen again, throw away EVERYTHING that got wet.
We just went thru this last month and the rate of mold growth in only a few days was incredible. Unfortunately, we had to call out the specialists who deal w this stuff and it was $3500!! Uninsured! You need flood insurance AND sewer back-up insurance.
Sorry you had to go thru this, but get on top of it as fast as you can.
Nina
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