How to keep the water out of my basement

[LD1]

I didnt see where you actually said, but ARE you getting water in the basement now? or are you just wanting to be proactive?

Not sure how your house was built, but given the lay of the land, that wall should have been parged and had a tar type sealer put on. Then a perimeter drain tile along the foundation and backfilled with stone. IF that were done there would be no leaks.

especially since I know that the water problem is being caused by surface water running down the small slope.

You are making a pretty big assumption here. Given the very wet year we had, surface water may NOT be the cause of your problems.

 

[EddieWalker]

I personally hate french drains and wonder why so many people like them? they are labor intensive to create, they are expensive, and they always fail. Some rather quickly, others take a few years. I also do not like building walls to divert water. Water will always find a way around them and in a few years you just have an ugly wall and the same water problems. The most effective, works every time method for moving water continuously is a ditch. They might look ugly at first, but grass grows back in time and once done, it's done for ever. First thing that I saw is that there is a pine tree in the way of where the ditch needs to go. Remove the tree and anything else in the way of where the water needs to go. Dig it once, do it right, and never mess with it again.

Eddie

 

[s219]

French drains can fail if sand/soil infiltrates the rock, but if you use a proper filter paper, it eliminates that problem.

 

[EddieWalker]

In a perfect world, I would agree. Sadly, if water can get through the filter, so can silt. It's a slow process, but it's a never ending one where the french drain always ends up clogging up. While I understand that there are no absolutes in anything, and there are french drains out there that have lasted for decades, I also know that a lot of them fail the first year. I don't like those odds and when considering a fix for a problem, I want the solution to be the one with the highest odds of long term success.

Eddie

 

[CurlyDave]

I would deal with the gutter first. The picture doesn't really show how much roof it drains, but it looks like the area of the roof has the potential to be as much as the area of the ground between the houses. Plus, this is all water which is already in a downspout and can easily be diverted away.

The cheap & easy way to test this is to get some solid 4" drain pipe and set it up on the surface of the ground to take everything that comes off the roof down toward the shed. If this stops the moisture in the basement issue, you can then burry the pipe and be done with the whole thing. Looks to me like this would be maybe $100 to test. And, you are going to need the pipe to take care of the gutter anyway. The only proper place to divert the water from that gutter and downspout to is downhill from the house.

The pipe is white, is going to look ugly on top of the ground, and will deteriorate from UV in sunlight, but it is only a test.

* * * * *

Before you even think about a swale, french drain, or a ditch, you really need to remove some dirt from around your house. There is a stud wall behind the brick and you need to have at least 6" of foundation above the level of the dirt in order to prevent termites from getting into the stud wall. I know this is going to make getting a proper slope in the earth around the house even harder, but termites are worse than a damp basement.

Plus, this is not a maintenance-free 6" between the earth and the lowest course of bricks. You need to inspect it periodically, keep it free of leaves, pine needles and the debris, and clean off any termite tunnels you see. If it were my house and I saw a termite tunnel, I would get it exterminated.

* * * * *

The third most important thing to do is to establish a surface slope away from the house for at least 3' out from the house. Further would be preferable, but there is a property line in there somewhere. The tree and the heat pump are going to be obstacles, but it looks like you almost have a u-shaped swale started which starts near the house, goes downhill outboard of the heat pump, and then meanders back on the inside of the tree. It is not parallel to the house, but that is not a requirement. This is going to be pick, shovel and wheelbarrow work, but it doesn't look like there is that much dirt to actually move. While you are at it, clear the debris away from the bottom of the heat pump to prevent rust and blockage of the coils. This is also a good time to burry the drain pipe dealing with the water from the gutter and downspout.

* * * * *

If I had to bet on this, I would bet that the gutter and downspout is 80-90% of the problem and a root between the tree and the house has raised the level of the natural drainage and is causing water to pool and go underground, which is the rest of it. Test what you do with a hose. Don't allow water to pool near the base of the tree. If you deal with the pooling, the tree and the downspout it will not cost very much and may pay lots of dividends.

If that doesn't work, then you are looking at more cost and probably a french drain.

 

[MossRoad]

Moss, you getting into the landscape business?

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

Nope. But I am in the "protect my investment from mother nature" business.

My dad was an architect (among other things) and he made a point of showing us kids about things like planning for 100 year rains, etc... we had ivy beds all over our yard. If you ran through them, you'd fall down, because they concealed foot-deep swales to re-direct water across our sloping yard. Also, we lived at the top of a 90' escarpment, along with three other neighbors. The three neighbors graded their lots towards the edge for a better view. My father drained ours away from the edge and put drains in the yard to carry the collected water in pipes down to the bottom of the escarpment. Needless to say, a few time, their yards washed out and down the hill and ours didn't. One of them almost lost their house!

 

[Egon]

Father taught well.

or is it Father Knows Best?

 

[MossRoad]

Father taught well.

or is it Father Knows Best?

Sadly, its father KNEW best, as he passed away a long time ago, as did my mom. However, only good memories.

 

[westcliffe01]

A large diameter culvert is always the best for surface water. A french drain may hold up better if the outflow end does not have any filter media and silt can flow out the way it flows in. Of course you will lose gravel over time so it would need maintenance. Need to be careful regarding who might be on the receiving end of the run off. If the "new" run off that harms another neighbour you could be in trouble.

I put in 2 5" culverts to divert water from the barn roof gutters under the driveway. Also put in a french drain at the lowest point next to the barn wall with a 5' sock in it connected to another 5" culvert so that in particularly heavy downpours water that overflows the gutters goes into the french drain and then into the sock. Soil is all fine clay so water does not penetrate. Combination of the above turned a perpetually waterlogged and rutted driveway and barn apron into an area as hard as concrete. Of course I put down several loads of gravel too. Asthetics were not the prime concern since the gravel of the french drain is piled about 8" higher than the surrounding dirt.

 

[MossRoad]

You could always use one of these....