Water in basement

Question

I just bought a renovated house and this is the first time I have seen water in basement. Could you give me some reasons why it all of the sudden is doing this?

SLS Construction & Building Solutions LLC · Answer

More rain than normal, sump pump go out, plumbing leak - maybe it has been going on for a while & now it is showing? Hmm is it standing water or just the wall appears damp - you might have to much moisture in the house condensing when it hits the cooler walls down in the basement?

One place to definitely check is your outside grading and around the foundation - it is amazing how many leaky basement issues I have solved with just a little dirt. Also check to make sure your gutters drain water out away from the house.

Ddiane D · Answer

Thanks i will check your suggestions, to bad you are not in atlanta.

Ddiane D · Answer

thank you so much for the suggestions. I hope it is something i can take care of. I don't have the funds for waterproofing right now. ugh

Ddiane D · Answer

@SLS Construction & Building Solutions LLC, I wish you were in atlanta.

Darla · Answer

Sometimes if your gutters get clogged, there is more water right next to the house when it rains. Clearing the gutters may be all you need to do. This happened to us, and that was what stopped the water from coming in.

Ddiane D · Answer

@darla thank you so much i will try that!!

Karen · Answer

Most likely, the builder did not adequately put in drains to steer rain water, etc. away from the foundation of the house. Fix the drainage, solve the problem, no sump pump required! Do it right the 1st time!

Ddiane D · Answer

so true for the builder @karen. I would not recommend buying a house from Harry Cardile to anyone. I have been redoing stuff since I moved in!! His investments house are not what he makes them out to be.

Ddiane D · Answer

I will try all these suggestions out! I thank you all for your help and pray for me to find it soon. I am glad to be a part of such a great homeowner family.

Dedi Davis · Answer

I went to this house several times before purchasing it with the inspector, it was bone dry. i think they both did crappy work! I didn't know what to look for that is the reason for the inspector but he mention several times how dry the basement was even after rains. Something went wrong but i don't know what it is.

Sharon P · Answer

Clean the rain gutters

Ddiane D · Answer

i will try that! thanks @Sharon P

Ddiane D · Answer

Thanks for the answers

Connie Mar · Answer

I'm curious as to how much water - standing water on the entire floor, or just a little in a corner.
We had water in our basement under a plastic surface that had been on the floor for quite a while. Preventing the moisture from evaporating, so it pooled under the plastic. We got rid of the plastic, pulled up the carpet, and let it dry out. If you have a finished basement, it's possible they used materials that create a moisture barrier that allows the water to pool.
Another time we had water in the basement when a pipe outside broke. Check outside to see if there's water/moisture anywhere near the foundation. Check your window wells to make sure they are clear of debris and drain properly. Our corner gutter was clogged once, and water poured into a window well, then into our basement. We cleaned the gutter and then fixed the window well to drain if that ever happens again.
A friend bought a house that got water in the basement every time it rained. She also had it inspected, and not sure how they all missed the water marks on the drywall of all the walls. They ended up having a french drain put in around the house and a sump pump.

Ddiane D · Answer

here are the pictures. no running just standing, it rain acouple of days ago

Kathi S · Answer

We had this problem in one of our homes, and I hate to say this, but we never did conquer it! There may b e a hairline crack where the wall and floor meet. (We discovered several). My DH mounded dirt up around the foundation (outside) and added longer drain pipes to the downspouts. This did help some. We also lived at the bottom of a developed hill and when it rained hard, all the houses at the bottom of the hill got water. Then we found out our house was built over an underground spring, the developers fault. Even tho we told prospective buyers of the problem, one didn't care and paid what we asked for!

Ddiane D · Answer

Thanks @kathi S for the insight. I hope it is not a crack. I will keep praying on that one. what does DH mean?

Carol · Answer

One big thing to check is the dirt around the foundation. It should slope away from the house. Bushes next to the foundation will cause cupping in the dirt and allow water to puddle especially if the gutters are clogged. We had this problem for years around a forsythia bush that was close to the foundation. finally took the bush out and filled the hole and sloped the dirt away. No more problems! Hope this helps!

Pamela Langone · Answer

Foundation cracks. It may look like the inside is patched but the outside may be cracked. By your furnace could be a leak in the furnace. looks old

Teri Shehorn · Answer

We have had our basement flood on occasion, our main issue was the sump pit has a drain and a pump. The drain had tree roots clogging it. Once all this was fixed, we still had puddles occur. We went to our local home improvement center and bought a 5 gallon bucket of waterproofing paint. we went with a more expensive product and asked the advice of a couple people who worked in the paint department. We kept the tint light since it is a basement and ended up putting on 2 good coats using a roller and rolling it out onto the floor 1 foot from the wall. We ended up needing 2 buy 2 more gallons so we stopped the paint at a corner and added the two gallons to the remaining gallon plus to help insure there would be no visible change in color. We let the paint cure properly between coats and any place that did have moisture seeping through we added a coat just in that area prior to the final coat, keeping a small fan running on it so that it would dry and cure. We used hydraulic cement, comes in a small bag to use around any opening that penitrated the block walls. We also painted the floor with a paint that has a sand additive to prevent slipping. Your main water area appears to be around the window. You may need a new window there, or add a drain which means you need a lower area to drain it to. it appears from your photos that a lot of joints have been patched, be sure to do good prep, with a particle mask on, scour the walls with a stiff wire brush. The photo that shows water around the base of a column with wood on the sides, I'd suggest removing the covering to see what is going on under that or it will continue to be damp or leak there. All the suggestions about gutters and drains is great, but with such old walls, rain will raise the water table around your home and the wall will always leak if you don't do some interior work as well. Good luck!

J · Answer

I could not figure out where the H2O was coming from. Everyone I called just wanted to sell me their service without identifying the problem. It wasn't until I was home during a rain storm that I discovered the water was coming in through the window. Because of the window failure I have a musty basement, How do I get rid of the smell?

Jacki Nino · Answer

First make sure that the ground around is pitched away from around your house,if that does not work, try a french drain.Also check and make sure you don't have any foundation issues.

9530106 · Answer

Oh my, I thought I was looking at photos of my basement. My foundation has several cracks, so if there is any measurable amount of rain, it looks just like yours. As Pamela said, you can tell someone has patched them from the inside (probably years ago) just as they did to mine! Unfortunately, it is not an easy fix!

Dedi Davis · Answer

what did you do and how much did it cost, @C_ann_g

9530106 · Answer

Well, I have never had the resources to have it fixed properly, so if we are lucky enough to get rain, I just know there will be water. It was roughly finished years ago, but I just go down there to do laundry. Boy, the plans I HAD when I bought the place!

Water in basement

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Water in basement

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