Arrrrrgggggghhhhhh! Water!

[Monkeyleg]

We've had a problem with a leaky basement ever since we moved in. There's a room under the back porch that had  blocks that had shifted so much you could see the house next door between the cracks. We had the room rebuilt from the foundation up. Of course, the bozo who did the work didn't tell me that there was no drain tile around the room at the foundation. So, for 17 years, we've had water leaking into that room.

We're selling next year, so I figured we'd better take care of that leak, as well as some other areas in the basement where water gets in during particularly heavy rains. We had new interior drain tile and a sump pump installed.

We still got water in the room under the porch, and in the northwest corner of the basement.

So, I had a couple of guys tear up the back and side yards the last few days, re-grade the soil, and put down sod. So far there's no water or even dampness near the walls, or where the floor meets the walls.

There is, however, a drip from the underside of the porch into the room under the porch. I have no idea how it's getting in, but here's some ideas:

1. Perhaps a tiny gap between the porch and the brick of the house?

2. A gap between the porch and the sidewalk?

3. Possibly a gap between the porch and the step up to the house? (The step is the original; the porch was poured around it).

4. Something else?

Every time we've fixed one problem, the water has just found another way in. I'm about ready to scream.

Suggestions much appreciated.

[41magsnub]

burn it...  collect insurance!

[KD5NRH]

There is, however, a drip from the underside of the porch into the room under the porch.

Have you tried applying a 1" layer of silicone caulk to the porch?  I had a Datsun pickup where they'd done that to keep the window from leaking.  The softball sized lump plugging a half-inch hole in the floorboard was a bit weird, though.

[Monkeyleg]

Believe me, I've considered lighting a match.

Have you tried applying a 1" layer of silicone caulk to the porch?

I want to get the house ready to put on the market, not have it condemned.

I'm going to try going around the different sides of the porch with a hose until I see water coming in. I suspect the leak is from one of the seams between the house, sidewalk or step and the porch. Or maybe I'll just fill all of those seams with caulk.

[AJ Dual]

Believe me, I've considered lighting a match.

I want to get the house ready to put on the market, not have it condemned.

I'm going to try going around the different sides of the porch with a hose until I see water coming in. I suspect the leak is from one of the seams between the house, sidewalk or step and the porch. Or maybe I'll just fill all of those seams with caulk.

If you do, make sure you get foam backer rod in the right size, and use black exterior silicone caulk. The carbon-black in the black caulk gives it UV resistance.

[coppertales]

I had a similar situation with a former house.  The soil was rather sandy so I got some clay soil and but 6 inches down that extended 3 feet out from the house.  Fixed the problem.  You can get water sealing basement paint too.  That worked in another house I had....chris3

[Harold Tuttle]

paint on the inside is not nearly as good as tar on the outside

[mellestad]

burn it...  collect insurance!

Or as I like to call it, "Plan A". (I suck at home repairs)

[Nick1911]

Or as I like to call it, "Plan A". (I suck at home repairs)

Wow, if that's Plan A, what's Plan B?   

[MicroBalrog]

Wow, if that's Plan A, what's Plan B?   

Something involving taking .308s to the chest, I suppose?

[mellestad]

Something involving taking .308s to the chest, I suppose?

Plan A) Burn your house to avoid repairing it
Plan B) Get shot in the chest

Am I missing something?

[lupinus]

Plan A) Burn your house to avoid repairing it
Plan B) Get shot in the chest

Am I missing something?

Duct tape, your tactical wheelbarrow, and repeating your mantra that the gun is good and the penis is evil

[280plus]

I had Plan B as nuke the house from orbit. Hope this helps. If you need a nuke try the Iranians, I hear they may have a few they're trying to get rid of.

[S. Williamson]

Arrrrrgggggghhhhhh! Water!

 

[seeker_two]

Duct tape, your tactical wheelbarrow, and repeating your mantra that the gun is good and the penis is evil

....don't forget the knee-high boots...the whole thing falls apart without the boots....

[Monkeyleg]

Witches aside, the problem persists. When I had my two brothers-in-law do the soil and sodding, I told them to grade the soil on either side of the porch away from the porch and the house, lay down two layers of 6 mil plastic going right up to the porch and house, apply a non-drying asphalt-based adhesive to attach the plastic to the porch and house, then put down topsoil and the sod.

The BIL who was doing the work around the porch didn't use the adhesive. I asked him why, and he said there wasn't time. He knows everything, and he said that the weight of the soil would press the plastic against the porch and house.

Anywho, I tested the porch with a hose, and if I run water alongside the porch, it drips in the room under the porch. It even gets in enough that a couple of blocks get damp inside the room. I think that plastic should be adhered to the stoop as I told BIL. 

After they "finished" the job, a Mexican guy came around to trim several bushes in the yard. He did a great job, and he didn't even tell me why it wasn't necessary for him to do what I told him, unlike a certain BIL I know. I should have hired him to do the sod.

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

....don't forget the knee-high boots...the whole thing falls apart without the boots....

No. Thigh-high boots.

See?

[RaspberrySurprise]

Nah, those arn't quite thigh high.

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

Nah, those arn't quite thigh high.

Whatever the technical term, they still make all the difference.

[seeker_two]

Whatever the technical term, they still make all the difference.

Agreed....just think of how he'd look WITHOUT the boots....

[Regolith]

You could always put plastic down, increase the leak and then advertise it as an "indoor pool." 

[Monkeyleg]

You could always put plastic down, increase the leak and then advertise it as an "indoor pool."

Maybe I should do like a Vietnamese family did here in Milwaukee several years back. They filled the basement of their rented home with water, and then stocked it with fish.

[Chrissy]

I kept getting floods in my basement many years ago.  Had professionals put in a drainage system.  It ended up there were underground springs under the house.  They made a trench around the perimeter of the basement (on the inside), put rocks in the trench for drainage and installed irrigation pipes sending the water from under the house toward the brook that surrounds our house.  I've never had a problem since and have even hosed down my entire basement swooshing the water into the trench that you can see on the inside of the basement.  It's the greatest thing and I've never had a problem since.  Only thing is it costs a few thousand dollars.  But it was definitely worth it to me, as many things were damaged with the floods I kept getting.  If you're trying to sell your house, it may be worth it for you to do the same.


 

[Harold Tuttle]

[Monkeyleg]

I know we don't have a spring running under our house. Just about every house in our neighborhood has basement problems. It's the nature of the area.

I had new interior drain tile and a sump pump installed, and now have the yard graded. That's solved 99.9% of the problem. This last leak is a drip from the ceiling (the porch slab) of the room under the back porch. I'm certain that if I get the plastic sheeting properly attached to the porch slab, the dripping will be gone.

And what's with you guys and that picture of Sean Connery in high boots and a diaper? You're weird.