Basement Drainage Solutions

LESLIE: Norma in Missouri needs some help with a sump pump situation. Tell us what’s going on.

NORMA: OK, there’s pipe all around the outside of the bottom of the basement and the water drains all around the house to a sump pump in the basement.

TOM: Right. Mm-hmm.

NORMA: Then the sump pump pushes it out into the sewer. What can be done so that you don’t have to have a sump pump?

TOM: Well, that’s a good question. Now, the system that you’re describing is called a sub-surface drain system and it’s about as common a system as there is out there. And the reason that most people have basement drainage systems is because they get leakage. But that particular system is not the only way to stop your basement from leaking. It usually comes down to grading and drainage at the foundation perimeter.

LESLIE: Oh, absolutely. I mean there are ways that you can manage it, Norma. You need to think about do you have gutters on the house; are they clean and free-flowing; do you have enough amount of gutters and downspouts to provide sufficient water movement from your roof – you know, it depends on how big your house is; is the grading OK; are you sloping away from the house; is it the right type of grading; is it clean fill dirt or is it potting soil. And there are a lot of things you need to address to get that water out of there so then you don’t need the sump pump.

TOM: On our website at MoneyPit.com, we’ve got lots of advice on how to stop leaky basements; so all the tips and the tricks of the trade are right there. Take a look at that site. Search on fixing a leaky basement and you will find your solution.