Basement Leak :(

Parent Cafe
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<p>My house was built in 2001, and I am the original owner. This spring I have found a leak in my unfinished basement. It appears to be right along the base of the basement wall (which I believe is poured concrete). Poured, I might add, on a very rainy day during a very wet spring back in 2001.</p>

<p>I had a leak a couple of years ago on the same wall but about 15 feet away; when we cut away the plastic covering the insulation and peeled back the insulation, there was a crack several feet long running vertically down the wall. The builder had someone come and “fill” it, and I have not had a problem there since.</p>

<p>This leak first appeared this spring (I think in March). But I wasn’t sure it was from the outside, I thought maybe the dehumidifier leaked. So I got some little moisture detecters, set them right against the wall, and last week they went off and I found just water along the wall. So this time I cut back the plastic and peeled away the insulation, but can see no crack. I think the water is coming in right at the base of the wall. I took photos, and contacted my builder. He couldn’t come last week, but it is leaking this morning (raining), so I asked him to come today.</p>

<p>But there is another factor here. I noticed when the snow melted away a few weeks ago (and we live far north, so it was only a few weeks ago) that on the outside wall of the house (I would say about 6 feet from the inside leak location), there is a hole in the dirt right up against the house. Maybe 4-5 inches across, and it goes straight down into darkness. I thought maybe some animal had burrowed (although did not see any prints all winter, and I think it was probably snowcovered anyway). The hole was definitely not there in the fall, it is right by the garage door and in an area I have to weed pretty often, so I would have seen it. I have been meaning to dump a bag of sand from my garage into it to fill it, but did not try it until this morning. A whole bag of sand went in, and although I can see the sand pooling at the bottom, clearly this is a bigger hole than I thought, because apparently the sand spread out down there or something because it really didn’t “fill” the hole at all.</p>

<p>There are no gutters/eavestroughs on my house at all. The builder said we didn’t really need them if the grading was done properly, and we live on a hill. It is a custom-built home, has a pretty good overhang from the roof outward. I just looked outside (still raining), and this is not a spot where the roof runoff hits. It could trickle there, but it does not hit directly on or within several inches of this spot.</p>

<p>I have called my builder and asked him to come look. My guess is that he will say this is my fault (somehow). But… should the basement wall leak in this situation anyway, even if this hole has opened up? Does anyone know if this is common (is it likely an animal hole, or something going on with the fill around the house)?</p>

<p>If it makes any difference, we closed in August 2001, and our state has a 10 year limit on identifying defects. I don’t know any structural engineers or anyone personally who could give an opinion on (a) the cause, (b) what needs to be done to fix it. I know enough to take photos, and will probably send a certified letter to the builder with the info on the leak requesting repair even if he does agree to fix it, so there is documentation of the issue. But I am worried that even if the builder does agree to do something, it will be the minimum required, and I wouldn’t know that until it came back after the 10 year limit is passed… I also assume someone’s insurance (mine? builders?) might cover this, but of course my rates would go up if I file a claim.</p>

<p>Any thoughts would be appreciated.</p>

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<p>Thoughts? Sure, though it’s hard to diagnose issues without directly examining the property.</p>

<p>My first thought is that you had a dry basement for nearly ten years (with exception of the one incident you mentioned). So water inside is an acute event rather than a chronic one. That’s very good. And the builder addressed the last problem successfully … also very good news.</p>

<p>You were right to contact the builder. I suggest you wait for his professional opinion. You can decide on a course of action after that.</p>

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<p>Builder just left. He says it is because of the hole outside, and it needs to be filled in. He says the basement walls are “damp proof”, not “waterproof”, and he doesn’t think there is any repair to be made. I told him I would send him a certified letter with photos in case it turns out to be more (so there is written documentation). And I will be getting out a shovel and some bags of sand (what he recommended to fill with) next weekend. I am going to widen the hole at the top to try to see how big the hole is underneath… have covered the hole with plywood for now sloping away from the house, as it is supposed to rain every day for the rest of the week.</p>

<p>Oh… and he says we should have a gutter added on that section of roof (the gutter he said we did not need when I asked him why we weren’t putting gutters on the house when it was built). Grrr…</p>

<p>Should have mentioned before that while the builder did fix that one leak, he has skived off on several other issues with the house. Don’t even get me started on the issue of the master bathroom shower, which is unusable after his subcontractor’s last pass at “fixing” it… I have given up on that issue, and just shower in another bathroom. It doesn’t leak, but has a ridge of some kind of crack filling sticking up about half an inch across the floor. It is uncomfortable to stand on, and hard to clean. :(</p>

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<p>80% of basement water problems can be solved on the roof. Since the home was built the ground has settled and any water against the outside walls or close to the foundation is now finding its way down into the basement. Chances are strong that gutters and lead aways from the down spouts will solve your prob. It’s time to install gutters around the entire house.</p>

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<p>Nooo… I ended up paying a reputable local construction & landscaping firm to come out last summer and dig to the foundation of the house to seal and repack the dirt in the area with the leak. It cost big $. I watched them do the whole job, it seemed like they were doing everything they could. Then they regraded away from the house in that area to make sure it would drain. I also had gutters put in along that whole side of the house (before the foundation work). I was meticulous when snowblowing (what little snow we had this year) and blew it all away from the house.</p>

<p>So we had a hard rain tonight… and the little detectors I left on the floor in the basement to detect moisture started beeping a little while ago. It is leaking again… I want to cry. Or sell the house and move to a townhouse. Or something.</p>

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<p>What a pain. Usually a new layer of dampproofing and draining away from the house works. Do you have foundation drains set in gravel? In Germany we always designed houses with at least 12" of gravel up against the house so that water flows quickly down the wall and into the foundation drains where it is carried away to a dry well. We also put filter mats against the wall to prevent hydrostatic pressure. I don’t know why they aren’t standard in this country. Like this: [Insulation</a> & Drainage Board | Marflex Waterproofing & Building Products](<a href=“http://www.mar-flex.com/commercial-products/insulation-drainage-board/]Insulation”>http://www.mar-flex.com/commercial-products/insulation-drainage-board/)</p>

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<p>I didn’t see you say anything about your draintile. That black plastic tube that is burried deep near your foundation. Has holes in it that collect the water and carry it away…Find where it comes out of the ground. Make sure it isn’t plugged up. We once had a duplex with water in the basement. Called foundation people who wanted to dig down and seal the foundation for over 1000. This was a good 20 years ago. Anyway we called hubby’s dad who took a shovel and uncovered the end of the drain tile which had gotten clogged…no more water problems since…10 minute free fix…hope yours is this easy</p>