Advice needed on the basement seepage problem

[voshki]

Hi there, We moved to a 6 years old home two years. It is a traditional home with finished basement. During the home inspection, the inspector told us to re-grading the back of my house.

But I never pay attention to it, until recent hurricane and heavy rainfall made a slight seepage in the basement. The seepage is small and it at the bottom of the block wall, close the foundation.

After prolonged rain, I can see the mark on the dirt that is evident that the gutter is over-flowing. I talked to several local construction companies and they suggesting the one of the following options,

1. Clean the gutter and wait unit the next rain to see if it solves the problem []

1. Paint the basement block walls inside with sure-lock (kind of water/moisture proof) [$$$]

2. Re-grading [0]

1. Water-proof the foundation walls from the outside and re-grade [,800]

I couldn't decide which option(s) to pick. Please advice me.

Thanks

PS: The first option seems to me cheap and quick. I am not interested in doing the second option because it is not really solving the problem, besides it is very much temporary. The fourth option is something that I don't want to do it now, because it is expensive.

I am thinking that do the gutter cleaning (1) and the re-grading (3). Since the inspector already told me to do so. But I am not sure.

[voshki]

Hi there, We moved to a 6 years old home two years. It is a traditional home with finished basement. During the home inspection, the inspector told us to re-grading the back of my house.

But I never pay attention to it, until recent hurricane and heavy rainfall made a slight seepage in the basement. The seepage is small and it at the bottom of the block wall, close the foundation.

After prolonged rain, I can see the mark on the dirt that is evident that the gutter is over-flowing. I talked to several local construction companies and they suggesting the one of the following options,

1. Clean the gutter and wait unit the next rain to see if it solves the problem []

1. Paint the basement block walls inside with sure-lock (kind of water/moisture proof) [$$$]

2. Re-grading [0]

1. Water-proof the foundation walls from the outside and re-grade [,800]

I couldn't decide which option(s) to pick. Please advice me.

Thanks

PS: The first option seems to me cheap and quick. I am not interested in doing the second option because it is not really solving the problem, besides it is very much temporary. The fourth option is something that I don't want to do it now, because it is expensive.

I am thinking that do the gutter cleaning (1) and the re-grading (3). Since the inspector already told me to do so. But I am not sure.

[Kyle Boatright]

I'd do #1. It only costs $75, and if you only have a problem following a hurricane, it really isn't an ongoing problem that is going to impact the value or stability of the house. Now, if you're pulling our collective leg and have seen under-wall seepage during routine weather (normal rainfall, etc), you should probably do #3 as recommended. #2 won't help if water is coming under the foundation, and #4 is for suckers, unless you have a serious problem.

KB

[Joseph Meehan]

Cleaning gutters is a regular maintenance item for many people. If the gutters clog, and it looks like yours are, then you need to do it on regular schedule. I would not bet on it fixing the problem, but it does need to be done.

Waste of time and money. Might look nice though. It might even slow it up for a while, maybe.

This is the one you know you need and you were just hoping the others would work. Don't waste you money with the the paint.

This one will work, but I doubt if you need it all. Time will tell. The inspector should know local conditions and have a better idea of how your basement walls were constructed to begin with than anyone here. I would say you likely will be able to pass on this one.

[hwm54112]

If you didn't have a problem for six years and it took a hurricane, then correcting overspill from gutter will solve the problem.

[voshki]

I really appreciated all your replies and Thank you so much for the time.

If I do the basement walls waterproofing [outside], does the homeowner insurance covers the expense?

[RicodJour]

No. The insurance is meant to put you back where you were financially, not to do improvements. If you had considerable water damage, and the insurance payout was large enough, you could do the improvement, but they wouldn't give you money to do the improvement on its own.

Never ignore a home inspector...unless he's an idiot, then hire another one. ;)

R

[ds549]

inspector told us to re-grading face it, you need the proper grade for rain water to run away from your foundation. lucas

[LJ]

My late two cents --- always keep the gutters working, but wait to see what happens during the next similar rainfall. I learned my lesson about gutters -- I now check my gutters about every 5-6 weeks spring thru fall because there are a lot of mature trees around here. Much different than my last house; newer subdivision with smaller trees. It was something I had not experiened nor anticipated when I moved here. Part of the learning curve, I guess.

I have seen seepage in my 1930 no-sump basement 3 times in 18 months. Twice the downspouts were plugged (my own fault, too lazy to check them)...and the majority of the seepage was close to the gutter overflow area. The third time was the rainiest May ever on record in my midwest state. That time the seepage came from a few different areas. I knew three people with normally bone-dry basements & sumps for 20 years seeing seepage that month. One of them was a house I lived in for eight years and NEVER saw a drop of water in that basement. I asked two contractor friends about this (my concern was having a leaky basement and disclosure laws)...they said with the rain that month, even the best basement might see some seepage. My basement has been perfectly dry for two years now, as long as I check the gutters regularly. Perhaps even proper drainage systems can be overwhelmed at times, depending on conditions. My basement is a tad more humid than houses with a sump, but I run a dehumidifier (summer months) which keeps molds or musty smells at bay.

Regrading might not be a bad thing, if a professional suggested it. It certainly wouldn't hurt, as long as it didn't mean removing/replacing a lot of landscaping. My home inspector made several good suggestions for the house I'm in now; I felt he earned the fee. And even though I've been a DIY homeowner for 20 years prior, I still learned a lot from him.

[trader4]

"Regrading might not be a bad thing, if a professional suggested it. It

certainly wouldn't hurt, as long as it didn't mean removing/replacing a lot of landscaping."

Not only is it not a bad thing, it's very likely a necessary one, regardless of landscaping, especially if a home inspector identified it as a problem. If the grade is in the wrong direction, water is being directed toward the house instead of away from it. While the effects may not be immediate, or even obvious, this can lead to a whole host of problems, some of which are not even obvious.