Basement water through cinder block walls

[Ron]

We've had this problem for some years, the water coming through sections of the (outer) wall, blistering the whitewash. With the super-normal rainfall in NJ this year, there's been some pooling on the floor also.

I have a quote from a company called Vulcan out of Newark, NJ to jackhammer a "trench" along the base of the wall, laying in 4" pipe and somehow permitting the underground water to seep in (under the foundation, apparently, though I'm not clear on how it feeds to the piping) and be piped to a sump pump, which they will also install. The pump will disperse the water back outside. They will cement over the trench and clean up "broom clean.". They say this is a time honored technique for alleviating the pressure of the water on the outside of the walls. Their quote is equivalent to $60 per linear foot.

Questions: Is the quote reasonable? Is there a better way to address this problem?

Many thx, Ron

[whocares]

"Ron" wrote in news: [e-mail]:

While this is definitely not the preferred method it may keep your basement dry, but it is not waterproofing. By strict definition waterproofing prevents the entry of water into the walls. The proposed method would be better termed water management.

Couple of caveats. Make sure they are drilling the cores of each block and that there will be permanent drainage from these holes to the sub-floor drain tile.

The method they describe does not subastantially reduce the pressure on the walls. Only exterior footer drains and a drainage medium can do that.

The price per foot really depends on how many feet you are doing. The larger the area, the lower the per foor price. $60 is a bit stepp unless you are doing less than 15 feet. More reasonable would be $35-45 including pump(s).

[The Gnerd]

Before you get into that, make sure you're doing what you should to manage water in the first place:

o All gutters need to be clean and in good working order o All spouts need to release away from the foundation o Your yard *must* be graded properly, so water drains away from your foundation

We had major-league problems til we got the best loader operator we could find to 'fix' the grade. He did, and we're bone dry.

If you don't fix the above things, you'll probably never have a dry basement.

[whocares]

The Gnerd wrote in news: [e-mail]:

The Gnerd is absolutely right. The items he mentioned should be done first. My bad for failing to mention these things.

Thanks for catching my error of omisson Gnerd!

[Ron]

Thanks for the replies. Gutters are clean and covered (gutterguard). Downspouts go into ground. The ones in back apparently go either under the foundation or around the sides and feed into either of two pipes under front lawn (as do all the spout flows) and exit at curb. (I've tested them all with a hose on a dry day, so I know even the back ones exit to front.) The problem is in back wall, but unfortunately, there's a cement patio over the affected area. It *was* pooling water near the house, so when we had it overlayed with cobblestone a couple years ago, we specfically asked the contractor to address the grading problem. He said he did. I still notice some pooling after heavy rain, though not as bad as before. During real heavy rain, I have noticed some backflush from junction between down spout and the conduit into which it feeds at the ground level. Maybe I should check the through-flow more carefully before investing in this expensive basement treatment. Thanks for the responses, Ron.

[TONY 70000]

theres alot more to It then this I'am a foundation man myself for a living It's more complex.