Installing 2 sump pumps in basement good alternative to perimeter French Drain?

I live in a split-level home with a half basement that measures

22'X25'. I don't get water in the basement except for prolonged periods of rain over time. and its usually only 1" in the corners of the basement. My floor is finished and I really did not want to start tearing up the floor. Instead of jack-hammering the entire perimeter of my basement to install a french drain, I thought of installing 2 sump pumps on opposite sides of the 25 foot walls, midspan. One would be in the furnace room, and one in the laundry room, both rooms of course are not finished and tearing up the floor would not be a problem, not to mention it would be a lot cheaper. My question is will this be just as good as installing a perimeter french drain,
Reply to
Mikepier
Loading thread data ...

Depends where the water is coming in. If it is a spiked water table, yes, they will help. But 'only floods in extended rainstorms' is usually surface water, ponding outside the foundation, and penetrating anywhere from ground level to basement slab level. Is there moisture on the walls in these wet corners, or the white crystal deposits? I'd look real hard at your outside grading and downspouts before I did anything else. Are the corners heavily covered with plants, or would it be possible to dig out the backfill down to where the leak is, and reseal the wall?

-- aem sends....

Reply to
aemeijers

How are your basement walls finished? I suppose it's not just cinder block or cement anymore.

I got rid of water in one corner of my basement just by piling the dirt up differently, so rain water didn't run back to the wall. Depending on your needs, you could do something like this all around the house

Also made sure the downspouts take the water away from the house. My townhouse neighbor hadn't done that, so the girl who bought the house asked someone who wanted both of us to put on another 6 foot pipe. Probably didnt' need that much, but it's between the wood pile and the fence, and I'm sure the extra distance does no harm.

A contractor will want to do both sumps at the same time, but if you're doing it, I'd do one at a time. I'd consider if they might be placed to help when the water heater leaks or the laundry sink plugs up and the washing machine water overflows. Also, if you have all rubber washing machine hoses and leave the water on between wash days, the hoses will spring a leak one day. I use those covered in woven steel.

As a last resort, I think there is some kind of surface mount French drain

Reply to
mm

Right. If it's OUTSIDE water it makes more sense to prevent the water from getting in, than to remove it once its infiltrated.

Reply to
HeyBub

Aside from proper grading, which is the first step, sometimes you have to get it sealed. Pretty sure. A 3-4 day rain just saturates the soil around the house and the water will get in any crack. If you can spot where it comes in you can a waterproofer to inject whatever they use around the point of ingress. Might have to just refinish the floors in the corners where the water is coming in. Probably coming in up the floor where it meets the foundation. The op never mentioned what "finished floors" means. Tile or carpet is no big deal, wood may be. Never mentioned if the wall are covered either. A foundation wall crack leads water to the floor. And they can be real hard to see. I had a number of them sealed by US Waterproofing a few years ago. About $250 a crack. They inject some kind of epoxy.

--Vic

Reply to
Vic Smith

I should have mentioned, the water problem I have is from the water table rising. Otherwise my drainage and grading outside are good. Downspouts are away from the house. No water ever pools up My foundation walls are solid concrete, no cracks or any water problems in the past.

Reply to
Mikepier

Mikepier wrote in news:1499cff3-ddfa-4da1-804d- snipped-for-privacy@z9g2000yqz.googlegroups.com:

Yes, it will help. It is the cheapest solution so why not try it first? You wouldn't waste any money because if you did have to go to a french drain you would need the sump pumps to serve the drain.

Reply to
Reno

But a French drain won't work if it's below the water table. Right?

Reply to
HeyBub

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.