Shower Drain - Does This Look Right?

Does this look right?

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Basement shower was ripped out 2 weeks ago due to water damage in spring this year. Cause unknown (2 waterproofers and 2 GCs have shrugged so far). It rained last night for the first time in months, and this morning the "moat" around the drain pipe is damp (also very soft for concrete).

Is there supposed to be a "moat" around the pipe? Should the bottom get damp and soft? If it is damp after 1 rainfall, is it possible that it could fill and overflow after extended rain?

Comments, suggestions appreciated.

Reply to
WandererFan
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*My first thought is that maybe you have a high water table and when it rains it gets higher. I grew up in a house that had an underground stream running under it. Our sumpholes always had water in them and when it rained the pumps ran non-stop. The concrete basement floor was always damp. If you placed a piece of wood on the floor and picked it up later it would be wet.
Reply to
John Grabowski

That doesn't look right, drains are supposed to be flush or slightly below the floor level. A high water table could mean it will always be damp when it rains. how long have you lived in the house and is this something new????

Reply to
hrhofmann

I'm thinking you need at least a sump pump under the slab.

Greg

Reply to
gregz

We've been here for 20 years. This bathroom has "flooded" three times. Various causes advanced and "remedies" applies. Da**ed if I'm going to cover it up again before finding the source of the water. Praying for a good soaker storm so I can see water coming in.

Reply to
WandererFan

If the concrete around the drain is soft I'd go ahead a dig it out and see what's under it.

Reply to
jamesgangnc

Unless you have a spring under that corner of house, or builder was REAL sloppy doing the dirt work when he built the basement, water in one corner usually comes from outside the house, on that corner. Ponding due to bad grading or gutters, or something directing water down the outside walls at that corner, and thence under the slab. I'd look real hard at wherever that drain comes OUT, and see if it is muddy there as well. Water from whatever source could be traveling back along the outside of the pipe, or the pipe could be cracked or rusted out, or something.

You have my actual sympathies. I have floor drains that act as an outlet for where the washer is supposed to drain. I think idiot previous owner killed the dry well when he did the addition or something. Roto-rooter guy tried to clear with his biggest rig, and it jammed so bad the guy packed up and left. Jack-hammering basement floor to replace would not pay pack at resale, so one of these days, I need to mud the drains over with sakcrete, and saw the old washer drain off the wall and mud it over too. Thankfully, I have 6 inches of topsoil over 100+ feet of sand below me, and I am the highest lot in the subdivision. My sump pit has cobwebs in it. Only leaks I have had in six years are from ponding around foundation, most of which I have corrected. (Anybody know how to pull PVC pipes from ground where the downspouts used to go? Did I mention previous owner was an idiot?)

Reply to
aemeijers

Never saw anything like that, but it looks like ground water is coming up around the pipe. Anybody suggest knocking out any soft concrete and sealing the hole up flush with the floor with hydraulic cement?

--Vic

Reply to
Vic Smith

There certainly were problems outside that area when we moved in. Eave from the upper half of the backsplit dumped into lower eave at that point and overflowed regularly onto patio stone area with big gaps between stones. New troughs installed first thing, patio stones replaced with properly sloped concrete pad. No more overflows in that area for 15(?) years. Guess it could have washed a path under the slab for ground water to use now.

up around the pipe. Anybody suggest knocking out any soft concrete and sealing the hole up flush with the floor with hydraulic cement? <

That is my take, too. Would like to see enough water to explain previous damage before making up my mind, though.

Reply to
WandererFan

The concrete in the floor is a higher PSI mix than the concrete used to infill around the floor penetration for the shower drain... The lower PSI mix has apparently lost its ability (or never had it to begin with) to prevent the seepage of water...

~~ Evan

Reply to
Evan

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