[major mike]

40 yr old plus home of my Mom. Finished basement flooding (1/2")last 2 years 3 times with extremely heavy rain(2 to 4 inches in an hour). Water is seen coming up from edges/corners of slab foundation. Outside slope and drainage adequate by contractor. No sump pump. Recommendation on action to take or Contractor service to fix is sought? Thanks for reading and any suggestions appreciated. Mike

[ballengerb1]

Hey Mike, we might be using different terns here and getting mixed up. A slab foundation is just a flat concrete pad that has a house built on top of it, can't have basement. Are you describing the floor of the basement possibly?

[major mike]

Thanks for the reply. Not a carpenter so you are correct in that it is the concrete floor of my Mom's basement, The front and 2 sides are below ground with the rear above, the sides are sloped and about half under ground. Water enters at multiple points along the basement floor with extremely heavy rains in the past 2 years, The city has improved drainage to the lowest point of her subdivision but the drainage lines have not been improved from her property to where it traditionally has drained. Water stands in her back yard below the grade of the basement floor and drains away with time.

We have had BONE DRY provide an estiamate today and B-DRY coming later in the week.

First quote has been for a french drain system and interior sump pump and interior wall channels. Any experience with a similar problem? The quote was for around $6100, will see what the next one is for, and OLSHANs is scheduled for the first of February. Mike

[hkstroud]

Are your gutters and downspouts clear and working? Do you have splash blocks under the downspouts, are the downspouts piped to carry rain water away from the house. If not, try getting rain water away from the house. You might be surprised.

[cgregory67]

The interiors sumps work but I have a problem with the system. For one they don't fix the problem if water is flowing through walls and two you have to rely on the sump to run. It sounds like you may have a drain tile smashed restricting flow. Extreme rain then backs up through walls.

As mentioned above, make sure your downspouts take water away if you have them. Since you only have 2 walls to deal with, I bet you could get the problem fixed right for the same money by digging up and replacing drain tile.

Another method is digging a trench about 3 feet wide and 3 feet away from house contoured like a J-trap. You lay thick plastic to line trench, drain tile, and hook to existing downspout or exit at a lower grade. Fill with gravel then add several inches of soil. This will eliminate any water before it can get down to the footers.

[ballengerb1]

Your description and estimate sound pretty standard and the correct approach. Often there is no permanent fix for water coming through concrete because concrete will always crack eventually. Sump pumps and channels are about your only bet with the current terrain of her yard.