Fall Basement Waterproofing Preparedness

It's fall, and the leaves will soon be turning all sorts of colors, falling into our yards and streets.

They also fall in to your gutters, which can present unforeseen consequences for your basement or crawl space. Clogged gutters are one of the most preventable causes of basement seepage, and happen all too often, especially in these heavily wooded Michigan neighborhoods.

Fall basement waterproofing preparedness starts with making sure those gutters are cleaned of all leaves and debris, so they can flow easily and direct water away from your foundation.

When you allow leaves to clog up your gutter, a couple of things happen. First, water is allowed to flow over the sides of the gutters like a waterfall. This overflow of large volumes of water creates a powerful splashing very close to your foundation, which can more easily make its way into old window sills, above-grade foundation cracks, as well as the sill plate––the space between the top of your foundation walls and the upper floors of your home.

As the rain continues, and the gutters continue to pour out water, the soil becomes more rapidly saturated. At it's most critical point, the water table (body of natural ground water pushing upward) and the surface water (rain absorbing into the ground) converge, and begin to push against your foundation, working its way into hairline cracks and up through your floors.

The more you can do to route water away from your foundation, the better off your home will be during heavy rainstorms––so keep those gutters clean!

Floor Cracks and Basement Waterproofing

During the average home's lifetime, there are bound to be waterproofing and structural issues. Just like other common issues you may experience more often upstairs, it's part of the game. Some of these issues, like your windows fogging up in the winter, can be indicative of a larger issue (insufficient insulation and weatherproofing).

Floor cracks, like many other basement waterproofing warning signs, can certainly be one of these indicators. Basement floor cracks can point to larger issues such as foundation settlement and hydrostatic water pressure buildup.

Each of these issues requires a different strategy––a general rule of thumb is, if one side of the crack is taller (or one half sinks), you may be dealing with a larger structural issue that may require the attention of a foundation professional.

Sump Pump Discharge Lines

Example of a discharge line tied into main sewer line.

Many homeowners underestimate the importance of the configuration of the discharge line. The discharge line is what leads the water from the sump basin out of the home, and can have a direct effect on the pumping efficiency of your home's waterproofing system. Here are some things you want to be aware of:

1. Long distances. The farther the water has to travel through a discharge line, the harder your pump has to work in order to get it out of your home. This can allow water to build up in your perimeter drain tile, and may cause premature pump failure.
2. Too many fittings. If your path out of the home isn't the simplest one, and your discharge line is curved and routed every which way, you may be adding unneeded stress to your pump. Reduce the amount of turns in your discharge line, and make its route outside as short and simple as possible.
3. Beware tying into sewer lines. In some areas, this is completely disallowed. In others, you must have a secondary overflow valve and line exiting the home onto your yard to prevent catastrophic failure in the event of a storm backup. Always abide by city code.
4. Prevent winter freezing. In these cold, bitter Detroit winters, it's important to make sure the discharge line isn't freezing outside and block up your waterproofing system. We recommend adding a rubber coupling a few feet out from the home so the line can be shortened during the freezing winter months.

Learn more at http://www.everdrymichigan.com.