Wet Basement and Crawl Space

[veevaz]

Hi, I have two sump pumps in my basement , one in the concrete crawl space and one in the Laundry/Boiler room. The pumps seem to be doing their job but when we get heavy rain for a couple of days or when snow starts to melt the pumps can't keep up and water seeps in from where the wall and the floor meet in several different places throught the space. I have had two different companies come over to give me estimates. One said that they could do the entire space but because of the size (approx 133 sq ft) I would need two pumps. The other said that they do not do crawl spaces because it cannot be done properly. The difference in the prices that they quoted were pretty significant as well. This is my first house and I'm beside myself with grief over this. I'm not sure who is giving me honest, accurate information. Would it be better to do the waterproofing from the outside, around the perimiter of the house? Although I had an inspection done prior to purchasing this house, my inspector who was obviously incompetent and failmed me miserably didn't mention anything about any signs of water seepage or leaking of any kind. The previous owners did have a drainage ditch installed with the sump pump in the crawl space but told me the never got water in the basement except for one time right after a major hurricane several years ago. Of course everytime I came to see the house prior to closing the pump was disconnected and looked as if it was not in use. The second pump was hidden and I didn't discover it until I had my first flood with 4 inches of water in the basement two weeks after moving in. Any help, advice, suggestions you can give me would be greatly appreciated.

[Mark]

Having two sump pumps is not uncommon, some homes much smaller could have two or three and larger ones may only have one, its all based on need. There are solutions for crawlspaces it just depends on the accessability and what is trying to be accomplished. Water coming in the floor wall joint is also very common and normally a sub floor drain around the perimeter is installed to collect that water and direct it to the sump pumps to be pumped away.

Waterproofing from the outside can be done but it can be very expensive and disruptive. In your situation you would never be able to do the wall between the house and the crawlspace.

You can call you us at 1-800-541-0487 to find a Basement Systems dealer near you for a free inspection and estimate.