My house was built in 2003. I have a poured concrete foundation. When it rains, water leaks where the water main enters the house in the basement. The hole was originally packed with hydraulic cement.
A representative for the builder has had another subcontractor make several attempts to fix the problem by painting injection epoxy to the area where the water main enters the house on the inside. All attempts using this method have failed. The representative has tried to convince me that the water is due to condensation on the pipes, but as I have pointed out to him, the only time water leaks from the opening is when it rains, so I'm not at all convinced and I want it fixed. I've pressed him several times since failure of the last attempt on how he will fix the problem. He has not come up with another solution yet.
In the builder's defense, whenever it rains it is humid and probably cool, and that IS when condensation occurs. A very cheap test would be to insulate the water pipe where it enters the house...you can buy insulating tape and just wrap it around the pipe...and if the water doesn't appear any more, the builder was right, BUT if the water DOES appear, Mr. Builder, sir, there IS a leak! Less than $20 worth of insulating tape will tell the story.
Architect (NY) and Home Designer (PA)
Posts: 2567 | Location: Tobyhanna, PA | Registered: 24 October 2005
if the water line enters the house through a basement wall and water enters through the basement wall where the line is, it is best to 'waterproof' around the line & part of wall on Outside `n backfill w/peastone.
what i mean by part of wall is to, hand dig all the way down to footing but certainly Not the whole wall, only about a 5-6' area along the wall on the outside of where the line enters.
this is waterproofing done right, not damproofing `n other crap some like to do. Have to wire brush THAT part of wall,apply hydraulic cement IN-through where the line enters, there are usually lil spaces/gaps where it enters and water comes through. Then, tar 5' area of wall all the way down-side to side and apply a 6 mil visqueen over the tar, backfill w/100% peastone/gravel to within a few inches of grade, top soil rest.
Water will NEVER lay/sit against this part of wall again plus, the OPENING that allowed the water in has been sealed/waterproofed, know what i mean? lolol AND, insects `n radon gas cannot penetrate this opening again.Not saying there is any high radon level in the soil around your house just that this is one way radon enters our homes.
To be certain that the PROBLEM is a gap around where the line enters, run a hose at/near full blast on Outside of this area, run it towards the basement wall, a few inches away from wall, do NOT wet/splash anything above ground like bricks/a bsmt window etc. Let water run up to 45 min-1 hour or, until water begins to enter.
If/when water enters then the Problem IS a space/gap where line enters and needs to be fixed/waterproofed correctly.
Posts: 710 | Location: Michigan | Registered: 24 August 2005
We have the exact problem you do. Have you fixed the leak yet? We tried fixing ours with an appoxy on the inside and it won't work, but we know that water is coming in from the outside because it only leaks when it rains or when we turn the hose on that part of our house. We are hoping you may have the answer we need. We are planning to dig and tar this weekend, do you have any helpful advice?
Sorry, I don't have any tips for you. The builder's representative seems to be stumped by it, so nothing has been done yet. It seems pretty obvious to me that the correct way to fix it is to dig outside and seal it there, but the builder/builder's rep have consistently tried fixing things the cheap and ultimately ineffective way first. I had to pull teeth to finally get them to seal a leaking crack in the foundation from the outside after several failed attemps with epoxy, a window well installation, and a drain installed about 15 feet from my house. Incidentally, the only way for water to get in the drain is for it to run off the surface of the ground into a one foot opening installed in the ground. The opening leads to an underground solid pipe. It seems to me that an underground perforated pipe would have been much more effective at removing excess water from the ground than a one foot opening leading to a solid pipe.
I last spoke with the builder's rep on 11/17 to find out what progress he has made with trouble shooting this problem. This problem has existed for more than 1.5 years now. He said he would bring a waterproofer out to look at it the week of 11/20.
Do you know yet how your fix has worked? Please keep us posted.
LicencedWaterproofer,
Thank you for responding to my post. I'll make a copy of it and hand it to the builder's rep. I have lurked on this forum now and then since fall 2005. Your posts on fixing leaking basements supported what seemed intuitively correct to me and ultimately led me to insist that the builder seal the leaking foundation crack, described above, from the outside. I haven't had a problem with it yet.
builder rep said he`s gonna bring a ..... 'waterproofer' out to look at it huh, lol.
now, it may turn out that...ahem, the waterproofer he brings out is an...'inside only water-diverting co'..OR an....'injection-only' company so, they`ll have their own supposed-expert fix-remedy for your situation.....right? right!
Posts: 710 | Location: Michigan | Registered: 24 August 2005
We took the advice that the LicensedWaterproofer gave you, we still have to fill the hole with pea gravel... but i will let you know if it fixed our problem. thanks
The water leak will have to be fixed from the OUTSIDE where it begins not the inside. Once it gets in it has to go somewhere. The contractor might be able to redo the landscaping around this main. Creating a swell to run the water the other way. Also he needs to seal the outside of your home. This can usually be done with the same sealer used to waterproof basements.
I know this thread is at least a year old, but I'm hoping Somer and Elen11 are still lurking aruound. I have the exact same problem you had. Water is leaking only where the water main enters my foundation. Only during a HEAVY rain. My question for you two is did you fix it? Somer, how hard was it to dig down on the outside? Did you do it yourself? If not, how much did it cost? Elen11, the same questions. If you see this, email me at mrgbrady@gmail.com Thanks.
Posts: 8 | Location: St. Louis MO | Registered: 08 February 2008
