The situation: house was built in 1800's, on the low side of a hill, with immovable shelf rock between the back of house and hill, the house also has no gutters becuase of heavy snow seasons. Should we first attempt regrading, land around the house, add gutters, or add drainage around the house?
2006-07-06 06:58:58 · 11 answers · asked by lannon_fiegel 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
The situation: house was built in 1800's, on the low side of a hill, with immovable shelf rock between the back of house and hill, the house also has no gutters becuase of heavy snow seasons. There are already two sump pumps in the cellar to remove water. And the cellar walls are two kinds, up hill is standard cement, downhil is the original foundation of fieldstone. Should we first attempt regrading, land around the house, add gutters, or add drainage around the house?
2006-07-06 07:46:42 · update #1
Gutters would be important first if you have heavy rain, but for snow, which is mostly lying on the ground, regrading and drainage would help more. I had a house where the dirt on the sides wasnt quite angled away, and a sump-pump in the crawl space to keep the water level from making its way into there. After I added gravel around the house at a slant, the pump came on much less. Later, I replaced the patio and put a roof over it, and so far the pump hasnt come on at all. So for me, the biggest help was keeping the water away from the house in the first place, and secondly, adding drainage to take care of anything that does get there.
2006-07-06 07:03:20 · answer #1 · answered by Rjmail 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Definitely install a sump pump.
Forget the gutters, they're not worth the expense & they won't solve anything--they'll only cause you other headaches in the long run. :-( Gutters typically need to be cleaned spring & fall if you live in a 4-season area. If you live in an area with trees, you get leaves, sticks, seeds ("angel-wings" from maple trees), bird feathers & asphalt from your shingles. Gutter screens do not work, leaves either get caught on them or pass right through as with the asphalt, seeds & twigs. also there's the issue of snow build up & freezing...which can only be eliminated with roof & gutter heating cables, there go "another expense!"
You are probably also getting water leaching into the cellar from the ground beneath the cellar floor & naturally through the walls...perhaps more so than just run off water from the roof and the hill slope, if this is true, regrading the land will only help to a small extent, but still worth checking to see if some regrading and adding ditches would improve the slope, thereby diverting excess drainage away from the house.
Also you might consider a diverter, which is nothing more than an L-shape channel-iron (aluminum or steel) that can be placed on your roof at a diagonal. This will divert the water to run off to one area of your roof, where you can place a water receptacle (rain barrell), ditch, etc, further diverting the water.
Good Luck as even with a sump pump it can be a constant battle, ie power outages & ground saturation--the pump keeps pumping it out, but the water is looking for the path of least resistance--your cellar!
2006-07-06 07:21:02 · answer #2 · answered by kueria 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes
All sound good...seems you have a plan already.
Install gutters on the house direct water at least six feet from structure.
Regrade an area for gardening and install a trench type drainage system on the high side of the home.
At one end you could have a sistern or septic type tank with an overflow drainage field.
The sistern or storage tank would make free watering for your garden area with a jet pump.
Turn your nasty water problem into beautiful garden or tasty vegatables.
2006-07-06 07:12:20 · answer #3 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depends on your budget. Regrading and adding drain would be most effective, gutters would be least expensive.
A sump pump is also a cheap option.
2006-07-06 07:03:33 · answer #4 · answered by R J 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Drip and trickle irrigation makes use of a lot less water than extra classic irrigation techniques which contain sprinklers or flooding. A porous hose is laid close to the roots of the flora and water is piped through it. The water is going on to the roots. Water isn't lost as a results of aerosolization or evaporation.
2016-11-05 23:51:30 · answer #5 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Regrading and drainage. I'd also look into purchasing a sump pump and/or dehumidifier.
2006-07-06 07:01:37 · answer #6 · answered by pixy_stix 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
dig out around your foundation down to the footers (on the outside) on the uphill areas, line the foundation with plastic wrap (they make this for this purpose) fill in the trench with a few inches of crushed stone, run a course of perforated pipe (prob. 3 inch.) around the foundation, has to drain to somewhere though, you can tie in the gutters to it if you like, back fill with more stone (a few feet deep) then back fill with top soil...i did it and now my basement is dry
2006-07-06 07:04:54 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depending on the construction of your home and the climate you live in, different options are available, but you would need to seak a specialist in your area to know which option will best help your problem.
2006-07-06 07:02:32 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Waterproof the walls and floow and install a sump pump.
2006-07-06 07:01:26 · answer #9 · answered by jim_clark 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Consult with a contractor. They will give you an estimate free of charge, and then you can make an educated decision. Good luck.
2006-07-06 07:01:36 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋