what does my downspout lead to? is it cracked?

Question

I live in Ohio, in a 1956, all brick, ranch. We have city sewers, no sump.
During heavy rains, I get water in my basement. Just enough to wet the floor in one small area, and make a mess.

I think I found the problem. The downspout closest to the wet area of the basement is loose in the ground. The actual aluminum downspout comes straight down into one of those orangey colored "clay" pipes in the ground. That "clay pipe" moves around quite easily in the soil.

Where does that pipe lead? To my storm sewer drain system ??(There is a storm sewer drain in the middle of my driveway about 15' away.)
Or does it just empty at the foundation?

I'm thinking :
#1 maybe it's cracked a foot or two below the surface?, or
#2 maybe it's just loose due to how muddy the soil is in that area?

Should I dig around it and investigate? It's in an area where unfortunately I cannot divert the downspout above-ground and make a horizontal run away from the house.

Thanks,
Brian D

Answer 1

the' rain water leader'(vert clay pipe} should go all the way down and tee into you're weeping tile at the base of the foundation and out to your storm sewer,old clay systems work well if installed properly but there are many problems that can arise with age, in your situation, i would start by investigating it, carefully dig around the leader,make a big hole! at least 3 ft wide if you can,remove the loose section( usually 1 ft sections)have a peek down there with a good flash light,can you see a tee?is t full of dirt?roots?a crushed section of clay?any one of these reasons will prevent the flow of water and cause it to back up above the level of you're basement floor and cause a leak, isuspect a blockage at or near the tee or perhaps over the years sediment has built up in part or all of your drainage system,there fore restricting the flow and causing a backup when there are heavy rains,the decision to keep digging or call a pro hinges on what you see down there,cracked clay pipe and a wad of roots another 2 feet down? go for it dig out two more sections and replace with 4" pvc & a "clay to plastic" rubber coupling... big wad of dirt or roots waaaay down there, call a pro, confined space excavation is dirty and dangerous,your system could be cleaned with a water jet drain cleaner,i would not recomend mechanically cleaning clay pipe with a metal snake,call apro for this,i think yours will be a simple fix though the muddy soil in the area tells me the water isn't making it all the way down to your weeping tile

Answer 2

Odds are that pipe leads to a French drain trench or barrel. If it's a FD trench the pipe may also lead to an ground exit somewhere else, which is likely blocked. It's very, very unlikely that it leads to the local city storm drains. If it's a French drain barrel, it's buried a few feet down, with the idea that water would enter the barrel and slowly empty later. Niether system works without regular maintenance, which I presume hasn't been done for many years. The water then saturates the surrounding soil and finds any cracks in your foundation and enters the basement.

The fix amounts to recreating what's in place now, only using modern materials or cleaning out whats there. If you install a new barrel, you can have a sump pump installed with it to pump the water out to the street somewhere, or that nearby drain.

If there is any way you can direct the downspout to another point that could help. You don't have to wait for the water to get to ground level. You can immediately angle the downspout from the gutter. It won't look nice, but it's cheaper than digging a trench around the house for a drain. One job I had ended up with a PVC drain pipe entering the house on one side, and exiting on the other, risky but it worked. Don't just think up/down/left/right.

Go here for more info on French Drains barrel: http://landscaping.about.com/cs/lazylandscaping/ht/French_drains.htm

and here for a French Drain trench: http://www.askthebuilder.com/175_Drying_Soggy_Soil_-_A_Simple_Trench_Drain.shtml

Also a web search for "French drain" will provide pictures and diagrams for more info.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

The clay pipe should be moving the rain water to some sort of drain away from the house. The drain is probably either a surface drain that directs the water towards a storm sewer, or a type of dissipation drain that allows the water to be absorbed by the ground. If you're getting water in your basement, the pipe is either blocked of broken. I would dig down and investigate. If the pipe is blocked, try using a plumbing snake to unclog it. If it is broken, you'll need to replace it. Luckily, those pipes are buried a foot or less below the surface, so repair shouldn't be a big deal.

Hope this helps.

Answer 4

Usually down spouts that extend into the ground lead to the middle of the yard away from the foundation. It sounds like your suspicions may correct, the clay channel may be cracked. Other things may be to blame as well. For example, we had a "wet" basement for 7 years before we finally moved. We found out that the "leak" was not due to just one problem. Is your house built on a hill or level ground? If it is on a hill, is the "leak" on the uphill side of the house? If that is the case, water could be draining from your uphill neighbor's property and collecting against the uphill foundation of your house. You may need to build a drainage channel around the foundation of your house. Check with a basement specialist to pinpoint the problem, then decide on whether you should tackle the issue yourself or use a professional.

Answer 5

Hi Brian...I just moved from Ohio a few months ago. (n'eastern part) I don't miss those horrible winters. I'm in the south where it very rarely ever snows. Before you take shovel in hand, I'd have a professional come & check the situation out. He can best detect your problems. If you have water in your basement, you may have to have your walls waterproofed too. See what the pro says. Good luck!!! :)