Our house is on a slope and water collects under the house causing a damp musty smell on the ground floor.?

Question

What is the best solution to get rid of the damp?

Answer 1

Regrade away from your house and/or install a drange pipe away from your house to a drain or towards the street.
run a dehumidifier and away for air flow to help "dryout' the space

Answer 2

Consult a contractor, but it may require a trench drain across the side of your house where the water collects. We had one installed across the back of our house last year, and you wouldn't believe the improvement in the way our basement smells!

The other option may be to have someone bring in a backhoe and regrade your lot to change the slope away from the house, but this may be more costly and destructive to your landscaping.

If you go with the trench drain, be prepared to spend anywhere from $500-$1500, depending on the length of your house, the type of drain you have installed, etc. If that sounds like too much, counter it with the cost of what you'll surely have to pay once that water underneath your house starts to do some real damage. And eventually, it will.

Another good and potentially costly reason to get rid of the damp....water attracts termites. We had extensive and expensive water and termite damage to the floors and walls of our basement for just this very reason....in fact, we had to rip up all the floors and take it down to the girders and cinder block to correct the problem, so I know what I'm talking about. We are poorer, but much wiser with a house that is much more secure and healthy....and one little trench drain could have prevented it all!

Answer 3

Definitely need to get rid of the moisture. I would dig down on the side next to the slope and the 2 adjacent walls about 4 ft, add small rock and gravel to give a better drainage solution. This would allow the rainwater to drain away from the footings, and should let your house stay drier.

Answer 4

Get some dirt, and build up the area under your house, that way water will not collect under there. then maybe put more dirt to channel the water away from going underneath it.....basically build a small "levy" under your house where it won't drain. If you continue to let water stay under your house, the humidity could cause your floors to rot. Best of luck to you.

Answer 5

U may be forced to put in a sump pump and drain the water away from your house.

Answer 6

install a drain pipe under or in your front yard then run down the sides

Answer 7

re route the water

Answer 8

yard grading