Greetings from the waterlogged Boston area. We've been in our house six months now, and through all the rain of last fall and snowmelt this year we've never had water in the basement until today - 30 gallons worth! The house is 100 years old. The foundation is big rocks (some of which appear to be leaning, but that isn't where the water is coming in). The floor of the basement is dirt. After the rains of the last few days we went down there just to check and ended up pumping out 30 gallons of water. Previously we had found a sump pump in the barn, left by the previous owner, who never mentioned anything about water in the basement. Should have put 2+2 together, huh? Anyway, what to do other than pump, pump, pump. Hauling those 5 gallon buckets of water up the rickety old stairs to the outside was no fun. Anything we can do that is permanent?
jkathlj
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Oh, yeah frequent complaint of new homeowners! I'm in Boston area too! I'll be busy. found time to write this, that sump pump he left, get a hose, sold at hardware stores put it on the pump find a low spot for it put the hose out the window plug it in . Later the pump can be permanately installed. I could help you. E-mail me at cellarwater@hotmail.com Sean.
Glad to see you posting again C. Your valuable insights are truly an asset to the BBS. And Kath just as cellarwater mentioned, in addition of picking a low spot for the pump, dig a sump pit for the pump in one corner of the basement. Pick a corner where most of the water comes in. Later on down the road, you may want to upgrade to a good quality pump. I will list some sites that you can browse for a decent one. A sump pump is something you do not want to cut corners on. Most are 1/3 HP and have a 1-1/4" discharge. The discharge piping is commonly PVC and inexpensive. For cinderblock walls the hole can be made with a hand maul if you hit it between the web(block cavity) If your walls are poured concrete or stone you will need to a hammer drill with at least an 1-1/2 bit. Post back and let us know how you made out, plumber Tom/Moderator/www.bobvila.com/BBS/Plumbing Some sites: www.libertypumps.com www.hydromatic.com little giant (don't know web addy) and Zoehlor are all high quality pumps.
