Water and Drainage Problems

[Nyboy]

About 2 years ago I started waking up very congested, when sleeping at country house. It got so bad I bought a high end hepa air purifier, helped a little. I hoped the problem would go away by painting room, painted every thing form inside the closet to ceiling . Didn't help, house is on a crawl space that had dirt floor, when I redid floors had cement slab poured in crawl space. Bedroom faces road, a vent to crawl space is under bedroom window. I had a new driveway put in that passes in front of bedroom. When they graded for driveway soil level was raised almost to bottom of vent. Yesterday we had heavy rain storm, my cleaning lady happen to be at house. She called me to say large pool of water in front of vent was coming in to crawl space. First thing I want to do is seal up vent ( crawl space has about 6 other vents). My nephew wants to dig out ground put in pipe and gravel, problem is there no way for drain water to drain too. I dont think a ditch of gravel is going to do anything. Today's problem !!!

 

[Beekissed]

If you have plenty of other vents, then closing that one off may help for awhile but that still doesn't keep that water from backing up and seeping under your foundation. Your nephew may have a long term solution going there if he can find a way to drain off that standing water.

I'd do both things. One for a temporary solution and the other for a permanent one. Sounds like your driveway needs a ditch alongside it for good drainage.

 

[Nyboy]

I have to do something , don't even want to start thinking of the mold that may be down there.

 

[digitS']

You can look at French drain idea and see if that is a possibility.

Before I put a roof gutter on the west side of the house, water would show up on the basement floor during snow runoff. My simple French drain worked.

It's still there but doesn't serve a critical purpose now.

Steve

 

[Nyboy]

Drain needs place to drain into. Spot is between driveway and walkways.

 

[bobm]

You can install the gravel and put in a perferated sewer line pipe along your house foundation then run the pipe to a french drain some distance away OR to a new wetlands area and landscape it with water loving plants. This type of scenario is quite popular here in the PNW. Universities and small cities are installing wetlands landscaping as well as ponding basins in all subdivisions. There is a new church being built about a 1/2 mile from our house. They are installing a wetlands + pond area that would cover a city lot to drain the runoff from the church roof and parking lot and will also act as natural landscaping.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Can you bore under your driveways or walkways to get to a lower spot it will drain to? Dig a hole where it is wet to get down to the drain pipe you would install under your drive or walk ways and fill it with gravel so it will drain to your drain pipe.

Alternative: Dig a sump pit and install a sump pump.