Raynproof Roofing Company of Seattle
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water damage
Help! There’s water in my crawl space!
06/01/07
In general, roofing companies are not experts in diagnosing "water in basement" problems; however, I am an experienced house builder and remodeler, so I will provide you with my knowledge on this subject.
If the source of the water problem is not an obvious water-flow issue, for example, water flowing down a sloped driveway and directly into the garage, then the problem is quite often the result of excessive ground water next to the foundation.
Because of gravity, the water levels on BOTH sides of the concrete (inside and outside the house) want to equalize. If the water level on the outside of the house is higher than your basement floor, then you can have leaks because the water level inside your house will want to rise until equilibrium is achieved.
Modern building construction makes great efforts, therefore, to remove excessive water from the outside of the house. This is done in two ways. First of all, modern houses have a footing drain. This is installed at the height of the footing, which should be about 4-6" lower than a finished concrete basement floor. This drain collects water from the perimeter of the house, then takes it elsewhere (typically to a combination sewer, a storm sewer, or "daylights" to a city street). Read More...
Because of gravity, the water levels on BOTH sides of the concrete (inside and outside the house) want to equalize. If the water level on the outside of the house is higher than your basement floor, then you can have leaks because the water level inside your house will want to rise until equilibrium is achieved.
Modern building construction makes great efforts, therefore, to remove excessive water from the outside of the house. This is done in two ways. First of all, modern houses have a footing drain. This is installed at the height of the footing, which should be about 4-6" lower than a finished concrete basement floor. This drain collects water from the perimeter of the house, then takes it elsewhere (typically to a combination sewer, a storm sewer, or "daylights" to a city street). Read More...