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I live on a century old home whose unfinished basement got flooded this week. We had heavy rainfall which overwhelmed the city's storm sewer.

At a certain point there were about two inches of water on the basement floor so I left the house to buy a pump and hose ( we have no visible floor drain )

By the time I got back most of the water had gone. Any ideas of what may have sucked the water out in the absence of a floor drain? As far as I can tell I dont have a sump pump either.

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    A horde of thirsty rats? :-) How did the water get in? Most of it could go out the same way.
    – fixer1234
    Feb 25, 2018 at 2:50
  • Lol. The water started getting in near drain pipes that go directly into the concrete floor. At the worst point it seemed to be coming from the bottom of the foundation walls too.
    – clueless
    Feb 25, 2018 at 6:32
  • I guess concrete is porous so the water could have gone through it just like it came in but I was surprised by how quickly it all went away ( a couple of hours ).
    – clueless
    Feb 25, 2018 at 6:36
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    Concrete is porous, but not that porous. There are likely gaps. Doorway? Sump pump? Floor drains or openings (outlet hole for condensate, poorly sealed pipe openings)? You wouldn't normally get several inches of standing water unless it has an easy path in.
    – fixer1234
    Feb 25, 2018 at 8:36
  • The openings fixer mentioned, along with the joint at the entire perimeter of the slab.
    – isherwood
    Feb 25, 2018 at 16:15

1 Answer 1

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The water left through cracks, joints, or other openings in the concrete when the groundwater level dropped below the basement floor level.

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  • ...which is the same way it came in.
    – LShaver
    Sep 4, 2021 at 16:29

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