So after a major snow storm, about 10 inches, two 60 degree days of melting it, and then heavy rain all day the next day I go down to my basement where right in the middle was a giant pool of water above the concrete.
There is a sump pump in the basement but it’s completely dry as if it never saw any water ever.
Not sure what’s going on here and if any one can help with some advice please let me know.
I added a video showing where it is.
Moisture is either coming up from below (a rising water table) or its coming from the surrounding ground water in the saturated soil, or both.
If it comes up from a rising water table, it will enter the living space from below through cracks in the slab (control joints in the slab and/ or around the perimeter where the slab meets the wall).
If it comes from the surrounding ground water, it COULD enter the living space through the wall, especially if the EXTERIOR side of the foundation wall is not sealed properly.
Either way the moisture enters the living space it will need to be collected and disposed. Water that comes from below can be collected by your sump pump. Often they are at the high point on the slab or undersized to keep up.
I think the best way to collect it is on the exterior side of the foundation wall is in drainrock and a perf pipe laid 6”-8” below the interior basement slab.
To keep the subsurface water from seeping through the wall, I recommend installing a moisture barrier on the exterior side of the foundation wall and install a 2” thick plastic mesh on the wall to allow water to flow down to the perf pipe. If dirt is allowed to be backfilled against the wall, the dirt could hold the moisture giving it a chance to seep through the wall.
Once collected it needs to be disposed by extending a solid pipe over an embankment or in a collection well and pumped away.
This may be the most expensive method of solving the problem, but it’s sure to work.
