Hello everyone,
Brief details: Single-family house with a basement made of precast concrete parts, built in 1979. The entire residential area was newly developed and built that same year. Located on the outskirts of town. The plot is connected to the road by a dead-end access path, with an elevation difference of about 2 meters (6.5 feet) between the road and the property.
After noticing that moisture returned following a water damage caused by heavy rain and subsequent building drying, we started looking for the cause. We have already excavated, sealed, and insulated part of the basement walls from the outside. Unfortunately, this did not change anything (except that our beautiful garden has been a construction site for months and the terrace was demolished).
We then decided to inspect the pipes and drainage with a sewer camera—our suspicion was a defect causing water buildup that then seeps into the house, or at least to get some clues about the condition of our pipes.
Yesterday, we lifted the inspection chamber outside on the property to access the pipes and insert the camera. However, at the bottom (which is about 4 meters (13 feet) deep), there is standing wastewater with a corresponding odor.
Here are my questions:
1. As far as I understand, there should actually be nothing standing down there—everything should flow away directly. Is that correct?
2. What does the bottom of an inspection chamber usually look like? According to the plans, there is a pipe coming from the house (which is visible) and an outlet pipe (which cannot be seen due to the level). I imagine a channel that leads directly into a "pit" opposite.
3. According to the officially approved wastewater plan from 1979, made during construction of our house, the drainage, rainwater from the roof, and wastewater are combined and led into the inspection chamber. The mixed water is then collectively discharged into the sewer system. Is this common? I always thought these were separated.
4. If we assume a blocked or defective wastewater pipe, should a company contracted by us fix it, or is it the municipality’s responsibility?
5. If we assume a blocked or defective wastewater pipe, is it possible that the rising water level from heavy rain pushes back into the pipes and drainage, preventing the rainwater "in the ground" from being drained, causing it to build up and push into the house? Wouldn’t we then have strongly smelling water inside the house? (We don’t, it’s just damp.)
I look forward to your feedback.
Best regards,
xola123
Brief details: Single-family house with a basement made of precast concrete parts, built in 1979. The entire residential area was newly developed and built that same year. Located on the outskirts of town. The plot is connected to the road by a dead-end access path, with an elevation difference of about 2 meters (6.5 feet) between the road and the property.
After noticing that moisture returned following a water damage caused by heavy rain and subsequent building drying, we started looking for the cause. We have already excavated, sealed, and insulated part of the basement walls from the outside. Unfortunately, this did not change anything (except that our beautiful garden has been a construction site for months and the terrace was demolished).
We then decided to inspect the pipes and drainage with a sewer camera—our suspicion was a defect causing water buildup that then seeps into the house, or at least to get some clues about the condition of our pipes.
Yesterday, we lifted the inspection chamber outside on the property to access the pipes and insert the camera. However, at the bottom (which is about 4 meters (13 feet) deep), there is standing wastewater with a corresponding odor.
Here are my questions:
1. As far as I understand, there should actually be nothing standing down there—everything should flow away directly. Is that correct?
2. What does the bottom of an inspection chamber usually look like? According to the plans, there is a pipe coming from the house (which is visible) and an outlet pipe (which cannot be seen due to the level). I imagine a channel that leads directly into a "pit" opposite.
3. According to the officially approved wastewater plan from 1979, made during construction of our house, the drainage, rainwater from the roof, and wastewater are combined and led into the inspection chamber. The mixed water is then collectively discharged into the sewer system. Is this common? I always thought these were separated.
4. If we assume a blocked or defective wastewater pipe, should a company contracted by us fix it, or is it the municipality’s responsibility?
5. If we assume a blocked or defective wastewater pipe, is it possible that the rising water level from heavy rain pushes back into the pipes and drainage, preventing the rainwater "in the ground" from being drained, causing it to build up and push into the house? Wouldn’t we then have strongly smelling water inside the house? (We don’t, it’s just damp.)
I look forward to your feedback.
Best regards,
xola123
Demolishing the terrace first and then checking the inspection chamber is not serious.
Pump out/scoop out the inspection chamber,
clean the box inside,
flush and clean the drain,
test the wastewater pipe with drainage,
test the downpipes with drainage,
test the drainage with drainage.
By drainage, it means running water from a garden hose for 5 minutes and checking if it drains properly.
Pump out/scoop out the inspection chamber,
clean the box inside,
flush and clean the drain,
test the wastewater pipe with drainage,
test the downpipes with drainage,
test the drainage with drainage.
By drainage, it means running water from a garden hose for 5 minutes and checking if it drains properly.
The issue with the terrace had other reasons as well. It had settled by about 10cm (4 inches) toward the house, causing water to collect against the building during heavy rain and enter the basement through the existing light well. Therefore, it had to be demolished anyway (concrete slab), which allowed us to excavate down there, properly waterproof and insulate the basement wall from the outside, and also correct the drainage.
Thanks for the list – we are planning to proceed roughly the same way. However, in this thread, I am more interested in the background questions...
Thanks for the list – we are planning to proceed roughly the same way. However, in this thread, I am more interested in the background questions...
xola123 schrieb:
In this thread, I'm more interested in the underlying issues... As a pragmatist, I am only interested in solutions,
background questions are for the psychoanalyst to solve.
B
Buchsbaum0665 Nov 2024 21:51I don’t see any connection between the moisture in the basement and the water in the inspection chamber.
Your sewage pipes are not so clogged that water would back up into the basement and cause it to rise. So the cause must be elsewhere.
What exactly does the following mean:
After we noticed that the moisture returned following a water damage caused by heavy rain and the subsequent building drying process, ???
Which moisture and, more importantly, exactly where?
Do you have a damp basement floor or wet walls, or is water entering the basement? Unfortunately, I don’t understand the question.
Your sewage pipes are not so clogged that water would back up into the basement and cause it to rise. So the cause must be elsewhere.
What exactly does the following mean:
After we noticed that the moisture returned following a water damage caused by heavy rain and the subsequent building drying process, ???
Which moisture and, more importantly, exactly where?
Do you have a damp basement floor or wet walls, or is water entering the basement? Unfortunately, I don’t understand the question.
Okay, I see that some background knowledge is missing regarding our problem.
It actually started with water in the basement—ankle-high—after a half-hour downpour (I have never experienced such a storm before).
At that time, due to the sloped terrace, water entered the basement through the light well over the basement window (just a metal window).
The basement floor is screed, so the water also collected underneath it.
After a last-minute effort to turn the entire basement upside down to get the water out, we had to use a construction dryer. It was in operation for 8 weeks. Fortunately, the screed did not have to be removed.
Afterwards, the basement was dry again.
To fix the cause (light well, terrace, and general waterproofing/insulation), we then demolished the terrace and excavated the basement, renewed the insulation and waterproofing, replaced the light well (this time connected to the existing downpipe system), and refilled the ground. This was at the back of the house.
So far, everything should have been fine. The basement was dry and sealed, the light well properly installed.
But a few weeks ago, by chance, we noticed moisture again in some of the remaining holes from the construction drying system.
At first, we thought it was residual moisture that the construction dryer hadn’t fully removed.
But I observed that whenever it rains heavily, after a delay of a few hours, the moisture increases and then dries out again in the following days after the rain.
This keeps happening—in the adjacent basement room, water marks appeared on the wall near the floor, as if from dried-up puddles. There was never standing water, but sometimes it feels slightly damp when touched.
In short, water is entering the basement again. But this time, not through the light well or window—it seems to be coming through the ground.
It actually started with water in the basement—ankle-high—after a half-hour downpour (I have never experienced such a storm before).
At that time, due to the sloped terrace, water entered the basement through the light well over the basement window (just a metal window).
The basement floor is screed, so the water also collected underneath it.
After a last-minute effort to turn the entire basement upside down to get the water out, we had to use a construction dryer. It was in operation for 8 weeks. Fortunately, the screed did not have to be removed.
Afterwards, the basement was dry again.
To fix the cause (light well, terrace, and general waterproofing/insulation), we then demolished the terrace and excavated the basement, renewed the insulation and waterproofing, replaced the light well (this time connected to the existing downpipe system), and refilled the ground. This was at the back of the house.
So far, everything should have been fine. The basement was dry and sealed, the light well properly installed.
But a few weeks ago, by chance, we noticed moisture again in some of the remaining holes from the construction drying system.
At first, we thought it was residual moisture that the construction dryer hadn’t fully removed.
But I observed that whenever it rains heavily, after a delay of a few hours, the moisture increases and then dries out again in the following days after the rain.
This keeps happening—in the adjacent basement room, water marks appeared on the wall near the floor, as if from dried-up puddles. There was never standing water, but sometimes it feels slightly damp when touched.
In short, water is entering the basement again. But this time, not through the light well or window—it seems to be coming through the ground.
Similar topics