french drain
Hopefully I can explain my question properly. I have a walkout basement that occasionally has water seep through the walls. I used Drylock and the problem is barely there, but I'm fixing it for the long run. What I did was build something like a French drain with bricks & morter that channels water about an inch or so along the wall, and I let gravity run the water outside. We haven't had much rain the the northeast lately, so I've never seen if it really works. My question is, I would love to pour something in that space to help level off what's behind the brick, and also raise it an inch or 2. I know I could use that cement leveler, but that's pretty expensive. I'll probably put drylock in there but that won't really raise the level or even it out so it's easy to keep clean and dry. Does anyone have any other ideas? Can I water down regular cement a little so it will flatten out? Is there something else I could pour in there that might work? Thanks, Jerry
I am not sure what it is that you are trying to lift. I know how a French Drain works..but the way you have explained what you have done has me a bit puzzled. Could you use crushed limestone and tamp it down? Would that do what you need? Or even a dense clay soil packed down would lift without allowing water to seep thru. Kathie in Maryland...who after the rainstorm this weekend is thinking of French drains on one side of the 200 + year old part of the house . Hopefully I can explain my question properly. I have a walkout basement that occasionally has water seep through the walls. I used Drylock and the problem is barely there, but I'm fixing it for the long run. What I did was build something like a French drain with bricks & morter that channels water about an inch or so along the wall, and I let gravity run the water outside. We haven't had much rain the the northeast lately, so I've never seen if it really works. My question is, I would love to pour something in that space to help level off what's behind the brick, and also raise it an inch or 2. I know I could use that cement leveler, but that's pretty expensive. I'll probably put drylock in there but that won't really raise the level or even it out so it's easy to keep clean and dry. Does anyone have any other ideas? Can I water down regular cement a little so it will flatten out? Is there something else I could pour in there that might work? Thanks, Jerry
Fair enough...I'll try again. Water seeps through my basement walls. Instead of letting it run over to the carpet, it is stopped by a little wall I build, 2" high, made of brick & morter. As the water level rises, I have it so it can escape out near the walk-out basement door. It's like a french drain, but a french drain as you know is outside and is a series of pipes. This is inside the basement, and is like a channel for containing water. Some people use this system to run water towards their sump pump. But because I have a walk-out basement, I just need to run it towards the exit. I figured that if I could raise the little channel in there an inch or so and smoothed it out, it would stay cleaner, and gravity would work a little better for me. If you don't have any ideas, or I still haven't explained my situation adequately, no problem...I'll figure something out. thanks, Jerry French Drain works..but the way you have explained what you have done has me a bit puzzled. what you need? Or even a dense clay soil packed down would lift without allowing water to seep thru. thinking of French drains on one side of the 200 + year old part of the house .
Thanks Tom. I guess my problem isn't as bad as your's was. Right after I had bought my house a very bad hurricane hit my town in PA and flooded my basement a bit, which is why I started my interior french drain plan. But I actually haven't had any water in my basement for over a year, so I don't think the problem requires such drastic measures. But I do appreciate your comments. Jerry