My basement has flooded, possibly due to standing water in one of the window wells. There is water pooling up under the mulch next to the window well on the side of the house, and I can see water seeping into the window well. The house is a year old, and I am out of warranty. Is it normal to see standing water under the side of the yard under the mulch? Also, I cannot step into the backyard as it is very muddy. The builder has corrected grading issues twice before where there was standing water in my backyard, but it looks like the issue was never resolved. How did the water get into my basement? Could there be a crack somewhere? I am really hoping someone could help me with this, as I never slept after this happened and am worried. We put a lot of effort into finishing the basement. The carpets are damaged as well. I have a restoration company coming tomorrow, but for now, I have put a sump pump in to drain the water out. I have attached a video link for reference. Thank you, guys. Standing water video
That hairline crack is not (yet) a structural problem and is not uncommon to see within the first couple years. And your builder may be right, that most of the water entered through the window... you should be able to tell where the water line is. Once again, if you had proper surface drainage, you wouldn't have water coming in the crack or pooling in the window well. You can seal it up, but it's still a very small bandaid. From what I remember, Utah residential code does not require foundation drainage and therefore, no window well drains (where would it go?). It does however require specific grading (2% over 10 ft extending away from the house). Which if not possible (your side yard), should require physical drainage (french drain, surface drain, etc). Call your city's building department and they can verify this- you may need to talk to a building inspector.
As for the studs/ framing- it def looks scabby but they aren't structural and I'm guessing the demo team cut 1 or 2 out to see that crack. Easy enough to put it back together.
My basement has flooded, possibly due to standing water in one of the window wells. There is water pooling up under the mulch next to the window well on the side of the house, and I can see water seeping into the window well. The house is a year old, and I am out of warranty. Is it normal to see standing water under the side of the yard under the mulch? Also, I cannot step into the backyard as it is very muddy. The builder has corrected grading issues twice before where there was standing water in my backyard, but it looks like the issue was never resolved. How did the water get into my basement? Could there be a crack somewhere? I am really hoping someone could help me with this, as I never slept after this happened and am worried. We put a lot of effort into finishing the basement. The carpets are damaged as well. I have a restoration company coming tomorrow, but for now, I have put a sump pump in to drain the water out. I have attached a video link for reference. Thank you, guys. Standing water video
Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
2y
Did the builder guarantee a waterproof basement for you?
Do you have that in writing?
Go into your basement and measure the height of the bottom stair that sits on the concrete.
Then measure the height of the stair just above it.
If the bottom stair is taller than the top stair the basement may have been designed to resist water.
Are the two stairs of the same height, the basement may have been designed in a normal method which would mean not totally waterproof.
Notice I said the May And not for sure.
At certain times of the year in the spot your house is on the water level may rise up from below.
An underground stream that has more water in it sometimes, and sometimes less water.
Or it may be surface water flowing from another lot, or surface water piling up from rain and not soaking into the soil, which may be some type of backfill they had dumped in at some point during the construction process to grade the lot higher than it was when they bought it.
It's important to know where the Water is coming from.
Run off from your neighbor's lot, rainwater, an underground stream that is becoming too full and rising up, a broken water pipe under the ground That is feeding your house or your neighbor's house.
If your yard is mud you may be able to send a soil sample for testing, probably several points around the yard, and they will tell you do you need to add sand, or loam, or manure, or ground up sea shells, et cetera to your dirt to make it Drain better.
Notice again I said May and not will, because we're dealing with nature here.
Meaning one year, or for 10 years you may not have the leaky basement problem, but then it will pop up again for two years and then go away or something like that.
But if you have this in writing from the builder that you have received a waterproof basement and it's not waterproof, it seems to me you should be knocking on the builder's door to fix that problem.
I expect all basements to leak At some time or another even Those that are not leaked in 100 years.
They are underground and the water table rises and falls underground and some areas.
@Scott Mac Thanks for the response I appreciate it. We are not sure from where the water is coming from but water is pooling in my backyard. Since it is a new build, water shouldn't be entering the basement unless there is a Crack somewhere right? Here is a video
Can you post a couple of pics- looking down the length of that side of the house to show the grade, maybe the entire yard on that side and your rain gutter downspouts? How far away are the downspouts from the window and are they extended away from the house either above or below ground? I really doubt the gradient sloping away from the house or how far away that extends is enough. Maybe it looked good when the builder handed off the keys but if the backfill soil isn’t compacted well along the foundation, it’ll settle pretty quickly with all the rain we’ve had this year. You mention it’s pooling elsewhere… where exactly did he fix the grade?
@John Coulter pls take a look at these videos. They fixed the grading in just the back of the house and laid mulch on the sides of the house. Thank you.
@Scott Mac Thanks for the response I appreciate it. We are not sure from where the water is coming from but water is pooling in my backyard. Since it is a new build, water shouldn't be entering the basement unless there is a Crack somewhere right? Here is a video
Sheesh, that's a full on pool party. Guessing it's the same builder/ developer for all those homes? Even though it's out of warranty, it's a problem that's persisted before that expired so I'd still try to get the builder to step up. Probably not going to help you in the short term though. The unfortunate thing is they also diverted your neighbor's drainage to your backyard, with nowhere to go. From the videos, I cant tell what the side yards look like (how much space you have for drain pipe to pass) or how far it is to the street. Probably stating the obvious here but your going to continue to have this problem until you install some drainage that directs all that water from the downspouts and any residual surface water, to the street (pop up drainage emitter near the sidewalk). There are a few different options/ methods (avoid the dry well in this case). Here's a quick youtube video addressing something similar. You'd need surface drains out in the middle of the yard that tie in as well.
@John Coulter Thanks John. The video showing mulch laid is where the sideyard is. Is this the builder's responsibility to fix? Also since the water is pooling everywhere and the soil is muddy, does this have any effect on the foundation? It has been this way on and off since the home was purchased in February 2023. I am concerned about the foundation. Also, how did water get into the basement from the window well? The window wells should be sealed properly to prevent any water from entering the home, correct? Or could there be cracks anywhere?
If they re-graded it, they didn't do a good job. Throwing mulch on the top isn't going to do anything-it is what the soil below the mulch is doing that determines how the water will flow. I'd talk to the builder since whoever he got to regrade the yard twice (along with after the initial build) clearly didn't do a good job.
Where do the hoses in the second and third video come from? One appears to come from the house, but the two others from elsewhere and they all stop in the middle of your yard.
If the water is high enough in the window well, it will come in through the area around the window. Water finds it way into everything. I'd also ask about getting a sump pump.
Unless that waterline in the window well is above the bottom of the window (which it actually looks like it is), it's really hard to say where's it's coming in without tearing out drywall. The only penetration from the window well would be where it's bolted to the foundation and that hole wouldn't go all the way through. Sounds backwards but I wouldn't worry as much about where it's getting in as I would be about how much standing water you have in close proximity to the window. It's not going to damage the foundation per se but my priority would be to install some drainage. The approx. 4 ft between your house & the fenceline (because of the window wells) isn't really enough distance even with proper grade, to get that water away from your house.
Also, dry everything out in the basement but I wouldn't make any repairs until you get this sorted out... and depending on the extent of the damage, don't let the restoration company do the repairs without getting some other bids. They're usually the most expensive. As far as the builders responsibility- that's up for debate. The fact that you have neighbors water draining into your yard, with nowhere to go, is an oversight on developer/ builder and the way those lots were graded before any houses were built.
@Theresa Harris yes the one hose is from my house. The hoses that you see behind the standing water in the yard are the neighbors. I am going to take another video today covering the front of the house to the backyard and post it later today. Thank you very much.
@Theresa Harris yes the one hose is from my house. The hoses that you see behind the standing water in the yard are the neighbors. I am going to take another video today covering the front of the house to the backyard and post it later today. Thank you very much.
Any hoses from your neighbours that end in your yard, should be put back into your neighbour's yard. Knock on their door and let them know they need to be repositioned so they end in their yard-not yours. If they are still there in a week, coil up what is in your yard and place the end of the hose at the fence line pointing into their yard.
Severna Park, MD · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 7k+ votes
2y
That window well should have a drain in it going to the exterior drain tile , which then goes to the sump pump . If you have a block foundation , water gets into block because they are hollow . BUT if the drain tile was done correctly with weep holes and a sump pump , you shouldnt have a water problem
My basement has flooded, possibly due to standing water in one of the window wells. There is water pooling up under the mulch next to the window well on the side of the house, and I can see water seeping into the window well. The house is a year old, and I am out of warranty. Is it normal to see standing water under the side of the yard under the mulch? Also, I cannot step into the backyard as it is very muddy. The builder has corrected grading issues twice before where there was standing water in my backyard, but it looks like the issue was never resolved. How did the water get into my basement? Could there be a crack somewhere? I am really hoping someone could help me with this, as I never slept after this happened and am worried. We put a lot of effort into finishing the basement. The carpets are damaged as well. I have a restoration company coming tomorrow, but for now, I have put a sump pump in to drain the water out. I have attached a video link for reference. Thank you, guys. Standing water
That standing water has nowhere to go. I think your best and maybe only solution is to put in a french drain across the yard with a large catch basin at the low point. Use a quality, high volume submersible pump for the basin. This assumes you're not violating any ordnances (check with municipality).
You would be amazed how much water flows through 6" perforated pipe. Run some 220V wiring in pvc underground (licensed electrician) to power a good pump if you have space/amperage reserve in your electrical panel. 220V requires less current to run than a 120V for the same power, so it's more efficient.
This guy has a lot of good videos on diy yard drainage systems.
My basement has flooded, possibly due to standing water in one of the window wells. There is water pooling up under the mulch next to the window well on the side of the house, and I can see water seeping into the window well. The house is a year old, and I am out of warranty. Is it normal to see standing water under the side of the yard under the mulch? Also, I cannot step into the backyard as it is very muddy. The builder has corrected grading issues twice before where there was standing water in my backyard, but it looks like the issue was never resolved. How did the water get into my basement? Could there be a crack somewhere? I am really hoping someone could help me with this, as I never slept after this happened and am worried. We put a lot of effort into finishing the basement. The carpets are damaged as well. I have a restoration company coming tomorrow, but for now, I have put a sump pump in to drain the water out. I have attached a video link for reference. Thank you, guys. Standing water
That standing water has nowhere to go. I think your best and maybe only solution is to put in a french drain across the yard with a large catch basin at the low point. Use a quality, high volume submersible pump for the basin. This assumes you're not violating any ordnances (check with municipality).
You would be amazed how much water flows through 6" perforated pipe. Run some 220V wiring in pvc underground (licensed electrician) to power a good pump if you have space/amperage reserve in your electrical panel. 220V requires less current to run than a 120V for the same power, so it's more efficient.
This guy has a lot of good videos on diy yard drainage systems.
Thanks for everyone's help with this. Very much appreciated. The restoration guys found a foundation crack which caused the water to enter the basement from the window well. They said they can seal the crack right away. Should I wait for the builder to come take a look at the crack or just go ahead and seal the crack now? I just don't want to the builder to think that this was not caused by the crack once sealed and hence not accept responsibility of the structural problem. They have a 10 year structural warranty. Please offer your insights asap if possible. Thanks everyone. @John Coulter@Theresa Harris@Matthew Paul
can you please check these pictures and advice? The builder is saying that most of the water enter through the window and not the crack to protect themselves I guess. How to prove that the water actually entered through the foundation crack? What are your thoughts with this size of a crack?Thanks everyone @John Coulter
Thanks for everyone's help with this. Very much appreciated. The restoration guys found a foundation crack which caused the water to enter the basement from the window well. They said they can seal the crack right away. Should I wait for the builder to come take a look at the crack or just go ahead and seal the crack now? I just don't want to the builder to think that this was not caused by the crack once sealed and hence not accept responsibility of the structural problem. They have a 10 year structural warranty. Please offer your insights asap if possible. Thanks everyone. @John Coulter@Theresa Harris@Matthew Paul
Call them and tell them you have someone there who can fix it now and because it is an ongoing problem and causing a lot of damage you want it dealt with now and then take a lot of photos. If water is coming through the window, the window well was not set up properly. Make sure the drain at the bottom of the well is working and connected to the weeping tile/drain.
can you please check these pictures and advice? The builder is saying that most of the water enter through the window and not the crack to protect themselves I guess. How to prove that the water actually entered through the foundation crack? What are your thoughts with this size of a crack?Thanks everyone @John Coulter
Water will make its way through porous concrete by hydraulic pressure alone. You can see that the concrete is wet all around the crack, not just running out of it. The water table is high and the water will find its way in somewhere. Foundations are designed to support homes, not hold back water (maybe to some small degree). That crack is not a structural concern. The REAL problem is the standing water in the yard. IMO you will continue to have a problem until you remedy the water in the yard with a drainage system. A French Drain system with a catch basin and pump should work if the grading will not allow natural drainage.
can you please check these pictures and advice? The builder is saying that most of the water enter through the window and not the crack to protect themselves I guess. How to prove that the water actually entered through the foundation crack? What are your thoughts with this size of a crack?Thanks everyone @John Coulter
Some of those joists end in mid-air-why? They should be going all the way down to the ground. I've never seen a window framed that way. Normally there is a joist running along the outside.
can you please check these pictures and advice? The builder is saying that most of the water enter through the window and not the crack to protect themselves I guess. How to prove that the water actually entered through the foundation crack? What are your thoughts with this size of a crack?Thanks everyone @John Coulter
Some of those joists end in mid-air-why? They should be going all the way down to the ground. I've never seen a window framed that way. Normally there is a joist running along the outside.
My knowledge on framing is very limited. The restoration company had to cut the drywall out and remove some of the studs. Can you please tell me or possibly highlight and show me which joists are you referring to?
can you please check these pictures and advice? The builder is saying that most of the water enter through the window and not the crack to protect themselves I guess. How to prove that the water actually entered through the foundation crack? What are your thoughts with this size of a crack?Thanks everyone @John Coulter
Some of those joists end in mid-air-why? They should be going all the way down to the ground. I've never seen a window framed that way. Normally there is a joist running along the outside.
My knowledge on framing is very limited. The restoration company had to cut the drywall out and remove some of the studs. Can you please tell me or possibly highlight and show me which joists are you referring to?
The photo on the top left (it is also visible in other photos)-see the vertical studs? Those should go all the way down to the base plate. There should be a stud on the left side of that window that goes to the ground. Google 'framing a window' and there will be lots of photos of how the studs in the walls should look-none of them should be floating in the air.
Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
2y
When a sidewalk gets a crack in it like that, and winter comes and it freezes, then it melts the water goes into the crack, then it freezes again- and heaves the crack apart further because ice expands.
Where I'm going with this is it might be intelligent to seal that crack up from the outside.
If your foundation starts cracking bigger every year from freezing that might affect value of your house, and its stability.
So if you only seal the crack from the inside I'm taking a guess here- but I'm thinking that you might have the same problem with the foundation that happens with a sidewalk and that just opens the crack bigger. But I'm no structural engineer I'm just someone with some guesses about it.
So you may want to talk to your crack sealer about that possibility versus just sealing it up on the inside to stop the water from coming in right now.
