# Flooded basement



## Swordlady (Aug 28, 2006)

I am SO not happy right now.  It has been pouring rain for the past few hours - and my basement now has at least a foot of flood water.  I'm hearing water rushing in, probably from the toilet and sink in the basement.  And the sump pump doesn't appear to be working.

My basement has been flooding during most every major rainstorm nowadays, but I think this is the worst it has gotten.  I also want to kick myself big time for *not* plugging up the half-bathroom in the basement sooner.  I should've known that the flooding was only going to get *worse*.

I need to get some sleep, but I'm getting worried about the rising water in the basement.  I've never heard of houses getting totally flooded in the city before (at least not where I am), but the rain is NOT letting up...  :erg:


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## Jonathan Randall (Aug 28, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> I am SO not happy right now. It has been pouring rain for the past few hours - and my basement now has at least a foot of flood water. I'm hearing water rushing in, probably from the toilet and sink in the basement. And the sump pump doesn't appear to be working.
> 
> My basement has been flooding during most every major rainstorm nowadays, but I think this is the worst it has gotten. I also want to kick myself big time for *not* plugging up the half-bathroom in the basement sooner. I should've known that the flooding was only going to get *worse*.
> 
> I need to get some sleep, but I'm getting worried about the rising water in the basement. I've never heard of houses getting totally flooded in the city before (at least not where I am), but the rain is NOT letting up... :erg:


 
I'm sorry to hear about this, SL. I've been through THREE major floods in Sacramento, including one where the water entered my apartment and another where I was evacuated, so I feel for you. Keep us posted. Hope it turns out well for you.


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## Swordlady (Aug 28, 2006)

Thanks, Jonathan.  I am seriously thinking about going down into the basement and wading through the mucky water - to see if I can get the sump pump working.  You think I should chance it, or wait til the morning and let the plumber take care of it?  Last time I checked, there was over a foot of water.  At least the water stopped rising.

The previous homeowner insisted to me that the basement never flooded during the 40+ years she lived in this house, which is about 100 years old.  But it's been flooding since Hurricanes Ivan and Jean a few years ago - and now floods most every time it rains.  :flammad:

Edited to add: Took some pics of the new lake in the basement.  I'm gonna call a plumber in the morning...


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## Jonathan Randall (Aug 28, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> Thanks, Jonathan. I am seriously thinking about going down into the basement and wading through the mucky water - to see if I can get the sump pump working. You think I should chance it, or wait til the morning and let the plumber take care of it? Last time I checked, there was over a foot of water. At least the water stopped rising.


 
Wait until morning! Whenever there is standing water in a home, there is always the possibility of electric current. Not worth the risk. Take care and wait for the plumber.


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## terryl965 (Aug 28, 2006)

Sorry SL wait on the plumber
Terry


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## MJS (Aug 28, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> I am SO not happy right now. It has been pouring rain for the past few hours - and my basement now has at least a foot of flood water. I'm hearing water rushing in, probably from the toilet and sink in the basement. And the sump pump doesn't appear to be working.
> 
> My basement has been flooding during most every major rainstorm nowadays, but I think this is the worst it has gotten. I also want to kick myself big time for *not* plugging up the half-bathroom in the basement sooner. I should've known that the flooding was only going to get *worse*.
> 
> I need to get some sleep, but I'm getting worried about the rising water in the basement. I've never heard of houses getting totally flooded in the city before (at least not where I am), but the rain is NOT letting up... :erg:


 
WOW!  Thats alot of water!  I was having a similar experience, although I was not getting that amount of water.  I live in a condo.  There is a slight hill in front of my unit, which pools a huge amount of water during heavy rain storms.  The water was coming into my garage and into the hallway, leading to the upstairs.  Fortunately, the responsibility of fixing this issue fell on the condo assoc. so they had someone come out and install a sump pump.  Fortunately, this solved the problem.  Not sure if you have it serviced on a regular basis, but thats what they suggested when they installed mine.  

Good luck with everything.

Mike


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## Brian R. VanCise (Aug 28, 2006)

I'm so sorry for your situation.  I have experienced flooding before and it is never pleasant.   Good luck.

Brian R. VanCise
www.instinctiveresponsetraining.com


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## Jade Tigress (Aug 28, 2006)

That sucks SL. I've only had a basement flood once and that is enough. It's a nightmare to clean. Get a plumber in there and keep safe. Good luck getting the problem solved. I hope this will be the last time you have to deal with it. *hugs*


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## Swordlady (Aug 28, 2006)

Seems like the sump pump *is* working after all.  The water level dropped several inches; there's a couple inches of water left.  I'm a little bit puzzled, though.  I hear the pump's motor, but I don't see the water draining outside.  Do pumps draw water back into the ground or something?

I'm not going to call the plumber right now, but I am going to look into getting that toilet and sink removed in the basement.  Hopefully that will prevent another flood.

And I am NOT looking forward to doing any kind of cleaning.  The basement is only partially finished; just a bit of drywall behind the stairs (leads to a bit of storage space) and a concrete floor.  There's a few things I stored down there, but will now have to throw away.  I'm going to wait til everything dries out first.


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## MSTCNC (Aug 28, 2006)

Sorry to hear about that, Jenn!:waah:

That rain was CRAZY, huh? I was working out in Hockessin, DE... and noticed all the debris and (leaves, branches, etc) down as I drove home at about 2am...

In High School, the basement of my Parents house (where my room was) flooded about this time one year... of course, I didn't find out until I woke up and stepped down into water...

Anyways... you're only 30 minutes +/- from me... and I'm off for the next two days... so, if you need a hand clearing damp and/or damaged things out of the basement... just let me know... and I'll work it out... 

Regards,

Andy :asian:


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## Jade Tigress (Aug 28, 2006)

Jen, have you been watching for mold after the previous flooding? That would be a main concern. Any black on the drywall or anything...if so, you can clean/kill it with bleach. Keep an eye out. Glad the water has started to drain and you can save some $$ on a plumber. Hang in there.


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## SFC JeffJ (Aug 28, 2006)

Crap, sorry to hear about this Jen.  I'm going through something similar, waiting to get my septic tank pumped.  Walked into a smal lake yesterday morning in my bathroom.  And the other half would forget and flush the toilet now and then.

Jeff


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## Swordlady (Aug 28, 2006)

Jade Tigress said:
			
		

> Jen, have you been watching for mold after the previous flooding? That would be a main concern. Any black on the drywall or anything...if so, you can clean/kill it with bleach. Keep an eye out. Glad the water has started to drain and you can save some $$ on a plumber. Hang in there.



Um...I'm embarrassed to say that I haven't done anything after any of the floodings, because I figured that the basement was only going to flood again after the next storm.    So the mold would appear as black spots on the drywall?  Didn't notice any from before.



			
				JeffJ said:
			
		

> I'm going through something similar, waiting to get my septic tank pumped. Walked into a smal lake yesterday morning in my bathroom. And the other half would forget and flush the toilet now and then.



Eek...that sounds even worse.  How far did this rain system extend, if there was also flooding in your state?


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## Jade Tigress (Aug 28, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> So the mold would appear as black spots on the drywall?  Didn't notice any from before.



Yes, keep an eye out for it. If you see any you can wash it down with hot water and bleach. We got it on our drywall after one time of flooding. Actually, if you see black spots on anything down there either throw it away if you don't need it or it can be replaced, or wash it with hot water and bleach to kill the mold. You may not notice it right away as it needs time to grow. Just keep an eye on it down there. 



			
				JeffJ said:
			
		

> Walked into a smal lake yesterday morning in my bathroom.



Ack! Sorry to hear that Jeff. NO FUN.


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## Kacey (Aug 28, 2006)

That really sucks - I remember when I was a kid, and our basement flooded after a heavy rain; we had a well, and when it rained enough to raise the water table, it backed up into the basement.

I'd still call a plumber about the sump pump - if it's running, that's great, but it's apparently not powerful enough - but at least now it's not quite the same level of emergency it was.


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## terryl965 (Aug 28, 2006)

SO SL any good news this am has the water been pumped out ? I hope it gets better
Terry


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## Cryozombie (Aug 28, 2006)

Ack, that sucks.  My basement used to flood everytime it rained, but not nearly that bad.  I'd agree, get a bigger sump pump.​


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## Grenadier (Aug 28, 2006)

Sorry to rain on everyone here (no pun intended), but...

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at5+shtml/145324.shtml?5day?large


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## Swordlady (Aug 28, 2006)

Grenadier said:
			
		

> Sorry to rain on everyone here (no pun intended), but...
> 
> http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at5+shtml/145324.shtml?5day?large


 
That explains the 4+ hours of torrential rain late last night/early morning.  Of course I didn't bother to look up the weather forecast.

Water level was about an inch when I left for work.  The basement has a slight downward slope to the front of the house, which makes water drainage a bit easier (I guess).

I am going to call the plumber about the sump pump, and inquire about getting the toilet and sink removed.  Great...yet another big something I have to shell out money for...ah, the joys of owning a home...


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## qizmoduis (Aug 29, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> That explains the 4+ hours of torrential rain late last night/early morning.  Of course I didn't bother to look up the weather forecast.



No, actually that's the forecast track for the remains of Ernesto.  It may pass over us sometime this weekend.  The rain we had this past weekend was just a series of flash thunderstorms, which were pretty serious in some areas.  Here in King of Prussia, my office building actually lost a bunch of trees to wind.  The tree outside my office was apparently hit by lightning.

You might want to have somebody address your basement before the weekend.  If what's left of Ernesto passes over us, it will probably be even worse than what just happened.


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## Swordlady (Aug 29, 2006)

qizmoduis said:
			
		

> No, actually that's the forecast track for the remains of Ernesto.  It may pass over us sometime this weekend.  The rain we had this past weekend was just a series of flash thunderstorms, which were pretty serious in some areas.  Here in King of Prussia, my office building actually lost a bunch of trees to wind.  The tree outside my office was apparently hit by lightning.
> 
> You might want to have somebody address your basement before the weekend.  If what's left of Ernesto passes over us, it will probably be even worse than what just happened.



Oh crap....that wasn't Ernesto that hit us last weekend?  I  guess it's a good thing that the plumber is coming over today (hopefully).

The water completely drained out of the basement when I came home from work yesterday, but the floor was still damp.  There's yet another thin layer of muck on the floor.  Eeew!


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## terryl965 (Aug 29, 2006)

How about any mold SL have you checked for this yet?
Terry


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## Swordlady (Aug 29, 2006)

No, I haven't checked out the basement for mold yet.  The floor was still wet last night, and most of the flourescent lights stopped working.  Of course I could've grabbed a flashlight, but I still don't want to track mud onto the carpet.


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## terryl965 (Aug 29, 2006)

Well when you finally get everything cleaned up putting fans down there will help die everything out.
Terry


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## Cryozombie (Aug 29, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> Great...yet another big something I have to shell out money for...ah, the joys of owning a home...



Thats why I am all in favor of DIY when it comes to home ownership.


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## Swordlady (Aug 29, 2006)

terryl965 said:
			
		

> Well when you finally get everything cleaned up putting fans down there will help die everything out.
> Terry



I have one big window fan running in the basement right now.  But since there is only one socket, I can't plug in another one.


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## Swordlady (Aug 29, 2006)

The plumber just left my house.  As I suspected, the sump pump needs to be replaced.  He also recommended to have the toilet and sink capped off.  The good news is that he'll most likely be able to replace the pump and cap everything off before the weekend.  The bad news is that this is going to cost me $350.  Wasn't as much as I expected (I thought I was going to pay over $500), but replacing the sump pump wasn't on my monthly budget.


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## SFC JeffJ (Aug 29, 2006)

At least it's a bit better than you were expecting.  That's some consolation at least.  

Jeff


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## Kacey (Aug 29, 2006)

Does anyone _ever_ have a sump pump in their monthly budget?  I know I don't... At least it wasn't as painful as it could have been.


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## Swordlady (Aug 29, 2006)

Yeah...at least it didn't cost as much as I expected.  Still hurts the ol' budget, especially because my car is due for a service check soon - which will most likely cost another $400-500, since the brake pads most likely need to be replaced.  Youch.

Capping off the toilet and sink *should* eliminate my flooding problems from the passing rainstorms.  Just in time for the remains of (former) Tropical Storm Ernesto, which should be hitting my area this weekend.


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## Kacey (Aug 29, 2006)

Well, at least if you get it taken care of, it won't cost even more in the future!


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## Swordlady (Aug 29, 2006)

True.  Ernesto would probably dump another foot of water (or more) in the basement if I don't have the pump and the toilet squared away before then.  :erg:


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## Swordlady (Sep 1, 2006)

Well...the plumber came over this morning and replaced the sump pump.  He also removed the sink and toilet, and capped off the pipes.  Just in time for this weekend, since the weather forecast anticipates another 3.5" of rain - and the water level is already high.  I hope this is the end of my flooding problems...


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## SFC JeffJ (Sep 1, 2006)

Glad to hear it's all done Jen.  Hope that takes care of the problem!

Jeff


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## Kacey (Sep 1, 2006)

Swordlady said:
			
		

> Well...the plumber came over this morning and replaced the sump pump.  He also removed the sink and toilet, and capped off the pipes.  Just in time for this weekend, since the weather forecast anticipates another 3.5" of rain - and the water level is already high.  I hope this is the end of my flooding problems...



My fingers are crossed for you that this solves it!


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