Mainline on the street was probably plugged. If you are low man on the main you would be first to get water or sewage. Old infrastructure, pipes weren't big enough to handle that volume of water in that short of time. Happened in my neck of the woods all the time. Till the city started adding theses holding tanks in parks on the storm system to handle it. Seems to be working.
Basement flooded. Why?
- Thread starter dja4260
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Get a water back up sump. Works on water pressure and you don't have to worry about power failure. I got one b/c I travel a lot and I know my wife would ignore the alarm on the main sump
Mostly good info. If you have a root problem, clearing the line is only temporary. The problem will have to be located and fixed or it will come back at some point. For the drywall, you must cut out the wet part. This should be done quickly, before mold sets in. When you cut out the drywall, do it to some convenient size. If you cut 16", this will give you 3 pieces from a sheet. Cut 24" and you get 2 pieces to a sheet. the replacement board should be moisture resistant, like is used in a bathroom. I think it is called greenboard. Check with the home center. Good luck,
Wayne
Wayne
You need to get the wet drywall out - now. Good advice on size of pieces to cut out in the post above.
You need a plumber to figure out if the clog/root/breakage is on your line or if its in the Main line.
This is one reason you don't connect a sump pump to the sanitary drain (and one reason why its illegal in many places like here). The flip side of that is the water is at least somewhat cleaner since its mostly stormwater, but even if that hadn't happened, it would eventually be all sewage.
Strongly suggest the sump be reroute to drain to the exterior of the house.
You need a plumber to figure out if the clog/root/breakage is on your line or if its in the Main line.
This is one reason you don't connect a sump pump to the sanitary drain (and one reason why its illegal in many places like here). The flip side of that is the water is at least somewhat cleaner since its mostly stormwater, but even if that hadn't happened, it would eventually be all sewage.
Strongly suggest the sump be reroute to drain to the exterior of the house.
Originally Posted By: dja4260
UPDATE!
Still sitting by floor drain.
I opened up two sanitary line clean outs, one inside basement, one outside and both were filled to the brim.
House built in 1950.
What's going on!
I would bet your floor drain is hooked to a sanitary line, and the flow into the basement is because it is the low point in the neighborhood. Call the city to check their line......It is likely it is backed up, which is what is causing your issue.
You might look into a backflow prevention device, to keep this from recurring.
UPDATE!
Still sitting by floor drain.
I opened up two sanitary line clean outs, one inside basement, one outside and both were filled to the brim.
House built in 1950.
What's going on!
I would bet your floor drain is hooked to a sanitary line, and the flow into the basement is because it is the low point in the neighborhood. Call the city to check their line......It is likely it is backed up, which is what is causing your issue.
You might look into a backflow prevention device, to keep this from recurring.
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
You need to get the wet drywall out - now. Good advice on size of pieces to cut out in the post above.
You need a plumber to figure out if the clog/root/breakage is on your line or if its in the Main line.
This is one reason you don't connect a sump pump to the sanitary drain (and one reason why its illegal in many places like here). The flip side of that is the water is at least somewhat cleaner since its mostly stormwater, but even if that hadn't happened, it would eventually be all sewage.
Strongly suggest the sump be reroute to drain to the exterior of the house.
Exactly what I said on the previous page, but no one seemed to notice. If the sump pump were routed outside as it should be, we'd be talking about a small mess to clean up and a couple hundred bucks to have a plumber unclog the drain, not a flooded basement and thousands of dollars in damage.
You need to get the wet drywall out - now. Good advice on size of pieces to cut out in the post above.
You need a plumber to figure out if the clog/root/breakage is on your line or if its in the Main line.
This is one reason you don't connect a sump pump to the sanitary drain (and one reason why its illegal in many places like here). The flip side of that is the water is at least somewhat cleaner since its mostly stormwater, but even if that hadn't happened, it would eventually be all sewage.
Strongly suggest the sump be reroute to drain to the exterior of the house.
Exactly what I said on the previous page, but no one seemed to notice. If the sump pump were routed outside as it should be, we'd be talking about a small mess to clean up and a couple hundred bucks to have a plumber unclog the drain, not a flooded basement and thousands of dollars in damage.
Originally Posted By: bradepb
Call a good plumber. Remove base trim, remove first foot or so of drywall and replace with blueboard. If the drywall got that wet it will never be right.
Agree. If you don't cut back the wet dry wall the water will wick up and the damage will be even higher.
In my non expert opinion, you may have a partially blocked sewer outlet, or you could be the lowest house in the area.
Your sump pump should discharge outside and not into the sewer - it's our local code requirement. That keeps you from flooding your own basement. And you should have a functioning back flow preventer. That prevents the neighbourhood from flooding your basement.
The good news is it's only happened once. One of my secretaries had a basement flood a second time the same summer. So don't just dry it out and fix the damage. Do the preventive stuff.
Call a good plumber. Remove base trim, remove first foot or so of drywall and replace with blueboard. If the drywall got that wet it will never be right.
Agree. If you don't cut back the wet dry wall the water will wick up and the damage will be even higher.
In my non expert opinion, you may have a partially blocked sewer outlet, or you could be the lowest house in the area.
Your sump pump should discharge outside and not into the sewer - it's our local code requirement. That keeps you from flooding your own basement. And you should have a functioning back flow preventer. That prevents the neighbourhood from flooding your basement.
The good news is it's only happened once. One of my secretaries had a basement flood a second time the same summer. So don't just dry it out and fix the damage. Do the preventive stuff.
Anything that anyone says here is a guess, there are too many variables that needed to be sorted out.
You more than likely had a sewer backup.
I have been faced with that circumstance twice.
Agree with getting the affected drywall out. It really is not worth the hassle trying to dry it out plus it is a source of potential mold.
Connect with a good plumber. Let them snake/camera the pipes to determine condition. Correct as necessary. Get a backflow device installed ASAP.
Backflow device will solve the issue. I have not had a problem since mine was installed.
You more than likely had a sewer backup.
I have been faced with that circumstance twice.
Agree with getting the affected drywall out. It really is not worth the hassle trying to dry it out plus it is a source of potential mold.
Connect with a good plumber. Let them snake/camera the pipes to determine condition. Correct as necessary. Get a backflow device installed ASAP.
Backflow device will solve the issue. I have not had a problem since mine was installed.
Originally Posted By: Tdbo
Anything that anyone says here is a guess, there are too many variables that needed to be sorted out.
You more than likely had a sewer backup.
I have been faced with that circumstance twice.
Agree with getting the affected drywall out. It really is not worth the hassle trying to dry it out plus it is a source of potential mold.
Connect with a good plumber. Let them snake/camera the pipes to determine condition. Correct as necessary. Get a backflow device installed ASAP.
Backflow device will solve the issue. I have not had a problem since mine was installed.
UPDATE.
Water is sitting at top of floor drain. Both the inside and outside clean-out are to the brim.
I have a blockage from the outside cleanout to the street.
My gutters are tied into the main line out. With the intense rain and blockage, the water had nowhere to go.
People keep referring to having the sump-pump discharge outside the house. In Chicago, that's against code. I tied it into a drain out per code.
The sump pump wasn't the issue, it is actually irreverent in the flooding.
My plumber is coming to rod out the main line and I want to camera it as I've had to rodded twice before in the past year.
Anything that anyone says here is a guess, there are too many variables that needed to be sorted out.
You more than likely had a sewer backup.
I have been faced with that circumstance twice.
Agree with getting the affected drywall out. It really is not worth the hassle trying to dry it out plus it is a source of potential mold.
Connect with a good plumber. Let them snake/camera the pipes to determine condition. Correct as necessary. Get a backflow device installed ASAP.
Backflow device will solve the issue. I have not had a problem since mine was installed.
UPDATE.
Water is sitting at top of floor drain. Both the inside and outside clean-out are to the brim.
I have a blockage from the outside cleanout to the street.
My gutters are tied into the main line out. With the intense rain and blockage, the water had nowhere to go.
People keep referring to having the sump-pump discharge outside the house. In Chicago, that's against code. I tied it into a drain out per code.
The sump pump wasn't the issue, it is actually irreverent in the flooding.
My plumber is coming to rod out the main line and I want to camera it as I've had to rodded twice before in the past year.
Chicago also has a combined sewer system.
Learning new things everyday...
Learning new things everyday...
Can you post more pictures of your set up ?
Hope you resolve the problem before mold starts to grow.
Hope you resolve the problem before mold starts to grow.
What isn't clear to me now is whether you have one outlet from your home that carries everything to the combined sewer (ie: your sump, sanitary, and gutter drainage) or if you have two lines - one for sanitary (which in most of the country would include your floor drain), and another for your sump and gutter discharge.
Either way, if your system is full, that means there is a clog/break/or blockage downstream from your cleanouts that needs to be addressed. It is possible the "blockage" is the system being overwhelmed and over capacity and your basement is the relief valve, in which case too bad for you, and you need a backflow preventer (though that only keeps water from backing in - if you add water on your side, it won't have anywhere to go, and will probably pop out your floor drain).
Regardless, start pulling the drywall out, get the fans going along with a dehumidifier, and get a plumber to sort out the drain issue. If you've had to have the line rodded twice in the past year, odds are you are in for a full line replacement, this being the third time you've needed this service.
If your sump pump and gutters didn't tie into your main line (or had another way out), you'd have way less water in your basement. While not the cause of your problem - they didn't help.
Either way, if your system is full, that means there is a clog/break/or blockage downstream from your cleanouts that needs to be addressed. It is possible the "blockage" is the system being overwhelmed and over capacity and your basement is the relief valve, in which case too bad for you, and you need a backflow preventer (though that only keeps water from backing in - if you add water on your side, it won't have anywhere to go, and will probably pop out your floor drain).
Regardless, start pulling the drywall out, get the fans going along with a dehumidifier, and get a plumber to sort out the drain issue. If you've had to have the line rodded twice in the past year, odds are you are in for a full line replacement, this being the third time you've needed this service.
If your sump pump and gutters didn't tie into your main line (or had another way out), you'd have way less water in your basement. While not the cause of your problem - they didn't help.
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
What isn't clear to me now is whether you have one outlet from your home that carries everything to the combined sewer (ie: your sump, sanitary, and gutter drainage) or if you have two lines - one for sanitary (which in most of the country would include your floor drain), and another for your sump and gutter discharge.
Either way, if your system is full, that means there is a clog/break/or blockage downstream from your cleanouts that needs to be addressed. It is possible the "blockage" is the system being overwhelmed and over capacity and your basement is the relief valve, in which case too bad for you, and you need a backflow preventer (though that only keeps water from backing in - if you add water on your side, it won't have anywhere to go, and will probably pop out your floor drain).
Regardless, start pulling the drywall out, get the fans going along with a dehumidifier, and get a plumber to sort out the drain issue. If you've had to have the line rodded twice in the past year, odds are you are in for a full line replacement, this being the third time you've needed this service.
If your sump pump and gutters didn't tie into your main line (or had another way out), you'd have way less water in your basement. While not the cause of your problem - they didn't help.
It's not clear to me either. I have ONE main line out to the street. Where they combine, I'm not sure.
I also completely agree that if the gutters didn't tie in the main, I'd have little to no water...
What isn't clear to me now is whether you have one outlet from your home that carries everything to the combined sewer (ie: your sump, sanitary, and gutter drainage) or if you have two lines - one for sanitary (which in most of the country would include your floor drain), and another for your sump and gutter discharge.
Either way, if your system is full, that means there is a clog/break/or blockage downstream from your cleanouts that needs to be addressed. It is possible the "blockage" is the system being overwhelmed and over capacity and your basement is the relief valve, in which case too bad for you, and you need a backflow preventer (though that only keeps water from backing in - if you add water on your side, it won't have anywhere to go, and will probably pop out your floor drain).
Regardless, start pulling the drywall out, get the fans going along with a dehumidifier, and get a plumber to sort out the drain issue. If you've had to have the line rodded twice in the past year, odds are you are in for a full line replacement, this being the third time you've needed this service.
If your sump pump and gutters didn't tie into your main line (or had another way out), you'd have way less water in your basement. While not the cause of your problem - they didn't help.
It's not clear to me either. I have ONE main line out to the street. Where they combine, I'm not sure.
I also completely agree that if the gutters didn't tie in the main, I'd have little to no water...
Originally Posted By: dja4260
I got 5 inches of water today up through a floor drain. It's rain water. We had a quick HEAVY storm. None of my neighbors got water in my populated area. Our homes tie into the same line out. I'm confused to why I'm the only one with water?
I'm also distraught over that hard work I just put in.
Wow. Big bummer. Truly frustrating bad news. I'd say you're the only one with water because you have the lowest drain. Water is lazy. It takes the path of least resistance.
One solution that comes to mind (depending on where your floor drain is) is to cover it with an EPDM membrane/rubber sheet/smooth floor anti-fatigue mat/etc. then stack some serious weight on top. Like sand/quick concrete. At least two high, maybe 4. If you add enough resistance to water flow, it'll flow somewhere else.
A fan won't really help to remove moisture of that scale. Wet vac it up, turn on your A/C down there or else borrow/rent/buy a dehumidifier and run it 24/7.
I got 5 inches of water today up through a floor drain. It's rain water. We had a quick HEAVY storm. None of my neighbors got water in my populated area. Our homes tie into the same line out. I'm confused to why I'm the only one with water?
I'm also distraught over that hard work I just put in.
Wow. Big bummer. Truly frustrating bad news. I'd say you're the only one with water because you have the lowest drain. Water is lazy. It takes the path of least resistance.
One solution that comes to mind (depending on where your floor drain is) is to cover it with an EPDM membrane/rubber sheet/smooth floor anti-fatigue mat/etc. then stack some serious weight on top. Like sand/quick concrete. At least two high, maybe 4. If you add enough resistance to water flow, it'll flow somewhere else.
A fan won't really help to remove moisture of that scale. Wet vac it up, turn on your A/C down there or else borrow/rent/buy a dehumidifier and run it 24/7.
I dealt with water in the basement for a lot of years when I bought my first house in New York.
After heavy rain, I would get backflow through the floor drain and it would soak the basement.
Mine was unfinished, so I just let it drain back and use a floor squeege.
I had a basement guy look at it, they wanted to install a water powered sump pump, a backflow prevention device, and drain tile to the tune of $$$$ that I didn't have.
Sold the house and let someone else deal with it, we moved South anyways.
After heavy rain, I would get backflow through the floor drain and it would soak the basement.
Mine was unfinished, so I just let it drain back and use a floor squeege.
I had a basement guy look at it, they wanted to install a water powered sump pump, a backflow prevention device, and drain tile to the tune of $$$$ that I didn't have.
Sold the house and let someone else deal with it, we moved South anyways.
Interesting reading on the City of Chicago website. One of their programs to lessen these type of backups is to encourage disconnections of the direct discharge of gutters to the system. Something to think about anyways, if your yard can handle it.
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