HELP!!!! Water coming through cement floor like a spring!

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Countryside : One Thread

Basement is flooding, not wet outside!! Looks like a spring bubbling up through the old cistern floor!! How do we stop it, or how do we fix it???? Anyone ever heard of something like this???

-- Suzanne (weir@frontiernet.net), April 01, 2002

Answers

Suzanne, listen to your pump........is it running?? Could you have a broken water pipe?? That is what it sounds like to me. (want to know why I know that :>) )

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), April 01, 2002.

Diane, No, its not the pump! It does act like a flowing spring or artesian well!! But gosh its making a mess of the basement because its filling up so fast. {I take it your pump did something awful!!!}

-- Suzanne (weir@frontiernet.net), April 01, 2002.

More info:

Has it ever done this before? Did it used to get damp other years? Or was it dry for decades, and this is new?

Was there any construction around your house? New trench dug for wires, pipe? Changes with the eve/drain spouts? New roofing?

Any trees disappear near your house?

Wherever you live, is it typically wet right now, mushy spring, or is it unusually rainy & wet & all? Or is it just normal, like the last 10 years...

Is anyone uphill from you, and made any major construction changes to the land?

You say it's not plumbing, so I'll take you at your word & leave those questions out. :)

If it's just natural water perculating in, you have a big job. The sealers & all that business just won't cut it, really. You need to intercept the water with tile, which is a big trench to dig. Are you saying it comes up from the middle of the floor, or from a wall? Is there a new crack there?

--->Paul

-- paul (ramblerplm@hotmail.com), April 01, 2002.


Paul, Nothing new done! Cistern has been dry for years... The water is bubbling up through the floor and has made some new holes. Its usually quite muddy outside now, but can actually drive a truck across the lawn and not leave a trench-this time of year it should! The cistern is filling rapidly!! When it gets acouple feet deep of course, it leaks into the rest of the basement. We rented a pump, looks as though it'll be running all night. We tried calling afew water pro's but it's late!

-- Suzanne (weir@frontiernet.net), April 01, 2002.

Hi Suzanne, Where do you live, are there springs in your area? I can't help in any way except to say it could be a spring if you live in KY/TN, the reason I know is we have owned our property for over 3 years, about 1 1/2 yrs ago the driveway we put in almost 3 yrs ago started having a 'wet' spot which then turned into a trickle then into a small stream. Now this area is high, not toward the bottom of the land but near the top, we finally had a well driller stop by & he confirmed that an underground spring had finally surfaced. So I would assume it could happen just as easily under a house, if we'd built over that area I imagine that we would now have an indoor stream. :) Good Luck. Kathy

-- Kathy Aldridge (beckoningwinds@yahoo.com), April 01, 2002.


Hi Suzzane, your post is a bit confusing. You mention that the water is coming up through the "old cistern floor". A cistern is a holding tank for run off water, usually intended for drinking or household uses

I wonder if your basement has had a sump pump working to dry out your floor over the years and suddenly quit working, so you had to rent another pump to take its place.

Or has your basement actually sprung a leak?

More information would be helpful, but until then, start moving all your stuff to higher ground!

-- Tis I (really_tis_i@yahoo.com), April 02, 2002.


Our basement has never needed a sump pump before tonight! Could it be an artesian well?? I have been searching the web for some answers to our problem. I know its not a spring because we are not around any hills, just field. Our house is 109 years old, so who knows whats underneath the cistern. Darndest thing we ever saw!! Love to have an artesian well, but not particularly in the basement!! If we contact the county I'm afraid they'll immediately cap it, capping wells is free in our county!!

-- Suzanne (weir@frontiernet.net), April 02, 2002.

Our cistern is about 7 x 10 feet and can get about 4 to 5 feet deep, except it leaks when over 2 feet, seeps into another room. It has a small door {3 x 3 ft} to get into it. And also all the pipes that use to bring water to it have been cut off to the outside. I'm hoping the old overflow drain will still work if need be..The walls are dry, just water coming out of the floor of it! And now it is raining outside!!!!

-- Suzanne (weir@frontiernet.net), April 02, 2002.

Suzanne, I owned a house in Grand Junction that had an old cistern. It was dry during the winter, but flooded every summer when the irrigation ditches were running and the ground water level rose. The previous owner had cut a hole in a corner and put a sump pump in that. We used the water for our garden and lawn. It was nice because we didn't have to deal with irate neighbors who were also using the irrigation water. They could have all of it! ;o) Anyhow, my thoughts would be that either the ground water level has risen or somewhere the flow of an underground stream was interupted and it has changed chanels. Possibly dugging a well next to the cistern, but a little deeper would divert the water away from your basement. Then you could pump the water to where you want it more easily? It might be only seasonal like ours was in Junction. We only had it in summer when we needed it most! luck, kim

-- kim in CO (kimk61252@hotmail.com), April 02, 2002.

Ok, you live on flat land, this hasn't been a problem for many years, ever that you know of, and water is coming in at a rapid rate, and it is on the dry side for you this spring compared to others.

Pipe broke somewhere & is pushing water into your basement. Nothing else makes sense. Could be the old rain gutter system, could be your well system, could be an old pipe from 75 years ago.

Springs & artiesian (oh boy, my spelling!!!) well just does not add up from your explination of flat & dry. Obviously, that would be the only other source of this.

If it were a septic problem, you would be, um, aware of that as an issue. :)

Shouldn't be happening at all in a cistern, we have one in the basement, being used, as well. Sunk a couple feet deeper than the rest of the basement, it should be sealed, it should hold the water, and so on.... The rest of our basement leaks up through the floor in extremely wet weather, the house is on TOP of a hill, but clay soils, a sandy vien, and well, water runs to the basement level & pushes up through the cracks.

What soil type do you have, and are you on truely flat ground, or are there any hollows around? Are you in a river bottom area, or a plateu, or?

Something is not adding up here. Something is being overlooked.

--->Paul

-- paul (ramblerplm@hotmail.com), April 02, 2002.



Thanks for everyones advice..Haven't figured it out yet...But have 2 pumps running to keep the water at bay. It rained hard today, got water in the basement where we normally get it! May be an old underground tile has broken near the house!!! But one pump cannot keep up with whats bubbling through the floor. And yes we did find out that our county does have several artesian wells..

-- Suzanne (weir@frontiernet.net), April 02, 2002.

Everyone seems to be ruling out an artesian spring just because where you are is flat ground. The ranch I grew up on in Texas was pretty much flat and we had springs all over it. They would pop up in new places too. Lots of fun to be driving and all of a sudden sink up to the undercarriage of the truck in mud...where last year it was dry. This could be a blessing you know. Talk to your agricultural extension agent and see if he can tell you if it is a spring. Since it is coming up in a cistern(I also have an underground concrete cistern) you may be able to utilize the cistern as a holding tank for that wonderful water. It would definately be worth it to have the concrete sealed and possibly install an overflow pipe. Wish I had your problem(if it is indeed a spring)!

-- Amanda (mrsgunsmyth@hotmail.com), April 02, 2002.

The tempature of the water may tell you where it is from, most springs are very cold. Try some food coloring in the well and see if thats the source.

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), April 02, 2002.

Any update Suzanne? I'm curious to know what the source of the water is.

-- Amanda (mrsgunsmyth@hotmail.com), April 05, 2002.

Moderation questions? read the FAQ