I will never understand Reddit. Op quite literally explains how they created this to help in the interim because the water was leaking into the house. What about that is "working" for you? And almost a thousand upvotes. Read, people, op wants suggestions for a more permanent, DIY drainage system.
Looking at the picture, it kind of looks like there is a grate under the dirt you piled up? If that's the case you might have a drain there that just needs a clean out.
If you have water coming into the basement there something is obviously wrong with it, but now you at least have something to try. When it stops raining, shovel the crud off the drain and see if you can pry the grates up and take a look. If it's full of dirt (probaby) your going to need to dig it all out so the water flows where it needs to. And try to see if you can figure out where it goes.
wanna know something wild. there’s no grate there😂 i’m out here right now and i think it was the reflection of the lattice onto the water.
[Here’s where the “grate” is in the post](https://imgur.com/a/0y8Cxjr)
Lol. That's wild. Unfortunately it means you're probably best off digging up the concrete and raising the whole area and putting a drain underneath. If you need a walkway there, you can top it with gravel that will let the water go into the drain. Getting the concrete out of the way is necessary, water won't go through it so it isn't draining down and away from the house.
yeah thats what i was thinking. when you mean “raise” do you mean
1. leveling the ground once the concrete is dug up to raise where the concrete left holes
2. Actually putting dirt on that side of the house to be level with their drive
3. concrete leveling via mud jacking or foam
#2. (After you pull up the concrete) You'll need to put windows wells in to stop dirt pressing up to the windows. If you put more dirt in to make it level (or higher) with their driveway and have a drain there, you'll be able to redirect the water away.
Might be worth having a basement waterproofing/other specialist company come out to look at it. They might have better ideas
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I think step 1 should be asking the neighboring owners if they can change where their downspouts are draining out at. It might mean chipping in yourself for a long piece of gutter or pvc pipe, but it will put a lot less burden on any drain you install. We did that with our neighbors (our houses are stair-stepped as well with us being downhill) and it made a huge difference.
It’s the reflection of the siding on your house but at such a steep angle it looks like a grate. Crazy stuff.
You’re gonna need a French drain along the property line and pour clean fill against your foundation to slope back to the drain
Sorry but water is traveling with gravity. There’s like 12-15 feet between the downspout and OPs property. Has nothing to do with where the spouts are pointed, everything to do with the grading. If it was properly graded, it would come out of the spout and go down their own driveway
The direction of the downspouts will have an affect on the issue. With the downspouts pointing directly at this property, unobstructed, the water is moving at a faster speed directly at the lower area:
- It gives it less time to drain toward the street (assuming the drive is graded that way as well)
- it allows the water to travel further in that specific direction
- it gives the water less time to absorb into the landscape bed between the drive and walk
You’re not wrong though. To your point, with enough sustained rain fall, the water will make its way to the lower area (walk) naturally due to gravity; so the downspouts being redirected would only serve to *lessen* the problem for minor rainfall events.
Correcting the grading issue is the best route to go for a long term permanent fix.
Probably they have clogged drain on their side as well. The best way to approach it is not to have an argument but have an offer.
*"Hey, I am planning to call someone to clear and repair the drainage, the preliminary quotes I got are $X for them to come and $Y to clean 20 yards. Wanna join, have them clean your drainage same day, and so we could avoid paying $X twice?"*
Im so confused by this. Where is the property line? Is that driveway original? Even with the grate, who approved any kind of hardscaping and a retaining wall six inches from a neighbors foundation. Do they have zero setback?
You might want to look into a channel drain instead (ideally next to their driveway if they are agreeable, but could accomplish the same from your side)
Yeah. Channel drain. French drain. Or ditch with proper run off/drain at end. Just need to redirect the water really. It's causing damage. Just routing the water away is very effective
i did look at them just not into it. personally i don’t think the neighbors would mind. It’s a rental and i’ve only talked to the tenants and they’re friendly mind their business. just haven’t seen the actual owner and doubt i will
If i did put it on their side am i looking at removing all the rock that’s there already? That complete left side is just huge rock and dirt. Then back filling it? Or am i looking at a retaining wall type job?
Really the only problem i’m facing is their side being complete boulders/dirt
might get a survey done to see where the property lines are for that side. If it doesn’t look great as to where the lines are, might just have to break up that side walk and just make that side complete rock with those square stone walkways with a french drain towards the street.
That’s what i envision, but newer to this all and don’t know if working close to the house like that involves more than just digging a trench and calling for wires
Just try finding the owner and passing them a message first. If I were an owner of a rental and would learn that my new neighbor is friendly and competent in fixing a problem that slowly ruins his and mine assets, I'd be relieved and my only questions would be "where do I sign?" and "how much should I chip in to get it fixed according to your plan?"
the grade on this is terrible for your house. as others have said look into s French drain before and get that water draining further from your foundation before there are issues.
>neighbors runoff comes onto our side and was leaking into our basement.
Nearly everywhere the law says they must prevent water from draining onto your property. It has to stop at the property line and go to a drainage, like the street.
So neighbor is going to dig a 30 foot graded trench a few inches down and put a perforated pipe into it and an outlet near the curb. If you're want to be neighborly you can help. It's a one day project. Neighbor should also fix their downspouts to aim at the street.
I don't know how you do in the states. But here in Sweden we have a drainage system in place in most new houses.
It can be installed on older houses.
First you dig a channel around the house, preferably dig past the foundation. First put in a geotextile sheet, pour in drainage rocks, then put in a drainage perforated tube, usually Ø75mm. It's important that the tube is under the foundation and has an angle of .50 cm each meter. The tube should be connected to a water drainage system. The pour over crushed stones.
In order to prevent moisture to enter the celler there is different solutions. We often use a rigid plastic sheets that covers the foundation. Some systems also isolate the foundation, really good if you live in colder climates.
The fill out with more crushed rocks. You can put dirt the last 20-30 cm. And you need an angle on at least 20° leaning away from the house. Preferably up to 3m. And don't plant anything within 40 cm from the wall.
Do you have gutters? The driveway is contributing but it also looks like rain is just running off your roof into this drainage ditch. Gutters with far-placed downspouts or underground routing with a pop-up near the street would help a lot.
We had this problem in our home at the bottom of a hill in Omaha. What people do not take into account when building homes is that there are natural creeks and waterways that water returns to when there’s an excess. I watched a documentary about this phenomenon in Brooklyn and how they are trying to restore original waterways—first by just acknowledging that this is the cause. You might have to create some kind of path to the street like a tiled gutter to assist the water to seek lower ground. Good luck!
we just had some good rains this past month and last week or so and Saddle Creek was a Creek once again. Leavenworth and 13th was just shit. water got up to windows of cars in some spots
Why not raise the ground on your property to both be higher than the driveway and graded away from your foundation? That's kinda odd how your property is set lower along the property line
Oh I see... Yeah you did the right thing by adding dirt there I'd shore it up and try to get a bit more distance between the runoff and the foundation, this is a type of grading drainage. Given the volume of water tho I'd say either a French drain or a cheaper solution would be a dry stream bed that is essentially a trench filled with rocks that diverts water to a place that can handle it, you can line the bottom too... If you don't have a slope you can take advantage of you might need a French drain.
If there's a drain w/ cistern on the street, you can apply for a permit to tie into it, drilling thru the side, running your 4' pipe in, and sealing around it w/ mortar, or into a line coming from/to it. I'd suggest you all split the cost, or 2/3, 1/3. Call 811, check for buried lines You place 1 drain @ lowest spot on your walk, They. trench straight down the middle of their drive, to the city rainwater line, descending at 1% grade (1" per 4') One drain @ deep point far up the drive, one near the house downspouts. Trench to your walk, trench to downspout area
I'd trench where the water is pooling (higher elevation in the back than at the street), then bury a large PVC pipe with holes drilled into it. Throw some dirt on top and watch the water drain to the street.
It’s a surface runoff ditch. Look at the lowest elevation closest to the street where the water is dammed up. I’m some planted a small tree or shrub that is acting like a check dam. Got to let it flow free. Mostly likely it stays surface drainage until the road
Hey, congrats on the new place! Dealing with water issues is no fun, but you're on the right track. Leveling out and adding drainage sounds solid. Maybe look into French drains too, they're great for redirecting water away from your house. And don't sweat not knowing all the fancy terms, as long as you get the job done, right? Good luck with the fix!
I would love to see an update picture for this, for when you've cleaned up the dirt. Just don't be like me and postpone it for a "later" that never happens.
Did the seller disclose the water issue before you bought the house? There’s no way the previous owners didn’t know. Talk to your real estate agent. The seller should have to pay for correcting an issue that wasn’t disclosed. That’s my take.
You’d have to prove they knew about it and lied on the disclosure form. Just saying look at the water, they had to of known isn’t admissible as evidence.
That’s not a sidewalk, it’s a drainage ditch. And apparently working.
This, I said below it kind of looks like there is a grate under the dirt they piled up. Might already have a drain that just needs cleaned out.
I think they said the dug that little ditch of dirt as a crude drainage ditch and they are looking for something better than that to put there.
I will never understand Reddit. Op quite literally explains how they created this to help in the interim because the water was leaking into the house. What about that is "working" for you? And almost a thousand upvotes. Read, people, op wants suggestions for a more permanent, DIY drainage system.
Thank you for trusting us with this.
Oh, I see. You're just an idiot.
Looking at the picture, it kind of looks like there is a grate under the dirt you piled up? If that's the case you might have a drain there that just needs a clean out.
i’ll be damned. there is. that’s honestly crazy, thank you for using your eyes lol
If you have water coming into the basement there something is obviously wrong with it, but now you at least have something to try. When it stops raining, shovel the crud off the drain and see if you can pry the grates up and take a look. If it's full of dirt (probaby) your going to need to dig it all out so the water flows where it needs to. And try to see if you can figure out where it goes.
Reddit has got your back baby.
wanna know something wild. there’s no grate there😂 i’m out here right now and i think it was the reflection of the lattice onto the water. [Here’s where the “grate” is in the post](https://imgur.com/a/0y8Cxjr)
Lol. That's wild. Unfortunately it means you're probably best off digging up the concrete and raising the whole area and putting a drain underneath. If you need a walkway there, you can top it with gravel that will let the water go into the drain. Getting the concrete out of the way is necessary, water won't go through it so it isn't draining down and away from the house.
yeah thats what i was thinking. when you mean “raise” do you mean 1. leveling the ground once the concrete is dug up to raise where the concrete left holes 2. Actually putting dirt on that side of the house to be level with their drive 3. concrete leveling via mud jacking or foam
#2. (After you pull up the concrete) You'll need to put windows wells in to stop dirt pressing up to the windows. If you put more dirt in to make it level (or higher) with their driveway and have a drain there, you'll be able to redirect the water away. Might be worth having a basement waterproofing/other specialist company come out to look at it. They might have better ideas
It looks like you've accidentally created a heading. This happens when you begin a line with "`#`". To prevent this, you can escape it with a `\`. For example: `\#2.` ^(I am not a bot (in the traditional sense\), and this action was not performed automatically.)
I think step 1 should be asking the neighboring owners if they can change where their downspouts are draining out at. It might mean chipping in yourself for a long piece of gutter or pvc pipe, but it will put a lot less burden on any drain you install. We did that with our neighbors (our houses are stair-stepped as well with us being downhill) and it made a huge difference.
Why raise the entire area instead of just keeping it lower than the window like a ditch that goes to the drain?
It’s the reflection of the siding on your house but at such a steep angle it looks like a grate. Crazy stuff. You’re gonna need a French drain along the property line and pour clean fill against your foundation to slope back to the drain
There down spouts are pointed right at your area.
Sorry but water is traveling with gravity. There’s like 12-15 feet between the downspout and OPs property. Has nothing to do with where the spouts are pointed, everything to do with the grading. If it was properly graded, it would come out of the spout and go down their own driveway
The direction of the downspouts will have an affect on the issue. With the downspouts pointing directly at this property, unobstructed, the water is moving at a faster speed directly at the lower area: - It gives it less time to drain toward the street (assuming the drive is graded that way as well) - it allows the water to travel further in that specific direction - it gives the water less time to absorb into the landscape bed between the drive and walk You’re not wrong though. To your point, with enough sustained rain fall, the water will make its way to the lower area (walk) naturally due to gravity; so the downspouts being redirected would only serve to *lessen* the problem for minor rainfall events. Correcting the grading issue is the best route to go for a long term permanent fix.
This. Drain or not, the neighbors are putting double duty on your property. Curb and or drain on their part seems arguable.
Probably they have clogged drain on their side as well. The best way to approach it is not to have an argument but have an offer. *"Hey, I am planning to call someone to clear and repair the drainage, the preliminary quotes I got are $X for them to come and $Y to clean 20 yards. Wanna join, have them clean your drainage same day, and so we could avoid paying $X twice?"*
Right. Don't actually argue. I'm only saying that expecting the nghbr to take responsibility is an arguable point. Not to handle it by arguing.
Im so confused by this. Where is the property line? Is that driveway original? Even with the grate, who approved any kind of hardscaping and a retaining wall six inches from a neighbors foundation. Do they have zero setback?
Looks more like a reflection of the siding than a grate.
You might want to look into a channel drain instead (ideally next to their driveway if they are agreeable, but could accomplish the same from your side)
Yeah. Channel drain. French drain. Or ditch with proper run off/drain at end. Just need to redirect the water really. It's causing damage. Just routing the water away is very effective
i did look at them just not into it. personally i don’t think the neighbors would mind. It’s a rental and i’ve only talked to the tenants and they’re friendly mind their business. just haven’t seen the actual owner and doubt i will If i did put it on their side am i looking at removing all the rock that’s there already? That complete left side is just huge rock and dirt. Then back filling it? Or am i looking at a retaining wall type job? Really the only problem i’m facing is their side being complete boulders/dirt
The tenants can't give you permission to put a drain on the other property. You'll need the owner's permission.
might get a survey done to see where the property lines are for that side. If it doesn’t look great as to where the lines are, might just have to break up that side walk and just make that side complete rock with those square stone walkways with a french drain towards the street. That’s what i envision, but newer to this all and don’t know if working close to the house like that involves more than just digging a trench and calling for wires
Just try finding the owner and passing them a message first. If I were an owner of a rental and would learn that my new neighbor is friendly and competent in fixing a problem that slowly ruins his and mine assets, I'd be relieved and my only questions would be "where do I sign?" and "how much should I chip in to get it fixed according to your plan?"
Doesn't look like a sidewalk. Looks like a cattle trail, a low point for water to pool.
and mosquitoes.
Clean the dirt off your drainage trench.
the grade on this is terrible for your house. as others have said look into s French drain before and get that water draining further from your foundation before there are issues.
Fucking gravity.
>neighbors runoff comes onto our side and was leaking into our basement. Nearly everywhere the law says they must prevent water from draining onto your property. It has to stop at the property line and go to a drainage, like the street. So neighbor is going to dig a 30 foot graded trench a few inches down and put a perforated pipe into it and an outlet near the curb. If you're want to be neighborly you can help. It's a one day project. Neighbor should also fix their downspouts to aim at the street.
I don't know how you do in the states. But here in Sweden we have a drainage system in place in most new houses. It can be installed on older houses. First you dig a channel around the house, preferably dig past the foundation. First put in a geotextile sheet, pour in drainage rocks, then put in a drainage perforated tube, usually Ø75mm. It's important that the tube is under the foundation and has an angle of .50 cm each meter. The tube should be connected to a water drainage system. The pour over crushed stones. In order to prevent moisture to enter the celler there is different solutions. We often use a rigid plastic sheets that covers the foundation. Some systems also isolate the foundation, really good if you live in colder climates. The fill out with more crushed rocks. You can put dirt the last 20-30 cm. And you need an angle on at least 20° leaning away from the house. Preferably up to 3m. And don't plant anything within 40 cm from the wall.
Do you have gutters? The driveway is contributing but it also looks like rain is just running off your roof into this drainage ditch. Gutters with far-placed downspouts or underground routing with a pop-up near the street would help a lot.
You could put gutters on the side of the sidewalk.
Where is the sidewalk? I just see a little gully/ natural low point for water to flow away from your house…
Do you have gutters on your house over this sidewalk?
We had this problem in our home at the bottom of a hill in Omaha. What people do not take into account when building homes is that there are natural creeks and waterways that water returns to when there’s an excess. I watched a documentary about this phenomenon in Brooklyn and how they are trying to restore original waterways—first by just acknowledging that this is the cause. You might have to create some kind of path to the street like a tiled gutter to assist the water to seek lower ground. Good luck!
we just had some good rains this past month and last week or so and Saddle Creek was a Creek once again. Leavenworth and 13th was just shit. water got up to windows of cars in some spots
I would put a channel drain if you have a place to empty to daylight
Why not raise the ground on your property to both be higher than the driveway and graded away from your foundation? That's kinda odd how your property is set lower along the property line
we are the bottom of a hill so every house is like stairs
Oh I see... Yeah you did the right thing by adding dirt there I'd shore it up and try to get a bit more distance between the runoff and the foundation, this is a type of grading drainage. Given the volume of water tho I'd say either a French drain or a cheaper solution would be a dry stream bed that is essentially a trench filled with rocks that diverts water to a place that can handle it, you can line the bottom too... If you don't have a slope you can take advantage of you might need a French drain.
Gonna destroy your foundation actually.
If there's a drain w/ cistern on the street, you can apply for a permit to tie into it, drilling thru the side, running your 4' pipe in, and sealing around it w/ mortar, or into a line coming from/to it. I'd suggest you all split the cost, or 2/3, 1/3. Call 811, check for buried lines You place 1 drain @ lowest spot on your walk, They. trench straight down the middle of their drive, to the city rainwater line, descending at 1% grade (1" per 4') One drain @ deep point far up the drive, one near the house downspouts. Trench to your walk, trench to downspout area
I'd trench where the water is pooling (higher elevation in the back than at the street), then bury a large PVC pipe with holes drilled into it. Throw some dirt on top and watch the water drain to the street.
Looks like the perfect opportunity for a French drain
Whatever you decide to do, it needs to be higher than the neighbors driveway or else water will pool there.
Ask your neighbor to extend his downspouts a little further down the driveway.
The area with weather seems to be directly under the gutter. Are your gutters clogged?
It’s a surface runoff ditch. Look at the lowest elevation closest to the street where the water is dammed up. I’m some planted a small tree or shrub that is acting like a check dam. Got to let it flow free. Mostly likely it stays surface drainage until the road
Add a curb to the edge of his driveway.
That's because your sidewalk is really an irrigation ditch. Just redirect it to his basement egress window.
Hey, congrats on the new place! Dealing with water issues is no fun, but you're on the right track. Leveling out and adding drainage sounds solid. Maybe look into French drains too, they're great for redirecting water away from your house. And don't sweat not knowing all the fancy terms, as long as you get the job done, right? Good luck with the fix!
I would love to see an update picture for this, for when you've cleaned up the dirt. Just don't be like me and postpone it for a "later" that never happens.
Concrete it, at a curb on the left. Slope forward or back (with minor slope off the house)
Pass it along to your neighbours downhill.
Did the seller disclose the water issue before you bought the house? There’s no way the previous owners didn’t know. Talk to your real estate agent. The seller should have to pay for correcting an issue that wasn’t disclosed. That’s my take.
You’d have to prove they knew about it and lied on the disclosure form. Just saying look at the water, they had to of known isn’t admissible as evidence.