...and even if your foundation is reasonably solid, hydrostatic pressure of a head of standing water and saturated soil will drive it through and into your basement. A good exterior French drain around the foundation will reduce the pressure. We had periodic seepage at a specific location in our basement during heavy downpours. A couple of years ago, I installed a point source drainage system to lead the water from the foundation in the area where it was entering our basement to where it could be discharged. This week's storm system gave it a good test and it passed with flying colors. A French drain is a trench with PVC drainage pipe with holes to accept the standing water. The pipe is covered with crushed stone and sand to provide local porosity and then over-covered with a pitch filled tar paper which is then over covered with a layer of sand, finally the top soil. Depth of the trench will be a couple of feet but really depends on local contours and where you are able to drain it, preferably not into your neighbors foundation. Extensive jobs require a professional as it is a lot of work and takes some specialized excavation equipment that are not kind to foundation plantings. Jim and Ruth @ 115 Upland -----Original Message----- From: neighbors-bounces@buenavistasocialclub.org [mailto:neighbors-bounces@buenavistasocialclub.org] On Behalf Of Bill Barnert Sent: Tuesday, March 16, 2010 9:31 AM To: jlipshaw@suffolk.edu; neighbors@buenavistasocialclub.org; richdale-ave-community@googlegroups.com Subject: Re: [Neighbors] FW: [Richdale Ave] Water Table - BasementWaterproofing Jeff: I hired B-Dry many years ago, and am still happy with the results. They dug a trench around the inside of the walls, and added a pair of sump pumps. You can't keep the water completely out (as John Gerring wrote earlier), but you can control it once it gets inside. The trenches are hidden, and you do not see the water, but I sure hear the pumps going! I used to get a pond in my basement every time it rained, now I don't. I also put in a heavy-duty de-humidifier to keep the basement dry & mildew-free. - Bill Barnert Ruth Ryals wrote:

ANY SUGGESTIONS?

-----Original Message----- From: richdale-ave-community@googlegroups.com [mailto:richdale-ave-community@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Jeffrey M. Lipshaw Sent: Monday, March 15, 2010 7:32 PM To: Richdale Ave Community Subject: [Richdale Ave] Water Table - Basement Waterproofing

Has anyone in the neighborhood had experience (good, bad, or indifferent) with hiring a basement waterproofer like B-Dry to seal the basement? The monsoon rains have me wondering.

Jeff

Jeffrey M. Lipshaw Associate Professor, Suffolk University Law School 120 Tremont Street, Room 250C Boston, MA 02108 Cell Phone (preferred): 317.694.4976 Office Phone: 617.305.1657 Fax: 617.305.3079

SSRN Author Page: http://ssrn.com/author=381790

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