underground spring (water)

[wormdunker]

I have a water problem in my basement. My sump pump runs continually. During a moderate to heavy storm the pump activates every 3 - 4 minutes. During the hot days of summer it will turn on & off about every 10 - 15 minutes. When I excavated for the basement (30 years ago) we discovered a spring that spouts water continually. Lots of water! I had to immediately purchase a pump to keep the water out of the work area for the contractor to form & pour the footings. Last spring I decided to renovate this portion of the basement. I discovered mold on the back sides of some of the furniture. Humidity readings in this area were as high as 60-65%. Fruit cellar was 84%! Recently I jack hammered the concrete floors in my basement to install drains for my new bathroom fixtures. While doing this work I discovered there is water 6" below the underside of my concrete floor. It must be coming from the spring which is only 6' from the basement wall. Now, I would like to correct this problem by capturing the water from the spring & diverting it to the drainage ditch at my rear property line or possibly installing a pipe in the ground, install a pump & use this free water for washing vehicles or watering the lawn. This would save money for water usage & also sewage fees. I would have to excavate only 52" down to reach the spring.

I'm exploring a 3 stage sump pump system & also a high end dehumidifier called sani dry from allthingsbasementy.com who are located in Hamilton. I purchased a 90 pint dehumidifier which is not adequate as the humidity reading is still around 52% & a much higher electric bill because it never shuts off. My bill rose by $35.00 per month while it was operating. They also have a sump liner with holes near the top of the plastic sump liner. They tell me this will drain off the water which is underneath my concrete floor. I'm also investigating installing a sub floor using the 2' x 8' panels from Amvic called Amdry subfloor to keep the moisture from rising through my concrete floor. I know this is a long winded explanation, but, I'm thoroughly bored waiting for the hard water season. I welcome all comments & advice from the knowledgeable crew here at OFC. Thanx for your time!

[dave524]

Actually my parents live near Fonthill, growing up our well was actually in the dirt floor basement. Before we had indoor plumbing I vaguely remember a cast iron pump at the kitchen sink, it was directly above the well and that is where we got all our water. I assume it was a spring cause it was only a 6 foot deep well and never went dry from 1950 to the 80's when they jacked up the house and poured a full basement and went on the town water that had just come through. The lay of the land is such that they have a drain off the top of their sump hole that gravity drains to a ditch at the back, the sump pump never comes on unless the muskrats block the exit of sump drain at the ditch, also the occasional bullfrog will make his way to the the sump hole in the fall when they hibernate. Is the height of your sump hole higher than the drainage ditch and could you do the same ?

 

Edit: the well was filled in when the basement was poured

Edited December 10, 2015 by dave524

[Andy]

Is there a drainage tile going through or near your property? I'd lay a line of tile down from, or alongside, your foundation to draw away the water and the install a dehumidifier and let 'er run. You could even put a drain inside the basement to get rid of that water.

[Andy]

I have a high water table here too. And the guy who finished my basement raised the floor a bit too. But you will still have humidity issues and a dehumidifier will be needed, even with the area being drained. I haven't tried that flooring product. And a pump running to get rid of that water will cost you hydro too.

[Sinker]

I had this same problem. Sold the house!!

 

Such a PITA to deal with!

 

S.

[lew]

I had this same problem. Sold the house!!

 

Such a PITA to deal with!

 

S.

 

My neighbor had 3 sumps that ran 24/7 every day of the year.

 

He got tired of it too and sold the house and moved into the city a couple months back.

 

Most on this road are on a high water table but at least for me my sump only runs for about a month in the spring when the snow is melting.

[NAW]

Sell it...

 

I sold my house that had a similar issue.

[Sinker]

Wait til the power goes out and you have no more pump......its ugly.

 

I was going to dig a trench down my yard to the ditch, and have an overflow line in the sump hole where any water the pump couldn't handle, or if the pump failed, it would overflow into that line, and out to the ditch. It was going to cost me a fair bit, as mine was much deeper than yours. After two episodes of wet basement, I just sold the place.

 

I don't miss it at all LOL

 

S.

[captpierre]

You could dig a 15-30 ft well outside of your basement. Have a pump keep it drained to well below your basement level.

Hopefully will lower the water table in a few weeks.

Foundation and floor might crack with the water gone.

[dave524]

Wait til the power goes out and you have no more pump......its ugly.

 

I was going to dig a trench down my yard to the ditch, and have an overflow line in the sump hole where any water the pump couldn't handle, or if the pump failed, it would overflow into that line, and out to the ditch. It was going to cost me a fair bit, as mine was much deeper than yours. After two episodes of wet basement, I just sold the place.

 

I don't miss it at all LOL

 

S.

 

What you were going to do sounds like the setup my parents had although they set it up when put in the basement, so it was much easier. Question?? Why would you not let the overflow line drain the sump hole and the pump would only come on if the line became plugged ? better than a continuously running sump pump. Of course this setup requires you have an outlet for the drain line lower than the sump hole.

[Sinker]

 

What you were going to do sounds like the setup my parents had although they set it up when put in the basement, so it was much easier. Question?? Why would you not let the overflow line drain the sump hole and the pump would only come on if the line became plugged ? better than a continuously running sump pump. Of course this setup requires you have an outlet for the drain line lower than the sump hole.

Yes, that was the plan, but I sold the house first. Rather than pump the water out, gravity would run it out the overflow line to the ditch. If that line got plugged, or froze, the pump would kick in, and pump out a separate line.

 

S.

[wkrp]

You definatley have to redirect the spring . Gravity is your best friend, not hydro.

[wormdunker]

As usual the knowledge of OFC has responded! Thanx for your replies. To sum this up.

Selling is not an option.

My sump pit elevation is lower than the elevation of the drainage ditch at the rear property line.

 

Sinker - If the hydro goes out I have installed a back up sump pump called sump buddy which will function with the use of city water. It works because last Christmas the sump buddy turned on while we were out of town. Our town water department were able to show me a graph & pin pointed a date where there was a surge in water usage. Quite interesting how they were able to do this.

 

Captpierre - I don't think I would have to dig quite as deep as what you are suggesting (15-30'). The spring is only down about 4' from finished grade. I'm thinking excavate 8', install a pipe to capture the water, pump it up approximately 5', install a drain pipe to allow the water to flow to the rear drainage ditch.

Thanx again - Stay tuned for my progress

Anybody out there using the "Sani dry" dehumidifier? They're pricey ($1800.00), but Omni basement systems claim they will do the job of 6 hardware store purchased dehumidifiers, plus much more energy efficient than 6 portables. Your comments are appreciated.

[captpierre]

I would call your local well driller.

Inquire with him.

Springs are funny things.

The local guys know the groundwater in your area.

[wormdunker]

Good idea Pierre thanx!

[aplumma]

One of the issues we have when using a sump pump to discharge water distances is the head pressure ( amount of water it can move decreases as the distance is lengthened) as well as ground temperatures freezing water in pipes that have a negative pitch. Keep both factors in mind as you design your system. The claim of your dehumidifier company is exaggerated they can not get 6 times more water out of the air unless they are using around 6 times the energy. The process of dehumidification is the chilling of a coil slightly above 0 C to collect moisture and send it down the drain. Cooler coils will only freeze the water and make the coil useless. ( think glass of ice water in summer)

 

Art

[wormdunker]

I'm not sure what you mean by "cooler coils will only freeze the water & make the coil useless".

[crappieperchhunter]

Don't know how you guys with real water problems deal with it. I got my foundation cracked this summer when my neighbour installed a pool in his backyard. Just afterward when we got a good downpour I would have water running down the wall at the crack. Thankfully my basement is unfinished so the water just ran down the wall and across my basement floor to the drain. Spent $100 and injected the crack from the inside and the water coming in has stopped. We will see how well it holds up before I have to do it right from the outside. But that feeling of dread every time the clouds open up...like I said I don't know how you live with that.

 

My brother has sumps that run pretty much all the time. They have failed twice in 20 plus years on him. 2 times in 20 years is pretty good odds if you ask me but the grief he has had to go through both times it has happened...well I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. Like others have mentioned I'd be selling and running away. I would go mad if I didn't.

Edited December 12, 2015 by crappieperchhunter

[aplumma]

The chilling of the water to 1C or 2C will allow it to dehumidify as the wet air is drawn across the coil which has refrigeration condenses and then drips off into a catch bin. If you take the coils and cool them off to 0C then you will freeze the water on the coil rendering it useless it would insulate itself and no longer remove moisture from the air.

 

 

Art