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Old 06-22-2015, 05:37 PM
 
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Many of the houses in Falls Church seem to have sump pumps and I was struck by how buggy some of the back yards were during open houses vs open houses in other areas.
I've read about a couple specific streets having ongoing flooding issues, but can't find any solid info -- Can anyone confirm which are the usual suspects when it comes to flooding?

I'm looking in neighborhoods along the W&OD Trail west of Broad Street

and

the area east of Broad St. around Cherry Hill Park/St. James Catholic.

Thanks for your help.
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Old 06-22-2015, 05:44 PM
 
Location: New-Dentist Colony
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I live not too far from there in Arlington. I've never heard of flooding being a real problem anywhere but certain parts of Alexandria very near the Potomac. It's true that many houses have sump pumps--ours has two in fact--but that's just because it rains a ton here and there is/was an underground spring nearby. (It's possible our house may have had flooding problems back decades ago, but we haven't had any in the years we've been here--and we're on the side of a hill.)

I think you'll be fine as long as you're not at the bottom of a hill. If there's a sump pump, that's a good thing.
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Old 06-22-2015, 05:58 PM
 
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I lived in that area for a very long time and don't recall any streets or neighborhoods having ongoing flooding problems. Many houses in that area have sump pumps.
If you buy in Falls Church be sure the home inspector checks for radon.
Good luck
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Old 06-22-2015, 06:50 PM
 
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Yikes, good to know about the radon, thanks.
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Old 06-22-2015, 07:47 PM
 
Location: Falls Church, VA
540 posts, read 786,218 times
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It is all going to be dependent on the actual slope of the terrain on the house lot. I don't think there is any real reason why the Falls Church area would be any different based on geography. There is a local high terrain spot that runs from Tysons to where the bike trail crosses 66. My neighborhood (near Shrevewood elementary) doesn't have any problems that I know of.
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Old 06-22-2015, 08:00 PM
 
Location: Arlington, VA
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Falls Church is well above the Potomac River so you shouldn't have much issue with flooding. The only issue would be if the property around the house isn't graded correctly and water flows toward the house. The worst areas for flooding around the beltway are in Alexandria and along Cameron Run.
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Old 06-23-2015, 09:58 AM
 
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You just need to check the FEMA and RPA (resource protection area) overlay options on the FCC mapping see site. Link below. As long as the house is not in a flood plain, flooding in Falls Church City is very rare.

City of Falls Church
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Old 06-24-2015, 07:24 AM
 
Location: Falls Church, Fairfax County
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I am not sure what you mean by flooding. Sump pumps are not a sign of flooding and would not help much if at all in a flood.

But I walk around a lot and there are definitely yards that will have pooling water after rain. I kind of think this is normal though?

Insects are a problem/delight for me. I have a lot of ants in my yard, but not many mosquitoes. Monday night I took the dog out back around 11:00 and looked up and noticed a lot of fireflies. I am not sure if they have always been there in that number and I just stopped noticing them as I got older or if this was unusual. I did not see them much at ground level but when I looked up it was like the sky was full of blinking stars, they seemed to be clustered around tree branches. It was pretty.
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Old 06-24-2015, 09:52 PM
 
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Flooding can be a usually minor problem in the immediate vicinity of nearly any of the many creeks, runs, and branches that criss-cross the area. Parts of the area also have layers of hardpan clay beneath the topsoil. These can cause water to pond on the surface for a time after a heavy rain. There can also be issues as the result of marine clays.

The County's Soils and Drainage page can provide some background on these matters, but in general there are not actual flooding issues here.
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Old 06-25-2015, 03:25 PM
 
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There are a lot of clay soils in general in the DC area. Not necessarily the hardpan clay beneath the topsoil, but all below. And, it doesn't stack like layered cake. It's kinda mish mash esp. in new construction. Like a mini acquifer with gaps. This is were rainwater goes. Sump pumps are useful in getting the water of the houses below the foundations.
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