drainage issues, plus mulch vs. gravel (2014, houses, inspectors)

[maestramommy]

Ever since we moved into our house, it seems like the sump pump is working all the time. Well, okay, sometimes it doesn't go off a lot, but when it rains it seems to go off every 90 seconds. We finally got the gutters taken care off, and now Dh is trying to figure out how to tweak the grading around the house so that the water runs away from the house. Our handyman suggested that he dig away some of the older mulch so that the dirt inclines down from the house, spread some kind of plastic sheeting, then cover the whole thing with gravel. If we can angle all the inclines we can get the water to drain to the side of the house and away. Our house is much higher than the drainage in the stree, but it's also downhill from the houses behind our backyard. Dh thought that the sump pump kept going off because he was draining the pool too close to the house, but the handyman thinks it's more the water table being really high this year because of all the rain.

That's a lot of digging! In addition, we are getting conflicting advice on what to spread right next to the house. Our realtor told us that every housing inspector she's met told her to spread gravel NOT mulch at least 18 inches around the house. My uncle who lives in MA said something similar about not letting any wood material touch the house, because of termites, carpenter ants. The tree guy who came to clear away a lot of brush, said carpenter ants are not interested in mulch, they need a solid chunk of wood to live on, so spreading mulch is not a problem. When they cut down some trees, they turned it into woodchips, and he said we could just spread that. In the front of the house, the part that touches the soil is the concrete foundation, but in the back of the house, for some reason siding had be installed so that it practically touches the ground. We really don't know enough about carpenter ants; all we know is that we have to treat the basement with boric acid once a year. Which is what our housing inspector told us.

I'm sorry this post is starting to get incoherent, so I'd better stop, but it's basically two issues, the drainage, and what is better to spread around the house. Any experts or BTDTs want to weigh in?

[BF66389]

First, the tree guy was correct that carpenter ants aren't "attracted" to mulch. Carpenter ants only make their homes in wood, they don't eat it. Mulch isn't big enough chips of wood to make a good home for them. As for termites and other critters though (even fungi) apparently they do not-as-well in stone as opposed to wood (but it won't prevent them).

A few things:
1) Your siding shouldn't be that close to the ground...is it siding over wood or over concrete at that point? If it's siding over concrete perhaps you could remove a bit? Not sure how its setup...

2) Sloping the land away from the house is a must...as best you can (if possible).

Have you thought about tying your gutters together underground and installing french drains? If the soil isn't too hard to dig through it won't be THAT hard- just requires good planning. If you can carry all the water from your roof and sump pump away from the house and downhill- it will probably go a long way.

I've also seen examples where someone will put in a french drain on the uphill side of their property and then have a pipe carry what it picks up around the home and downhill (all underground and invisible).

Seriously, if you do some searches on google; HGTV, DIY, and other such sources have some decent information online.

[jthibodeau]

Your handyman is probably correct concerning the sump pump activity. Water levels have been unusually high for this time of year. Try and make sure the water pumped from the sump pump is exiting far enough away from the home so it will not return and cause problems.

The extra pumping during rainy periods can be expected. The only problem is trying to determine if the work around your foundation will correct the problem. Rain water could be affecting the level of the seasonal high water causing your pump to be more active. This influx of water may be arriving to your home from more of a distance than the run off from your roof. Slopping the ground away from the house and/or installing upper level drainage of some type, just under the surface, may help.

When a foundation is dug, if the soils removed are of poor quality (clay or stones for instance), some builders will bring in replacement fill to be placed around the foundation. If this soil is very permeable, then water can quickly pass through it and the excavated area can become saturated. It's like your house sitting in a bowl of water.

If it's not a problem, wait until the seasonal levels of water lowers. Should heavy rains activate the pump quickly, the water is more apt to be coming from around your foundation. If the pump does not operate with in an hour or so, then perhaps it seasonal high water and not from your foundation.

Gotta go......

[maestramommy]

Jthibodeau, the sump pump goes to this large patch of trees about 150 feet away. Also, I may be mistaken, but my impression is that when it rains the uptick in sump pump activity doesn't happen until several hours later.

When we cleared away some of the mulch, all we saw was dirt.

BF66389, the siding is covering concrete. The handyman was over yesterday and I'm sure Dh asked him about it, but we haven't talked about it yet. The handyman was the one that replaced most of the siding fairly recently. Some of the downspouts (ones in the back) go underground, but we're not sure where they end up. Perhaps the same place as the sump pump? The ones in the front just run a foot or two from the house, they empty into those plastic diverters. The one on the side run a few feet from the house, one of them down the driveway.

[jthibodeau]

Originally Posted by maestramommy

Jthibodeau, the sump pump goes to this large patch of trees about 150 feet away. Also, I may be mistaken, but my impression is that when it rains the uptick in sump pump activity doesn't happen until several hours later.

When we cleared away some of the mulch, all we saw was dirt.

My opinion is leaning in the direction that your water problem is from a high water table. Do any of your neighbors experience any similar water problems? Do you know if your home has a footing drain?

During septic system inspections, occasionally inspectors will use a dye to color the flow of the water from the home to the system. If I need to "dye" water while I'm on the job, I'll use simple food coloring. Red works great but any color easily seen will work just fine. I'm sitting here wondering if this may work for you in determining the flow of your roof run off.

The idea is to add a colorant to the ground adjacent to your foundation. If the water in your sump pump hole is visible and samples can be removed for inspection, it shouldn't be too difficult to check. If color is or is not noted in the sample it may give you a better idea where it's coming from. I know, it's a long shot but never can tell.

Oh, one more thing. If you do consider this idea, try not to place the "dye" directly in the drip line of the roof. However, on second thought, the "splash" over the surrounding areas just may add to your Halloween decorations if the right color is chosen!!!!!

Have a great day.....

[maestramommy]

Thanks jthibodeau! I don't know how practical it is for us to try the dry test, but asking our neighbors is easy; don't know why I didn't think of that before!
Incidentally, I saw that it rained last night, but I haven't heard the pump all day!

[GregW]

It sounds like a combination of high water table and localized surface run off. The permanent solution is to properly install French drains uphill of your house deep enough to intercept all the ground water. Then slope the soil from the house into the surface of this drain. Cover the drip line from the roof with gravel over plastic sloped to divert the water that misses the gutters into the underground drains connecting the gutters into the French drain

I know this is elaborate but even if it is costly it is cheaper than the dampness, mold and rot created by a wet basement.
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[maestramommy]

Originally Posted by GregW

It sounds like a combination of high water table and localized surface run off. The permanent solution is to properly install French drains uphill of your house deep enough to intercept all the ground water. Then slope the soil from the house into the surface of this drain. Cover the drip line from the roof with gravel over plastic sloped to divert the water that misses the gutters into the underground drains connecting the gutters into the French drain

Okay, I'm just barely following you The part I'm having the most trouble wth is covering the drip line from the roof with gravel over plastic. Is this a solution you have to build, or an attachment you put onto/under the roof?