Foundation/ plumbing issue (Davidson county)

jmccracken1214

jmccracken1214

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our basement has a leak issue, from the walls. Not sure where from though. The dirt in the crawl space is dry but the basement side, leaks water slowly and when it rains, we have water comes out of the walls like a sink faucet. It is not an outside wall, but a block wall in the middle of the house.

A garage was added on at some point and there’s a pipe in the garage floor that a gutter used to go in, when it rains hard, water backs up from that pipe into the garage.

Anyone have anybody to suggest? I contacted jones plumbing heating and air but they want $90 just to come out, any parts or labor extra.. I don’t want to fork out $100 off the get go and not even know exactly what’s going on, or the severity of the issue. Prefer to get a free quote before hand.

Thanks
 
Contractors expertise is their value. You know- like doctors, lawyers, etc... Do you ask a lawyer to give you advise for free before a trial? Think your doctor lets you come in free for diagnostics before the cure? You should give your payroll check back next week.
 
BlackGun said:
Contractors expertise is their value. You know- like doctors, lawyers, etc... Do you ask a lawyer to give you advise for free before a trial? Think your doctor lets you come in free for diagnostics before the cure? You should give your payroll check back next week.
Click to expand...

Most lawyers offer free consultations at least on criminal issues. But I agree that there is a fee to properly diagnose a problem like this.
 
Cowboy said:
Most lawyers offer free consultations at least on criminal issues. But I agree that there is a fee to properly diagnose a problem like this.
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I get that, but they don’t know what’s going on, there’s A LOT of places that do free estimates. $90 to drive to my house to do an estimate. I’d rather not, I’d i don’t have to
 
concepthomes1 said:
So you have a block foundation wall that separates a crawl and a lower-floor basement area, correct?

If water enters that was somewhere, then the waterproofing and/or strip drain that *should* be there may be compromised.

You can either pay someone to fish a waterproof camera down the drain lines you can find to see if they’re crushed, or you or someone else may have to dig out the crawl space face of that block wall to see if it was ever waterproofed.

Either way, I predict blood, sweat and tears to properly diagnose and repair an issue like this.
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That is correct and my thought as well. Would any plumber be able to diagnose this or a foundation/basement place be better suited
 
I'm middle of the road here. They should be able to give you an estimate of what it will take to diagnose the problem. I don't think a real diagnosis will be free.
 
jmccracken1214 said:
our basement has a leak issue, from the walls. Not sure where from though. The dirt in the crawl space is dry but the basement side, leaks water slowly and when it rains, we have water comes out of the walls like a sink faucet. It is not an outside wall, but a block wall in the middle of the house.

A garage was added on at some point and there’s a pipe in the garage floor that a gutter used to go in, when it rains hard, water backs up from that pipe into the garage.

Thanks
Click to expand...

So the leak is not on the perimeter wall?

Are you thinking the garage pipe is related or is this a separate issue?

Do you know where the garage floor pipe exits?

Digging down to see if the foundation was waterproofed will not help in my opinion. If you waterproof that section the water will just move over and find a way in. Make sure the yard is sloped away from the house, all gutters work and downspouts flow away from the house, clear the end of the old garage floor drain. Even after that, the water table might just be high and an interior french drain with sump pump might be your best bet at that point. I would not call a plumber for this type of work.
 
I find that people want and estimate but think it's a quote. For me to do a quote I'll need to drive out, walk the site and spend some time taking measurements and that's with no equipment. Sometimes I charge a cost that's taken off the job.

The second you use equipment it becomes a cost.
 
Cowboy said:
Most lawyers offer free consultations at least on criminal issues. But I agree that there is a fee to properly diagnose a problem like this.
Click to expand...
Rarely. Its a sales pitch of all that can go bad for you. Get in your worry box. Not going to tell you the steps and solution. Those are billable hours.
 
Welcome to the joys of home ownership.
I'd start simple: Take a look at all your gutters and downspouts and make sure you're collecting all your roof runoff and carrying it away from your house. Then look at the drainage around your house and see if there's anything you can do to move water away. Sometimes you can finesse a thing like this by changing where the surface water goes.
 
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