Rain Intensity, Water in Basement

We’ve had water in out basement so many ways I’ve lost count. I flush a dose of Roebic bacterial based drain maintenance product once a month. And I snake the main trap with a toilet auger 2 to 4 times a year (basically when we travel or when I start noticing telltale signs of impending doom).
The idea to divert a portion of the roof runoff to the rear is interesting, especially because I have an elevated garden bed at a higher level because lots at rear side of the block are about 4 feet higher. Maybe I could stall overflows by filtering through garden into trench drain and back toward house storm drain. This could allow for a nice built in garden watering system as well

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jrs84o | 1 year and 9 months ago

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Well.. Just to wrap this experience for anyone who is interested…

Looking at the 5-minute rainfall averages for my area today, there was a 20 minute period between 10:36am-10:56am when the Percip Rate averaged about .65-.7 inches/hr…. this is where the main pipe backed up to the lowest open-air drain at the foot of my basement steps.

Fortunately the water build-up in the pipes is not high enough to pop out the basement toilet, sink, etc.

Its been raining steady all afternoon, 2+ hours, with a much more “NORMAL” Percip rate .12-.45 inches/hr… And the drains have no problem purging the runoff.

THANKS.. to all those who chimed in.

hannibalking4424 | 1 year and 9 months ago

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I have similar new and now frequent problem dealing with lack of sewer capacity and storm water not being able to get into sewer line. After diverting roof water, we are still getting water backing up from street in cellar and at the same time hydrostatic pressure forcing water in through floor or walls, even after pointing and parging. We’ve also inspected line to street and drains with cameras and they’re clear. City checked sewer on our street last summer and said it was clear. Any advice for plumber or contractor to problem solve this further? It was recommended to put in check valve and internal French drains, but I have no where to pump water to if it can’t get to the sewer.. Any recommendations are welcome.

colonialrevival | 1 year and 9 months ago

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We’ve had our own journey with sewers, drainage, etc. We’ve been dry since getting our previously back-pitched line replaced.

A few things:
When’s the last time you’ve cleaned out your main trap? You may spend all your time looking further down the line for an obstruction, only to be missing the culprit 2 inches away. Especially knowing you were draining from the roof previously, all it would take is a small twig wedged the right way, mixed with some roofing granules, to greatly reduce your capacity. I open up our trap and vacuum it out at least once a year.

When you do, note how high the water sits in the trap. Ours sat very high for a long time. I later learned that means our line does not have proper pitch. This led to our drain getting clogged much more frequently, as detritus would just sit if it couldn’t make it up the incline. Now that our line has been replaced, the water level in our trap sits much lower now.

Good luck.