Water Still Outside Footing FAIL

Please look at the detail of the sump pump & drain tile system as a reference to understand the following explanation for this sump pump failure.

When water leaks into the basement of a house, the lowest point in the wall and foundation is the bottom of the footing. Most interior sump pump drainage systems are installed on the inside of the footing. Some are even set on the top of the footing.

Please see how water, when pumped out of the inside of the house, has little affect on the water on the outside of the house, especially if there that water is separated by non saturated soils under the footing. An interior sump pump and drain tile system does little to remove water sitting on the outside of the foundation and footing. So, while it may appear the leak is gone, damage is still occurring outside your footing because the leak has not been fixed.

There are other sump pump failures we see regularly while investigating water leaks in basements. Please review our articles on sump pump failures and myths before getting an expensive and unnecessary sump pump system. We suggest you instead focus own waterproofing your basement right by fixing the ground surface where water drainage occurs. If you're not sure how water is getting through the surface of the ground around your house, please contact the Leak Detective for a free phone consultation. We can explain the advantages of using the Leak Detective.

Basement waterproofing for water in basement has led to some inaccurate theories of how water moves underground on its way to get the basement wet. We can help with DIY basement waterproofing by accurately understanding how water is getting into the basement.