Serving Haverhill
Groundwater & Basement Water Intrusion in Haverhill, MA
Basement seepage, failed sumps, and hydrostatic pressure against the foundation are extracted and dried, and the path from the ground is identified so the loss does not repeat. Groundwater and basement seepage are extracted and dried only after the path from the soil is identified — a wall, a slab, a drain, or a failed sump. Drying the interior without stopping that path returns the same water to the same floor.
Frequently asked questions
Salt water reaches further up than people expect.
Up to the dam it is, and it surprises people who think of it as a freshwater river. That matters because storm drains discharging into the tidal reach cannot discharge while the tide is up. Rain landing in the wrong part of the cycle backs up in the system, and the same storm hours later passes without trouble.
The level climbs for days in April with no storm involved.
The catchment upstream is large and northern, so it holds a great deal of snow through the winter. When it releases the river rises steadily over days rather than spiking, and it stays up for an extended period. It is a different mechanism from a rainfall event and it affects different properties.
The oldest housing is closest to the water.
That is where the mills were and the housing followed the work, which is the usual pattern in a river city of this kind. It puts the stock with the least drainage protection on the ground with the least margin. The construction is not poor; it reflects the priorities of the century that built it.
This FAQ belongs to the Haverhill page; it is repeated here.