Serving Livonia
Groundwater & Basement Water Intrusion in Livonia, MI
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
It came up through the floor drain and the yard was never flooded.
That is the sanitary line filling rather than groundwater, and the two need entirely different remedies. During a heavy storm the pipe in the street takes far more than sewage, because rainwater is reaching it from places it should not, and the lowest connected opening in a house relieves the pressure. No amount of grading or gutter work outside touches that.
Where is all that extra water getting in?
Mostly from private property rather than from the street: downspouts piped into the house drain, footing drains connected to the same line, and old laterals with joints open enough to take groundwater along their length. In a city built out in twenty years, a great many houses were done the same way. Disconnecting a downspout is one of the few things a single owner can do that also helps the street.
Is a backflow valve or a pump the better answer?
A valve stops the street entering the house and is cheaper; the trade is that it closes, so anything running inside has nowhere to go while it is shut. A pump arrangement lifts the house's drainage above the level of the main and keeps working during the storm. Which fits depends on how often the main actually surcharges, and the city's records answer that better than memory does.
The same questions, in context, on the Livonia mold removal page.