r/Eugene • u/bonsaitreehugger • 2d ago
Crawlspace: how much water is too much water?
New homeowner here. I understand that the water table is high here, and water is often a problem, leading to many people getting sump pumps.
With all the rains we've been having, I went into my crawlspace to check on things and discovered that maybe 1/10th or 1/20th of the ground has puddles of water. Maybe a centimeter deep max, so it's not bathing the posts in water (since they're on concrete blocks), but obviously still not ideal. Most of the ground is covered with vapor barrier (although it's a mess and not 100% covered)--the bulk of the water seems to be seeping in the sides through the foundation, especially near downspouts which aren't piped all the way to the street anymore (collapsed pipes), but only have those above-ground 3-foot-long plastic downspout extenders.
Is this worth spending lots of money to fix, or par for the course around here?
(BTW, to give a sense of the seasonal cycles: In the summertime, it's nearly all dry--maybe one tiny puddle.)
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u/RomaCafe 2d ago edited 2d ago
How old is your house? I remember when I first purchased my home and I was hyper focused on all the supposed issues I could find. They were everywhere.
In the end, the more time you live somewhere the more understanding you'll have on how your house and its surrounding environment functions in different conditions.
I found water in my crawlspace one winter that was quite concerning. It's never come back since and I've checked it pretty routinely. That was eight years ago.
You want to stay on top of finding concerning patterns. In what's been one of the wettest 45 day periods that I can remember, finding light accumulation of water in a crawlspace is probably to be expected.
Keep an eye on it. Document it. And see if it becomes a reoccurring theme this year in similar conditions.
But unless you're seeing something that needs immediate attention, like a water leak, it's unlikely you'll need to act on it until you've seen a pattern that needs action.
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u/PacificNonspecific 1d ago
As another new owner of a 1960’s house here, thank you for this advice. A dude from Ram Jack told us mostly the same! Wait, watch, document.
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u/SeaAbbreviations2706 2d ago
Get your downspouts plumbed properly and see if you have any more problems.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 2d ago
Do you mean draining at the street?
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2d ago
[deleted]
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u/bonsaitreehugger 2d ago
I'm asking whether the gutter downspouts need to be plumbed all the way to the street, or just a few feet from the house.
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u/Quartzsite 2d ago edited 1d ago
The further from the foundation the better. Ours go out to a dry well about 30’ from the house. We don’t have storm sewers on our street and in our part of the neighborhood there aren’t curbs or gutters and people don’t have sumps.
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u/SeaAbbreviations2706 2d ago
Ideally somewhere that reaches the storm sewer system if you are in town.
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u/505ismagic 1d ago
Depends on the lot. Our current house has a modest slopes, but enough to carry the water away. Last place was flat as a cookie sheet, and had to be collected in a french drain and pumped to the street.
The idea of the crawlspace sump, at least as explained to me, is to collect the surface water under the vapor barrier, and before it pools above.
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u/DJ_TMC 2d ago
You are going to thank yourself by investing in fixed downspouts. You’ll never know how many more thousands of dollars you will save by taking care of this now.
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u/RomaCafe 2d ago
Many of the houses built here in the 50s and 60s have cement drainage pipes and/or "Orangeburg" piping. They've all failed since then. Unfortunately the cost to retrench can be pricy making it quite a big project for most. Other than that, I agree 100% that moving water away from the house should be a priority when issues present themselves.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 2d ago
I don't think mine are cement, but they definitely don't make it to the street--for one, the curb holes are collapsed. Lots of crappy sweet gum street trees. I'm debating whether it's worth paying to plump downspouts all the way to the street, or whether something like a french drain would be a better solution.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 2d ago
Would you consider fixed downspouts to mean that they drain at the street, or are there easier solutions?
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u/DJ_TMC 2d ago
They just need to drain away from the house, in a direction where the water won’t come back to the house.
Mine drain downhill and behind my house, which is the opposite side of the property than the street. It helps water a large tree.
Some options: Onto a bed of rocks or gravel Into a rainwater basin that you use to water your garden Into a garden directly? Maybe a bad idea? Unsure.
I wish I had more info, but I’m sure Google can give you some good ideas.
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u/El_Bistro 2d ago
any water
better head to Jerry’s for that new pump
In fact you should get real familiar with Jerry’s.
Also where is your house? Cuz if it’s along Amazon creek you need to get this taken care of asap. I know two houses that had all their plumbing rotted out in their crawl space because of water.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 2d ago
But with the water spread out all over the whole house, how do you get the water gathering in the same area? Sounds like a major project involving digging, pulling up and putting down new vapor barrier...
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u/El_Bistro 2d ago
I really hate saying this but, this is what owning property mostly is. Maintenance issue after maintenance issue. I’m on house number 3 and it’s been never ending projects for 7-8 years. You signed up when you signed then paperwork.
Without seeing what you have, then I can’t tell you what I’d recommend. There’re plenty of houses that get water in the crawl space, that’s part of why you have a crawl space. They usually have a pump or something.
How old is the house? Is there noticeable water damage? How’re your stingers looking? Are your downspouts working properly? You didn’t answer any of my questions above, which do have some pertinence.
Chances are, things are fine. Your inspection should have noted water damage. But even if things are fine now they might not be next year. I personally would be dealing with the water. Water works fast. We’ve had 10” of rain in 2 weeks so it just might be that but I don’t know.
Not trying to be a dick here but there are a lot of things you need to be on top of with old houses. That’s a lesson we learned the hard way and I wish I had some advice beforehand.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 1d ago
I appreciate the response. You're not being a dick, you're being helpful.
I'm located north of the river in Harlow neighborhood. The house was build in 1976. No noticeable water damage or mold, but I understand that can change.
I do think this could be predominantly a downspout issue. First I noticed none of the downspouts drain at the street anymore--the concrete curb drains are crushed. I would also assume that the underground piping is bad. So where does the water go when it drains from the downspout to the underground pipe? Who knows. (Not far enough apparently.) On one of the downspouts, in the especially wet area, I used one of those 3-foot-long plastic downspout extensions, and it diverts water away from the house and I THINK downhill from the house, but perhaps not downhill enough. There are two more that I think I may try some temporary flex tubing just to get it away from the house for now, then try to find a more permanent solution in the coming months.
Do I need to get them all plumbed all the way to the street, do you think? Or would digging some french drains be better, or easier?
I'm going to have Dr. Energy Savers come out, but I want to get to the root of the problem. If the problem is plumbing, I don't know that Dr. Energy Savers' solutions (sump pump, for example) would be ideal.
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u/DragonfruitTiny6021 2d ago
Also make sure your landscape / yard is graded away from to your foundation and inspect for cracks. I fixed water under my house by grading a 10 foot section on the side of the house and used hydraulic cement to fix a small crack.
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u/edipeisrex 1d ago
I’ve been dealing with this too. I had one guy tell me these old houses have handled high water table for several decades so not an emergency issue. Like others said, work on down spouts but also I was recommended to hire a plumber to do a proper sump pump install.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 1d ago
Interesting. Well that’s hopeful. I’m guessing people were less on top of this (and didn’t have sump pumps) a hundred years ago.
Have you been recommended a good plumber to install a sump pump?
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u/edipeisrex 1d ago
There’s a cost to living in a riverbed that has several flood control dams upriver! I was told to contact PPR Plumbing. I haven’t called them yet so that’s all I know.
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u/gingerjuice 2d ago
I would take a good look at your gutter system and also at the drainage around your home. We have a home built in 1947 and there was extensive damage when we moved in 17 years ago. We had to tear up the floors and level them. After we did that, we installed some French drains and diversions with gravel to keep the water draining away from the foundation.
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u/Neither-Turnover6775 1d ago
If it’s only a tiny bit I’d say spend money on trying to keep it out by directing as much as possible away from the foundation. Straighten up your vapor barrier as much as possible yourself.
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u/bonsaitreehugger 1d ago
It's more than a tiny but less than a lot.
That's gonna be my first attack--big, ugly above-ground pipes diverting water away from the foundation. See if that fixes it, and if so, make it pretty later.
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u/MAHANDz 2d ago
The correct answer is any water. Yes the water table is high here but neglecting to fix it because “it’s wet here” will just lead to mold/ structural issues