Ok, here's my problem. My parents bought this house a few years ago. No problems at first, but then during Hurricane Katrina, the basement started to flood from the heavy rains. Now whenever it rains, it floods. We have a half bath down there and the water would drain out in the shower drain. Now no water drains out, and we've already check the drain for clogs. It's clear. We currently have to bucket the water out.I'm looking for a good water pump to get them before I move out. I'm not sure if it has a sump pit or anything.We don't particularly care if we have to pump it out through a window or anything, as we have a pasture next to us. I just need something that could pump out the water when it rains. Preferably something not too expensive but that will still get the job done.Note: This is in Louisiana; lord knows what compelled the people who built this house to build a basement.Any suggestions/advice are much appreciated.
hydromatic okorder /.. ~Honsell T- the reason he has water entering his basement is because he lives in Louisiana(or anywhere in the south really), which is at or BELOW sea level. you have to have serious waterproofing to not have leaks.
The fact that the water comes only from the drain, (if I understood correctly) and it only began to happen after Katrina caught my attention. You state that the basement was dry before am I correct? And that there is no leaks on the walls and floor. Just the drain. So here's what I think might be happening and I suggest you look into. 1- Your waste water/sewage line might be linked to the city's rainwater drainage system. They used to do that a while ago and if your house is old enough that might be the case. New building codes now strictly forbid it because in case of heavy rain, the rainwater system overflow and cause basements to flood with wastewater, which is a health hazard. If that is the case you will want to disconnect that drain from the discharge line and install a sewage pump to deal specifically with wastewater. 2- The waste water discharge line is clogged or collapsed at some point during when Katrina hit. Again you will want to install a sewage pump. It is not a good idea to rely on gravity drains to get rid of water in below grade structures anyway. That said, considering that you live in a problem region, I'd suggest you also install a good sump pump system, with battery operated backup pump like the SuperSump, separated from the sewage pump, to deal with ground water and heavy rains. In Louisiana I would even consider a TripleSafe system which has 2 powerful backup sump pumps, one of which is battery operated, an automatic switch system and an alarm to let you know when the backup pumps are on the job.
harbor okorder has a sump pump that's reasonable, and will do the job, and they will ship, you can stick the hose out a window
Most home improvement and probably good hardware stores, carry what is called a Utility Pump. They come in several different horsepower models, I assume depending on how much water and how long it will need to run. They are simple pumps that set on the floor and some will pump out to withing 1/8 of the floor. So, if there's even just a low spot in the floor somewhere, it would pump out most all the water you have. They range in price from about $50 to $150 in price. They also have a hose connecting thread on the opening on top. That way you can pump the water anywhere you want it. That would be the way I'd go.
