Water entering cellar after rain

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Hi,

There is a hole in the cellar floor and water is now coming up in full flow after the downpour.

Any solution to stop it or do I have to wait for the water table to go down?

I'm thinking tanking slurry but obviously won't stay with the water flowing out.
 
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tmf786, good evening.

Can I suggest you have a look at the rain water down pipes and the drainage system in general? for starters.

Rain water? check if you can that the rain water system is running free, no back ups possibly water coming back up the gullies [if fitted?] even water bubbling up around where the rain water pipes enter the ground.

Drains, if you can lift any man hole covers you can and see if the drains are running clear with no back ups.

Any ponding of water externally?

What type of soil do you have? How deep is the cellar below ground?

As for the "hole" in the floor of the cellar? is it /was it a pipe of some sort? or is there a brick or concrete surround to it?

Ken.
 
tmf786, good evening.

Can I suggest you have a look at the rain water down pipes and the drainage system in general? for starters.

Downpipes seem all ok, no disconnected pipes or blockages

Rain water? check if you can that the rain water system is running free, no back ups possibly water coming back up the gullies [if fitted?] even water bubbling up around where the rain water pipes enter the ground.

Seems ok, all going into drains and no blockage up from manhole

Drains, if you can lift any man hole covers you can and see if the drains are running clear with no back ups.

I do have a manhole cover will check in the morning - this is definitely rain water - no smell, clear and only comes in during downpours and when the water table gets high

Any ponding of water externally?

I don't see any stationery water anywhere, I think that's what you mean?

What type of soil do you have? How deep is the cellar below ground?

Garden is all slabs. Cellar is about 5ft down

As for the "hole" in the floor of the cellar? is it /was it a pipe of some sort? or is there a brick or concrete surround to it?

So it seems like there is a crack running across the back of the cellar floor width from one side of the cellar to the other side about 4ft wide in the concrete. This crack has opened up and that's where the very small hole has appeared, there are two along this crack with full flow of water coming in.

Maybe I need a pump or something?


Ken.
 
"""So it seems like there is a crack running across the back of the cellar floor width from one side of the cellar to the other side about 4ft wide in the concrete. This crack has opened up and that's where the very small hole has appeared, there are two along this crack with full flow of water coming in."""


tmf786, good evening, again.

I take it you have a concrete floor in the basement? has the crack been there for a while?

Yes a [so called] "Sump Pump" set into a purpose built pit with a Float valve actuation will assist greatly, but does not address where the warer is coming from??

Ken.
 
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"""So it seems like there is a crack running across the back of the cellar floor width from one side of the cellar to the other side about 4ft wide in the concrete. This crack has opened up and that's where the very small hole has appeared, there are two along this crack with full flow of water coming in."""

tmf786, good evening, again.

I take it you have a concrete floor in basement? has the crack been there for a while?

Yes, it has been there a while, no issues before

Yes a [so called] "Sump Pump" set into a purpose built pit with a Float valve actuation will assist greatly, but does not address where the warer is coming from??

I'm assuming the water table has risen and it was just the pressure/ timing over all of these years ?

Ken.
 
Is there a way to stop the water coming in without the pump?

There is also water now at the front of the cellar so the pump will probably not stop that?
 
It is very likely that you have a break in the rainwater drains below ground. As you have a cellar, the age of the house is probably such that you have glazed clay gullies leading to clay pipes. These are usually broken and leak. Please take photographs of them.

In particular, look for any signs of sunken or repaired ground or paving near them.
 
One way to run a check on the underground pipes is to introduce a Dye into the pipes [somehow??]

If there are open topped gullies where the rain water down pipes enter the ground, you can sprinkle the Dye into them and await a [hopefully] colourfull result in the basement??

Such Dyes are available from plumbers merchants, they come in a variety of colours?

Another way of checking the underground pipework is to have a CCTV survey undertaken, BUT?? that will cost

As JohnD has posted old Salt Glazed pipework does and will crack and leak over time.

Ken.
 
Thank you for your replies.

I was thinking of a dye but I didn't realise I could pick one up from Screwfix - will get that tomorrow, saw this one (https://www.screwfix.com/p/monument-tools-flourescein-drain-dye-133g/31595). Ideally I would need a couple of different colours but they only seem to have the one green one.

I opened up the manhole in the garden and it was trickling so no major blockage.

I could see two clay exit points. I know one of them is directly from the back of the house where the kitchen/dishwasher and washing machine run into and this goes directly to the manhole.

The other exit point is connected to, I am assuming, the side of the house where the bath and rain water exit into a drain - I don't know where the run of this pipe would go - under the house diagonally to the manhole or following the wall boundary?

I've uploaded the ariel view which might help.

This only happened on the continuous downpour otherwise it's been ok.

I'll put the dye into the drains and see if it comes through.
 

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I'd expect the drains to run around the outside of the house (not under it) until they reach a point where they can run out to the sewer (usually in the road in front, but sometimes to the rear of the houses). In your pic they all seem to be at the back, and probably join with the adjacent houses (in England, from the point of the join, the shared part is now the responsibility of the water company)

in a terrace the front and back may go in different directions. Even if you have no foul drain at the front, there will be rainwater pipes.

The common sewer to the rear may run forwards to the road between blocks of houses, or it may just run behind them all, especially if there is an alley or lane to the rear. Position of old outdoor WCs may give a clue.


The rainwater drains and the foul sewer may be combined, depending on age and district. Sometimes rainwater goes to a ditch or stream, or to a soakaway. In these cases you are not allowed to put foul water into rainwater drains.

The breakage is most often at the trap or bend where the above-ground vertical pipe turns in the ground to run horizontally. A householder with a spade can dig it out, it is not complicated.
 
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