In this episode, Adam shares an interesting case study about a water leak that came at the same time and same spot every day. It’s a good thing they thought to call A1 Crack for a second opinion. It saved them about $25,000 on an unnecessary french drain system.
Narrator: It's time once again for the Crackman Podcast. Hosted by A1 Foundation Crack Repair. I'm Darren Kincaid and I'm here with the crack daddy himself, Adam Tracy. Adam has 20 years of experience in the construction industry and as a civil engineer, is A1 Foundation's resident engineer on staff solving a plethora of unique foundation problems every day. This podcast provides expert basement waterproofing, concrete repair and for preventative maintenance tips for homeowners and businesses. A1 Foundation's viable insight will help avert the disaster of a flooded basement, health problems that are water infiltration, and protect your biggest investment, your home. The topic of today's podcast: Why is my basement leaking in the same spot and at the same time every day?
Narrator: So Adam, you had a rather interesting call that came in the other day, I understand, and it was about a scheduled water leak — that sounds like a first.
Adam: Yeah, this was a funny one. We got the phone call — the house is in Newton, Massachusetts — and the homeowner has been there for a number of years and they've never had any sort of water issues. One morning, they woke up and found water in their utility room.
They immediately thought it was their hot water tank, which was at the end of its natural life. So they said, "Oh, let's replace the hot water tank. It's gotta be this." The plumber came out, replaced it, and took care of it. The next morning — water again.
Trying to figure out what was going on, and since it wasn’t raining, they assumed it had to be a plumbing issue. The plumber came back out, looked through the whole system, tested all the fittings — everything was watertight, no issues. They figured it must just be leftover water from the day before.
Next morning, they wake up again — there’s water in the basement, in the same spot. Now they’re starting to panic. They can’t figure out what’s happening. So, they call a bunch of waterproofing companies.
Well, it’s obviously got to be a waterproofing issue, right? The area is getting water in, but why at the same time every day? Nobody could figure it out. So, waterproofers come in and say, “You need a sump pump and a French drain.”
Of course, that’s the typical sales pitch — it’s all a sales process. No matter what the problem is, they recommend the same fix. We’re talking about a little puddle in the same spot every day, yet they got multiple quotes recommending $25,000 systems.
The homeowners said, “No, there’s got to be something else going on here.” So they called us. The first thing we noticed was a big crack behind where the water tank had been replaced. We asked, “Is this where you’re seeing it?” They said, “Yeah, every day at 8:00 AM, we’re getting water right in the same spot.”
I said, “Every day at the same exact time?” They said, “Yeah.” So I asked, “Do you have a sprinkling irrigation system?” “Yeah, we do, but we’ve never had water issues before.”
Well, come to find out, they have young kids, and one day while the sprinklers were running, one of the kids had turned a sprinkler head toward the house. That sprinkler was spraying directly onto the crack, which had been there for a long time.
A very simple phone call to the irrigation company, a minor service call to readjust the head, and a repair for less than $1,000 to seal that foundation crack — complete with a 10-year warranty — solved the entire problem.
So, there was no need to spend $25,000 guessing what it was. Just a little intuition, asking the right questions, and working with a knowledgeable team like ours at A1 helped sort out the issue and save the homeowner a ton of money.
Weeks have gone by, and they’ve had no issues with the irrigation system. Their lawn looks great, the foundation looks great, there’s no water in the basement — everyone’s happy, and disaster was averted.
Narrator: Well, thanks Adam for sharing this interesting case study about a water leak that appeared at the same time and in the same spot every day. It’s a good thing they thought to call A1 Crack for a second opinion — it saved them a lot of money.
Narrator: If you have a basement water problem and think you need a professional or if you like more information on foundation crack repair and basement waterproofing topics, please visit a1foundationcrackrepair.com or call Adam at (866) 929-3171 or you can email Adam at info@a1foundationcrackrepair.com. Thanks for listening and keep that basement dry.