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Home > Archive > Home Repair forum > August 2005 > Is a sump pump a bad sign?
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Is a sump pump a bad sign?
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| Deuteros 2005-08-28, 1:21 am |
| I am house hunting and recently I came across a house I really like and I am
thinking of making an offer. The house is a 40 year old ranch with a
basement. A small room on one side of the basement contains a crawl space,
although I suppose it really isn't a crawl space since you can walk in it.
Inside the crawl space room there is a damp smell and a sump pump in the
floor. There's also a big mound of dirt in the crawl space with a plastic
sheet over it. There is no damp smell anywhere else in the basement.
I'm wondering if this is a bad sign of serious moisture problems and would be
really bad when we try to sell the house in the future. Can anyone give me
his or her opinion?
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"Deuteros" <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote in message
news:43112f1b$0$6284$892e7fe2@authen.white.readfreenews.net...
> I am house hunting and recently I came across a house I really like and I
am
> thinking of making an offer. The house is a 40 year old ranch with a
> basement. A small room on one side of the basement contains a crawl space,
> although I suppose it really isn't a crawl space since you can walk in it.
> Inside the crawl space room there is a damp smell and a sump pump in the
> floor. There's also a big mound of dirt in the crawl space with a plastic
> sheet over it. There is no damp smell anywhere else in the basement.
>
> I'm wondering if this is a bad sign of serious moisture problems and would
be
> really bad when we try to sell the house in the future. Can anyone give me
> his or her opinion?
Depends on the area of the country you talking about. Where I live in
Arizona deserts, finding what you described would be "RUN not walk to the
nearest exit". Other places like Florida where the ground water table is
pretty high maybe not. Do the neighbors have similar installations?
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| Deuteros 2005-08-28, 1:21 am |
| "SQLit" <sqlit@qwest.net> wrote in news:piaQe.41$sc1.2002@news.uswest.net:
> "Deuteros" <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote in message
> news:43112f1b$0$6284$892e7fe2@authen.white.readfreenews.net...
>
>
> Depends on the area of the country you talking about. Where I live in
> Arizona deserts, finding what you described would be "RUN not walk to
> the nearest exit". Other places like Florida where the ground water
> table is pretty high maybe not. Do the neighbors have similar
> installations?
I don't know anything about the neighbors' houses.
The house is in the Atlanta area. Marietta to be exact. We are moving from
Florida where nobody has basements.
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| Joseph Meehan 2005-08-28, 8:21 am |
| Deuteros wrote:
>I am house hunting and recently I came across a house I really like
> and I am thinking of making an offer. The house is a 40 year old
> ranch with a basement. A small room on one side of the basement
> contains a crawl space, although I suppose it really isn't a crawl
> space since you can walk in it. Inside the crawl space room there is
> a damp smell and a sump pump in the floor. There's also a big mound
> of dirt in the crawl space with a plastic sheet over it. There is no
> damp smell anywhere else in the basement.
>
> I'm wondering if this is a bad sign of serious moisture problems and
> would be really bad when we try to sell the house in the future. Can
> anyone give me his or her opinion?
In many if not most parts of the US, sump pumps are required in all new
construction. Where I live I would not buy a home without one.
--
Joseph Meehan
Dia duit
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| "Deuteros" <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote in message
news:43113274$0$6284$892e7fe2@authen.white.readfreenews.net...
> "SQLit" <sqlit@qwest.net> wrote in news:piaQe.41$sc1.2002@news.uswest.net:
>
>
> I don't know anything about the neighbors' houses.
>
> The house is in the Atlanta area. Marietta to be exact. We are moving from
> Florida where nobody has basements.
Talk to the neighbors. After all, if you buy the house, you'll be living
right next to them anyway.
I'd worry more about the mound of dirt and plastic sheet. Ever seen The
'Burbs?
Pagan
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| In article
<43113274$0$6284$892e7fe2@authen.white.readfreenews.net>,
deuteros@xrs.net says...
> "SQLit" <sqlit@qwest.net> wrote in news:piaQe.41$sc1.2002@news.uswest.net:
>
>
> The house is in the Atlanta area. Marietta to be exact. We are moving from
> Florida where nobody has basements.
>
Being a resident of the area, and having shopped
specifically for homes with basements just a few years ago,
I can tell you that it's very common, almost essential, you
should be glad it's there, and it doesn't detract from the
house in the least.
If you happened to be living in the house next week
(Katrina), you'd know why houses with basements in North
Georgia (clay) have sump pumps.
--
Mark
The truth as I perceive it to be.
Your perception may be different.
Triple Z is spam control.
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| tnom@mucks.net 2005-08-28, 9:21 am |
| On 28 Aug 2005 03:27:23 GMT, Deuteros <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote:
>I am house hunting and recently I came across a house I really like and I am
>thinking of making an offer. The house is a 40 year old ranch with a
>basement. A small room on one side of the basement contains a crawl space,
>although I suppose it really isn't a crawl space since you can walk in it.
>Inside the crawl space room there is a damp smell and a sump pump in the
>floor. There's also a big mound of dirt in the crawl space with a plastic
>sheet over it. There is no damp smell anywhere else in the basement.
>
>I'm wondering if this is a bad sign of serious moisture problems and would be
>really bad when we try to sell the house in the future. Can anyone give me
>his or her opinion?
A sump pump is the norm in many places. Follow the output of the
sump and see if it shows signs of frequent dischatrge. If so i'd shy
away from the property.
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"Deuteros" <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote in message
news:43113274$0$6284$892e7fe2@authen.white.readfreenews.net...
> "SQLit" <sqlit@qwest.net> wrote in news:piaQe.41$sc1.2002@news.uswest.net:
>
>
> I don't know anything about the neighbors' houses.
>
> The house is in the Atlanta area. Marietta to be exact. We are moving from
> Florida where nobody has basements.
The damp smell should worry you more than the existence of a sump pump.
1. pull the cover off the pump and look inside. Is it dry ? or full of
water?
(if full of water and it hasn't rained in months, you may have a water table
problem)
2. look at the area where the pump outlet drains, is the ground wet or
soaked in that spot ?
Even in houses with storm and sanitary sewers it never hurts to have the
sump as a backup.
Weepers can plug up, sewers can (ugh) back up,
A sump at the lowest part of the floor will drain out anything it needs to,
or sit and wait until it's needed.
AMUN
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| Deuteros 2005-08-28, 11:21 am |
| tnom@mucks.net wrote in news:7l93h11kg410iqm78l80eq5d1isncqsn85@4ax.com:
> On 28 Aug 2005 03:27:23 GMT, Deuteros <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote:
>
>
> A sump pump is the norm in many places. Follow the output of the
> sump and see if it shows signs of frequent dischatrge. If so i'd shy
> away from the property.
Hmm. That might be hard to determine since it has been raining here a lot
lately and the ground is already very wet.
Thank you, everyone, your your advice.
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| I don't know why you are questioning about a home in that area having a sump
pump. If I had a home with a basement, ( I don't care if it was on a top of
a mountain with steep sides all around the house) I would want to make sure
that the home was tiled around the foundation and the tile ran into a sump
with no less than a 1/2 HP pump installed in it. If the basement smells
musty, no problem buy a dehumidifier and run at 35 to 40 % that will take
care of it. I would view a home that has a basement with a sump as a big
plus. A home with a basement that has no sump, I will bet that when a big
rain comes it will have a seepage problem. My 2 cents worth
"Amun" <spamblocker@bell.net> wrote in message
news:xviQe.71$884.21291@news20.bellglobal.com...
>
> "Deuteros" <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote in message
> news:43113274$0$6284$892e7fe2@authen.white.readfreenews.net...
news:piaQe.41$sc1.2002@news.uswest.net:[color=darkred]
and[color=darkred]
with[color=darkred]
from[color=darkred]
>
>
>
> The damp smell should worry you more than the existence of a sump pump.
>
> 1. pull the cover off the pump and look inside. Is it dry ? or full of
> water?
>
> (if full of water and it hasn't rained in months, you may have a water
table
> problem)
>
> 2. look at the area where the pump outlet drains, is the ground wet or
> soaked in that spot ?
>
>
> Even in houses with storm and sanitary sewers it never hurts to have the
> sump as a backup.
>
> Weepers can plug up, sewers can (ugh) back up,
> A sump at the lowest part of the floor will drain out anything it needs
to,
> or sit and wait until it's needed.
>
>
> AMUN
>
>
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| Harry K 2005-08-28, 4:21 pm |
| I'm with the others. The sump pump isn't a problem, it is a plus. Do,
however, find out before buying just what that heap of dirt is doing in
there.
Harry K
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| ameijers 2005-08-28, 7:21 pm |
|
"Harry K" <turnkey4099@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1125254818.690434.66460@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com...
> I'm with the others. The sump pump isn't a problem, it is a plus. Do,
> however, find out before buying just what that heap of dirt is doing in
> there.
>
From his description, I'm sure the dirt predates the house. In that era,
less-than-full basements were quite common, and depending on frostline or
local soil conditions, the walls for the crawlspace may go down nearly as
far as the basement itself. The 'walkable space' he refers to is merely the
inside of the trench dug way back when for pouring the footers and laying up
the walls of the crawlspace. Space like that usually didn't get a real door,
just a inside or outside cubby for access. (My 1956 childhood home was like
that.) Around here, on mid-20th-century houses, it is not unusual to see
crawlspaces like that that were dug out, and a second set of footers and
more wall added, with a 'shelf' about 2 feet deep all around the outside,
leading back to the original walls. Almost nobody uses partial crawlspaces
any more- it is either a full crawl on a entry-level or high-water-table
house, or a full basement. On a 200k + house, the cost difference is
insignificant, especially the way basements are dug these days with huge
excavators. On a 1950s house, usually on a small lot, the digging was
usually a short-reach backhoe, and there was still a lot of hand work.
aem sends....
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| CL (dnoyeB) Gilbert 2005-08-29, 11:21 am |
| tnom@mucks.net wrote:
> On 28 Aug 2005 03:27:23 GMT, Deuteros <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> A sump pump is the norm in many places. Follow the output of the
> sump and see if it shows signs of frequent dischatrge. If so i'd shy
> away from the property.
Is that because a home in Atlanta shouldnt have frequent discharge? I
don't see a problem with a frequent running sump unless you know
something specific that this shouldn't occur in Atlanta?
My sump is like leaving a 100w light bulb on all day just about. Not
all that bad. Plus its good to know the hydrostatic pressure is being
removed, which is the real concern.
--
Respectfully,
CL Gilbert
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| Andy Hill 2005-08-29, 1:21 pm |
| Deuteros <deuteros@xrs.net> wrote:
>tnom@mucks.net wrote in news:7l93h11kg410iqm78l80eq5d1isncqsn85@4ax.com:
>
>
>Hmm. That might be hard to determine since it has been raining here a lot
>lately and the ground is already very wet.
>
>Thank you, everyone, your your advice.
>
Hmmm. It's been raining a lot, and the basement only smells damp? Sounds
like the pump is doing it's job. If that's the worst feature of the house, I
wouldn't sweat it.
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| Todd H. 2005-08-29, 8:21 pm |
| Deuteros <deuteros@xrs.net> writes:
> I don't know anything about the neighbors' houses.
> The house is in the Atlanta area. Marietta to be exact. We are
> moving from Florida where nobody has basements.
Here in Chicago, in the land of basements, sump pumps are quite
common.
How much you need to worry about water infiltration as more to do with
the grading of the lot and how the house sits on the land than it does
with the presence of absence of a sump pump.
Best Regards,
--
Todd H.
http://www.toddh.net/
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