If you’re building a new house or have foundation leakage issues in an older property, add a drain tile system as an effective and inexpensive waterproofing solution. Drain tile systems are required by most building codes for new construction, while retrofitting them may be an option too.
Water seepage into a home creates hydrostatic pressure that pushes against its foundation, eventually cracking and weakening it over time, eventually leading to leakage. Therefore, an effective basement waterproofing system must be put into place in order to keep water at ground-level where it belongs.
Installing perforated drain tile can be one of the best ways to do this, although its name might lead you astray. Drain tile refers not only to traditional tile but also to PVC piping laid underground around a home’s foundation with perforations on one side that direct water seepage away from it or into its sump basin.
Pipelines consist of rigid PVC pipes in 10-foot sections with holes on their sides and either built-in bell-mouth ends that enable end-to-end connections or individual couplings for couplings, so water flows downhill through these holes towards either a collection pit, basement floor slab or sump basin which then pumps it outdoors.
Exterior drain tile is installed below a home’s foundation footings, often covered by washed gravel to prevent blockages in its system. When it rains, water seeps down through the gravel into its pipe system underneath the basement floor slab – typically installed in an 8-9 foot deep trench that’s backfilled with at least 6 inches of gravel to keep its level below ground-level.
Interior basement drain tile, which can be installed three different ways (above or below a floor slab), is less costly than its counterpart exterior drain tile. Installing a drainage system during new construction is more practical and less time consuming than doing so after completion of an existing home, because water collected under and around the basement slab is directed into a sump pit or weeping tile system for proper disposal. Pipes are then covered with concrete or buried in washed stone beds, while a sump pump displaces excess water away from the basement and away from possible leakage back in. If you’re planning a retrofit of drain tile to an existing home, consulting with a professional waterproofing company to design its system will ensure it will meet or surpass code requirements and will work correctly.