A basement drain tile system is essential in preventing pooling water near a home’s foundation and creating water intrusion issues. Commonly known as French drains or weeping tiles, drain tiles use porous pipes connected by porous valves to direct groundwater away from it. You can either hook it up directly to a sump pump for ease of movement, or install it with a downward slope that allows natural movement of the water into catch basins. Unfortunately, clogs may develop which prevent this system from functioning correctly, leading to water seeping through basement walls.
If a clog is responsible for basement flooding, it’s critical that you act quickly. Untreated water seepage can lead to serious structural problems like cracks and fissures in foundation walls – which may become very expensive to repair over time.
Most basement drain clogs are caused by hair, dirt and other household materials that have collected in the drain tile. When this happens, it impedes water from leaving your house to reach the sewer system causing severe issues with plumbing systems and even worse with your own plumbing.
Avoid pouring chemicals such as Drano or drain cleaner down basement floor drains to help avoid clogs in the first place by using wet-dry vacuuming instead. Pour baking soda and vinegar down the drain to break up clogs if necessary.
Assuming your drain line is clear of debris and plant roots, keeping it free of invasive plants or trees (particularly water-loving varieties such as willows) near it should help ensure no clog occurs in the first place. Planting trees further away also can prevent their roots from reaching into your system and infiltrating it with their roots.
Before beginning to clean out a clogged drain tile, it’s vital that both water and power to the basement be turned off in order to protect any further damages to plumbing or electrical systems as you work on unclogging it. This will also protect any further repairs which might need to be made as you attempt to unclog.
As part of any DIY plumbing project, having a long, heavy-duty drain snake on hand is also key to dealing with it successfully. Although you can rent one at any hardware store, investing in your own can make the task much simpler and faster – make sure one is available when taking on this DIY task!
Keep a jackhammer handy just in case you need to break through concrete or cement blocks that are protecting your drain tile – this step may become necessary if drain snake or wet-dry vacuum fail to clear out clogs from drain tiles. Be sure to wear safety goggles and face mask when digging through these hard materials!