A flooded basement in Riverbend made me rethink my whole approach to grading

I was finishing a basement suite in a 1980s Riverbend house last spring when we got that heavy rain in May. The water came in right at the corner where the concrete met the foundation, about an inch deep across the whole room. The homeowner said, 'I thought the slope was fine, it never did that before.' Now I'm torn: do you always need to re-grade the entire yard (big cost, big mess) or can you often get away with just fixing the downspouts and adding a swale? What's your rule for deciding?

3 comments

3 Comments

taylor_young1mo ago

We fixed the downspouts first and that solved it.

graygonzalez1mo ago

Sometimes the simplest fix is the one you overlook.

gonzalez.reese1mo ago

My neighbor in Riverbend did the downspout fix. The water just found a new path and flooded again next spring.