Protecting your basement from flooding means a robust drainage system. JES’ offers BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes to all homeowners seeking basement waterproofing solutions. This system protects basements by capturing water entering through doorways and hatchways.
A proper drainage system needs to be able to handle a certain volume of water, minimize blockages, and efficiently move water out of the basement. Drains that aren’t able to perform in this manner can quickly cause more problems than they solve. BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes span the width of entry points, capturing water and directing it into your drain network. Protecting all the valuables and items stored in the basement alongside keeping the space dry and clean.
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are the ideal way to stop water from leaking inside the basement area. To learn more about this system and if it is right for your home, get in touch with JES for a free inspection and quote today.
Perimeter Drains for Your Home
An interior perimeter drain system like BasementGutter™ is recommended for anyone that sees basement leaking. Water gets into your basement in a variety of ways, depending on the design, age, and location of your home. Perimeter drains are essential for homes that have water seeping in through the basement walls (through cracks or the floor-wall joint), through cracks in the floor, window wells, doorways, or faulty plumbing. Perimeter drains catch water before it can leak further into the basement.
The Benefits of BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes
There are many ways to drain water out of your basement. Just as there are tools for stopping water from getting inside. BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are a mix of both, which makes them an excellent first AND last line of defense. Equipping your basement with BasementGutter™ Grated
Drain Pipes is a preventative method for stopping water from getting inside the basement, which is crucial for homes that see flooding regularly.
In catching water at the entry point, water is not able to puddle in the basement or impact any of the furnishings and objects therein. Protecting not only the basement, but all items in the room itself.
- Easy Maintenance
A common issue with drain systems is that clearing out blockages and debris can be a struggle.
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are capped with a grated lid that is easy to remove at will for cleaning.
- Submersed Installation
A submersed drainage system blends in with the floor, encouraging drainage. This also prevents the drain from becoming a tripping hazard, which is vital given that BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are best suited to laying across entryways.
A submersed installation also means that the visual aesthetics of your basement are impacted as little as possible. With the right waterproofing solutions, basements can be made into comfortable, lively spaces and not just used for storage. Proper basement waterproofing enables such a conversion to happen.
- Grated System
Drains designed to capture water coming in from external sources must be able to handle debris.
Exterior water can carry all sorts of debris, including leaf litter, sticks, dead bugs, and mud. Drains that aren’t built to either block out or self-clear this debris will clog and cause flooding from backflow.
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes have grated caps that prevent all but the smallest pieces of debris from entering the pipe network. Debris collects on top of the grate for easy removal.
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes connected to a perimeter BasementGutter™ system and SafeDri™ Sump Pump can handle the small pieces of debris that fit through the grate without issue.
- Compatible
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are compatible with JES’ perimeter drain systems, enabling you to create a complete basement waterproofing solution. This includes BasementGutter™ French drain systems that run the perimeter of the basement, sump pumps, drainage outlets, and grated outlets.
If your home has basement waterproofing not installed by JES, it may still be compatible with our BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes. To know for certain, book in a free inspection from one of our basement waterproofing experts.
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes
FAQ's
Ideally, interior drains and grated drainage pipes are installed during the construction of the home. This allows for foundation construction to accommodate the necessary trenches for a drainage network before concrete is poured. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case, and experts (like us) are required to step in and do what must be done.
Post-Construction Procedure
In cases where a drainage system needs to be installed post-construction, after a solution has been designed trenches will be dug. Often this means excavating part of the basement, which can be a time-consuming and labor-intensive process. Which is also why we recommended hiring professionals, like us, to handle installation.
Laying the Drainage Network
Once trenches have been dug, the drains and backfill (which may include additional matrix) are laid within. Depending on the extent of the system being installed, a sump pump and French drain perimeter system may be installed as well. After everything is connected, the floors will be repaired leaving only the grated gutter opening exposed.
Waterproofing your basement is essential in homes throughout Virginia, Maryland, and D.C., as our humid climate frequently sees rainfall. Even outside of rainy weather, moisture is still present in the earth in the form of hydrostatic pressure. This is a major contributing factor to the development of basement leaking and cracks in the floor and foundation, through which water seeps. Water-logged soil can also cause water to seep through window wells and doorways.
Draining this water away effectively is important for preserving the health of your basement, and thereby also keeping your home healthy and comfortable to live in. Water in the basement can cause a number of problems including the following:
Mold, Mildew, and Wood Rot
A persistent presence of water and moisture will cause mold, mildew, and wood rot to grow. Mold and
mildew don’t cause overly much property damage, but they do affect the indoor air quality. The spores released by mold can cause irritation of the mouth, nose, and eyes, and can trigger allergic reactions.
Some types of mold, like Black Mold, are even toxic.
Wood rot is a fungus which devours dead wood. Within 2-3 years of first growing, wood rot can cause significant structural damage to the home. In the basement, this means the ceiling/floorboards and wooden supports and framework.
Preventing these growths from forming is important for the health and happiness of your family. To do this, water must be drained away and a moisture-free environment maintained.
Pests
Rodents and cockroaches actively seek out warm, dark environments like basements to call home. Basements with water leakage are even more attractive. A reliable source of water is high in the priority list of any animal, and cockroaches need damp environments to survive.
Maintaining a dry and water-free basement is crucial for deterring pests from living in your basement.
Established colonies of pests can negatively impact the indoor air quality with allergens, and the creatures themselves can spread bacteria.
Increasing Humidity
In our area, water will eventually begin to evaporate, especially if it is left to puddle in the basement.
What this does is cause the interior humidity levels of the basement to rise. As heat rises, these peaks in humidity will quickly move into the home itself. Not only does this make your home uncomfortably warm, but it also causes your energy usage to rise too.
Often, to combat these unprecedented humidity levels, people will run their air conditioning system for longer. This increases the home’s energy usage, and thus the monthly energy bill as well. Effectively draining water from the basement controls indoor humidity levels, and in doing so creates a more comfortable, energy efficient home.
BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are designed to be installed inside the home, where your home’s insulation protects them from the worst of the chill. Exterior drains will freeze in winter, although this can be mitigated through certain measures, such as salting the drains. Interior basement drains should remain free of ice, even if the basement isn’t properly insulated.
One of the reasons why JES highly recommends installing interior drains is for this very reason.
Interior Drains: A Freeze-Free Solution
Interior drains won’t freeze, which is essential for keeping the basement free of water in cold weather.
Our winters may see snowfall, but ice rarely penetrates the earth more than a few feet in our area.
Even still, the peace of mind our drainage solutions provide is valuable. Plus, moisture can still seep into your basement during winter, and once spring hits and the ice melts there will be even more water to deal with.
JES recommends a basement sump pump to ensure all water is efficiently discharged from your basement drainage network!
The Importance of Keeping Drains Ice-Free
As water freezes, it expands. Drains will grow full blocks of ice that can damage the drainage network and block discharge lines – not only with ice, but trapped debris as well. This can cause an overflow of water, which may push water back into your home or cause exterior gutters to overflow. Triggering flooding, inside and out, and further issues with ice.
Waterproof Your Basement With JES
Waterproofing your basement doesn’t have to be difficult. All you have to do is book in a free inspection and quote from JES, and we’ll handle the rest. BasementGutter™ Grated Drain Pipes are one of the best ways to capture water entering the basement via doorways and other entry points.
BasementGutter™ also comes with a written lifetime warranty. Protect your home by waterproofing your basement with JES.