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Foundation Repair

Keep Your Gutters Clean or Your Home Foundation Will be Damaged

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We take our gutters for granted. 

We don’t look at them very often even as leaves, twigs, and debris accumulate in our gutters. However, neglecting this seemingly small chore can have significant consequences that would need structural repair, especially when it comes to your home’s foundation. 

Gutters are an integral part of a home’s drainage system. They channel rainwater and melted snow away from the roof and the foundation of your home. Without gutters, water would run down the roof and pour directly onto the ground near the foundation. Excess moisture leads to foundation damage and other home issues.***

When gutters become clogged with debris, water cannot be redirected away from your home. Instead, water overflows from the gutters and pools around the foundation. Over time, this excess moisture can lead to several problems:

  1. Soil Erosion: Water that collects around the home foundation and erodes the soil. As the soil shifts and washes away, it can create voids and gaps beneath your home’s foundation, weakening its support.
  2. Foundation Cracks: Excess moisture can seep into your foundation, causing it to crack. As these cracks widen, they compromise the structural integrity of your home and would need structural repair.
  3. Basement and Crawl Space Flooding: When water saturates the soil around your foundation, it can find its way into your basement or crawl space. This not only damages your belongings but can also lead to mold and mildew growth.
  4. Uneven Foundation Settlement: Uneven moisture levels in the soil can cause your foundation to settle unevenly. This can result in sloping floors, cracked walls, and other structural issues.
  5. Costly Repairs: Foundation damage is not only a structural concern but also a financial one. Repairing foundation issues can be extremely costly, often requiring extensive work to stabilize and restore the foundation.

Regular gutter maintenance is the key to preventing foundation damage caused by clogged gutters. Here are some essential steps to keep your gutters clean and the home foundation protected:

  1. Regular Cleaning: Clean gutters at least twice a year, typically in the spring and fall. However, if you have overhanging trees, you may need to clean them more frequently to prevent clogs.
  2. Proper Installation: Ensure your gutters are correctly installed with a slight downward slope toward the downspouts. This helps water flow smoothly toward the drainage system.
  3. Gutter Guards: Consider installing gutter guards or screens to prevent debris from entering your gutters while allowing water to pass through. While not foolproof, they can significantly reduce the frequency of cleaning.
  4. Downspout Maintenance: Check that your downspouts are clear and unobstructed. Make sure they direct water away from your home’s foundation.
  5. Landscaping Considerations: Trim overhanging branches and vegetation near your roof to minimize the amount of debris that falls into your gutters.
  6. Professional Inspection: Periodically hire a professional to inspect your gutters for damage or signs of clogs that may not be visible from the ground. They can also inspect your home foundation and determine if any structural repair is needed.  

While it’s easy to underestimate the importance of clean gutters, they are a vital component of your home’s overall maintenance. By ensuring that water is properly channeled away from your foundation, you can avoid costly structural repairs and potentially devastating foundation damage. Regular gutter cleaning and maintenance are not just a matter of aesthetics; they are crucial for the long-term structural integrity and stability of your home. Don’t overlook this essential task, as it can save you a significant headache and expense down the road.

M Taylor Enterprise has an expert home structural repair team that can inspect your home to see if you have any home structural issues. Call our home foundation and structural repair experts in Maryland at (301) 649-3406 or email matt@mtaylorenterprise.com. We will do a free consultation, make recommendations, then do any needed repairs quickly and efficiently. 

We serve Montgomery County, MD, parts of Prince George’s, MD, and Howard County, MD.

*** For more information, on gutter maintenance visit the Maryland Reporter website.

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Protect Your Home Foundation With French Drains

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Rains, snow, and ice in Central Maryland can cause flooding and water damage. ***

As we have discussed in my previous blogs, you must make sure that water is directed away from the home foundation. If water is allowed to pool around the home foundation or leaks into the basement, it can cause significant damage to the foundation, walls, and interior. It can be costly to repair. 

French Drains, which can be built around the perimeter of the home, direct water away from the home foundation. French drains, using gravity and sump pumps, remove the water and keep it away from the foundation so that it doesn’t erode the home foundation. 

Drains move water away from one area to another. A French drain is a ditch lined with gravel and a perforated pipe. It makes it easy for water to flow through the gravel and into a drainage pipe. The perforated pipe is set at a downward-sloping angle allowing gravity to work. It can also be used to prevent basement flooding and protect the home foundation from water damage. A weeping tile French drain protects the home structure against hydrostatic pressure. These weeping tile French drains are placed around the home perimeter to draw water away from the foundation.

There are three main reasons that you may want to install a French drain in your home:

  1. It redirects moisture. As mentioned earlier, the French drain uses gravity to redirect the water away from the home foundation. Water has to be removed so that it and moisture won’t weaken the concrete foundation. That water will freeze and thaw during the winter. The French drain resolves this as it can direct the moisture to another part of the yard, including the garden or yard, making it an environmentally smart method of improving the yard’s appearance. 
  2. Keeps the soil together. It prevents or mitigates soil erosion. After heavy rains, soil can erode quickly. An inefficient drainage system will not deal with erosion problems in your yard. Decay means plants will have fewer nutrients and moisture. Erosion also ruins the landscape look. French drains prevent soil erosion. It prevents water saturation and keeps a balanced moisture level in garden soil. 
  3. Barely see them. Since a French drain is underground, it can barely be seen. Pipes and gravel can be covered by grass, pavers, and pebbles. 
  4. Cost-effective. French drains can be quite affordable depending on the length of pipe needed and other installation factors. 

If you are concerned about the coming snow and ice that we see in Central Maryland, you may want to consider having French drains installed around your home. These drains will go a long way toward preserving your home foundation. 

If you want a French Drain installed, contact M. Taylor Enterprise for an inspection. We will analyze it and make recommendations. Our experienced basement waterproofing team can install it. Contact us at (301) 649-3406 for a consultation.

We serve the Montgomery County, Maryland area.

*** For more on Central Maryland weather, visit the Maryland Weather website. 

 

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The Basics of a Home Drainage System

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Your home drainage system is key to your home working correctly. When it is failing, the rest of your home will feel it. Your toilets, baths, showers, and sinks all are interconnected. If there is a failure in the chain, it affects all of it.   

As the owner and employee of M. Taylor Enterprises, I have worked on thousands of home drainage systems in Central Maryland for many years. I have seen every possible issue and breakdown. And, I certainly understand why my customers panic when it does break down.

Often, I will explain how their home drainage works and what we need to do to repair the link in the chain. Many of my customers want to understand how it works. Though admittedly, other customers are desperate and just want it repaired. I get that, too.

Anyway, here are the basic structures and functions of a typical home drainage system:

  1. The supply and drainage subsystems work together. They have bridges between the supply and drainage subsystems called “fixtures.” 
  2. Fixtures draw in freshwater and also release wastewater. Fixtures include kitchen and bathroom sinks, bathtubs and showers, washing machines, toilets, and outside faucets. These fixtures work together to keep supply and wastewater apart. 
  3. A trap is a curved pipe that keeps water inside and prevents sewer gasses from coming into your home. They are found inside kitchen cabinets or underneath the kitchen or bathroom sink plumbing.
  4. Drain lines are in each kitchen and bathroom plumbing fixture. Drain lines are found under sinks, bathtubs, and showers, and the toilet ties into a larger main line. Then, the main line runs water out of the home. Water comes from the local municipality. The wastewater then drains back into a sewer system with septic tanks. Septic tanks are cleaned every 10 years to prevent backup, which prevents major problems with a home’s drainage system. Toilets are self-trapped. However, bathtubs use drum traps to seal sewer gas and collect hair and dirt so drains don’t get clogged. 
  5. Vent Pipes allow water to drain. Vents are made of rubber, lead, or sheet metal on the roof. It holds the vent pipe in place.
  6. Nut and Ferrule connect the traps. They are connected using a threaded fitting. The ferrule forms the seal, as the nut screws down over the ferrule forming a watertight seal preventing sewer gasses from entering your home.
  7. Pitch is the angle at which water flows without needing gravity. It’s essential as all sewer or septic system drainpipes, in the wall or underground, have some type of pitch and are sloped releasing wastewater to drain out of the home. 
  8. Shutoff valves are there to close the main shutoff to repair them. The water supply to the fixture or the main shutoff must be closed to do any plumbing repairs.

Well, now you know the basics of your home drainage system. They all work together so you can live comfortably. 

If you are having problems with your home drainage system, contact M. Taylor Enterprises for a consultation. M Taylor Enterprise can inspect your home drainage system to see if you have any issues. Call our home drainage repair experts in Maryland at (301) 649-3406 or matt@mtaylorenterprise.com. We will do a free consultation, make recommendations then do any needed repairs done quickly and efficiently. 

We serve Montgomery County and parts of Prince George’s and Howard Counties.

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Is Your Home Drainage System Effective?

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Every home has a drainage system. Some are effective and keep the water away from the foundation. Others, however, are ineffective and causing great damage to the home foundation. 

There are several tried-and-true methods to ensure proper water drainage around your home. These tips should stop ponds from forming and keep home foundation damaging water away. 

  1. Here are several tips on installing a proper water drainage system, so your home is protected during any season of the year. Find out where the excess water is originating. Poor drainage will eventually form ponds around your home. This occurs when there is no place for the excess water to drain into. Maryland gets an average of 44 inches a year of precipitation, with most of the rain occurring during July and August. We get an average of 20 inches of snow. *** So, we have almost sixty-four (64) inches of snow/rain yearly. That is a fair amount of water. Additionally, a damaged or broken pipe may flood your yard.
  2. Survey the land closest to your home. See how it is laid out by finding the high and low parts of your yard. The drains will have to be placed at the lowest sections of your yard. If there is a low point, one needs to be dug. The water will drain then and no ponds will be created. You can also level the high sections of your yard.
  3. Prepare the soil for drainage. Central Maryland has clay soil. Clay becomes tough and solid over time which makes it perfect for excess water runoff. It’s also harder to dig up, as you have probably found out.
  4. Determine Your Drain Layout. In order to reroute the water drainage from getting into your home and into the foundation, you may need to install one of the following: French Drain, gravel trench, drainage pipe, or an open ditch. You may not be sure which one is the best (and least costly). You may need to install one in the front and back yard, depending on the number of acres that you have. If you are not sure, consult a home foundation and water drainage, expert. (See #5.)
  5. Get an Expert Involved. Even though you have done the surveying of your land and home, you are probably not an expert in installing home drainage systems. Now is the time to find an experienced, home foundation repair and home drainage contractor in the Central Maryland area. You may even need to get several bids on the work before you make a decision.

This is a good time of year, if you live in Central Maryland, to check the land around your home. If you are concerned with what you have found, call a home foundation repair expert in your area. 

M Taylor Enterprise can inspect your home foundation to see if you have any basement waterproofing issues. Call our home foundation and structural repair experts in Maryland at (301) 649-3406 or matt@mtaylorenterprise.com. We will do a free consultation, make recommendations then do any needed repairs done quickly and efficiently. We serve the Montgomery County, parts of Prince Georges and Howard Counties.

*** For more information on Maryland precipitation, visit the state website.