Water back up and seepage in basement--two sump pumps already

We have already had two sump pumps, French drains and thickened part of our foundation and we still have back up water through the basement shower and toilet.  I've read that this could be caused by clogged or problematic sewage lines to the street and roots growing into the pipe (we have a large tree out front).  Can anyone recommend a service to investigate/fix this?  And is there any chance some of this could be caused by the town drainage (I ask because it seems to have gotten worse since they did work on our street)


it is most likely a clog in your main drain.  If your neighbors also have problems it could be the town sewer, but that is less likely.


Some plumbers can do this.  Start with a call to your plumber.


Essex Drain

(973) 228-0480

They will clean the main and tell you why it's clogged and backing up.


Okay, so clogged line is cleared up, but it appears we have more than one problem--separate water seepage that the two sump pumps and French drain toward rear of house don't take care of.  I'm curious how extensive other folks French drains are? We lived in our house for 12 years and the basement was bone dry that whole time.  Now we can't seem to master this wetness issue.


I recently had this problem: roots clogging the pipe leading from the house, causing water to back up through the basement toilet flooding part of the basement. Local plumber, Anthony Masi, was able to identify and resolve the problem.  Highly recommend.



mtam said:

Okay, so clogged line is cleared up, but it appears we have more than one problem--separate water seepage that the two sump pumps and French drain toward rear of house don't take care of.  I'm curious how extensive other folks French drains are? We lived in our house for 12 years and the basement was bone dry that whole time.  Now we can't seem to master this wetness issue.

It has been a very wet spring.  The ground is really saturated.  Has anything changed recently with your gutters or landscaping?

I'm glad the drain is unclogged.



FilmCarp said:



mtam said:

Okay, so clogged line is cleared up, but it appears we have more than one problem--separate water seepage that the two sump pumps and French drain toward rear of house don't take care of.  I'm curious how extensive other folks French drains are? We lived in our house for 12 years and the basement was bone dry that whole time.  Now we can't seem to master this wetness issue.

It has been a very wet spring.  The ground is really saturated.  Has anything changed recently with your gutters or landscaping?

I'm glad the drain is unclogged.

Some houses are in or near underground watercourses or just have landscape issues that result in groundwater seepage.  Others are bone dry or in between.  Yes, it has been a wet spring, but it may just be a difference in the situation between the two houses.  We have french drains on the inside perimeter of our entire basement.  And as long as the sump pump runs (i.e. the power is on or we have battery or generator backup) our basement is bone dry.  But before we got the french drains, there could be 2-3 inches of water all over our basement floor.  From what I see coming out into the street near most of the houses on my block, I think it's just the nature of the groundwater in our neighborhood.


I will check with Anthony--I forgot about him and he's been great in the past.  We've also done landscaping in the back as we had so much water pooling in the center of the yard (now fixed).  But perhaps the french drain needs to be done in the front too.


It will cost a couple-a-hundred to have a plumber do an endoscope of the sewer line. I would go that way before paying for expanding the french drain.



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