For water under the house
Tallahassee Yard Drainage Crawl Space Drainage in Tallahassee
Water under a house evaporates up into the floor framing. The fix almost always starts outside, and only sometimes needs a drain and pump underneath.
- Tallahassee, Bradfordville and Crawfordville
- Written price before any digging
- Licensed, insured local contractors
- Priced for Red Hills clay and karst sand
Tallahassee Yard Drainage arranges crawl space drainage for Tallahassee homes where water collects under the house after rain. Many of the city's older homes, and plenty of newer ones on sloped lots, sit over a crawl space rather than a slab. When the yard sends water toward the foundation, that space is the lowest point it can reach.
Stopping water under a house typically costs $2,500 to $8,000; letting it sit feeds rot in the sill and joists, mold and termites, and replacing sections of floor framing runs $10,000 to $20,000.
$2,500 to $8,000 for most crawl space drainage
Crawl space drainage in Tallahassee typically runs $2,500 to $8,000. Outside work alone, such as downspout piping and regrading, sits at the low end. An interior perimeter drain with a sump pump and a discharge line to a legal outlet sits at the high end. Access height under the house affects labor more than anything else.
Get a price: (850) 604-5871Signs of water under the house
- Standing water or wet soil visible through the crawl space vent or door
- A musty smell inside, strongest in rooms over the crawl space
- Soft, bouncy or cupped floors, or wood flooring that has warped
- Condensation or mold on joists and insulation hanging loose
- Termite activity or rot found during an inspection
- Water flowing toward the house along the ground during rain
Start outside
Most crawl space water comes from outside the foundation and gets in by gravity. Roof water dumped at the foundation, soil sloping toward the house, and water moving along the top of the clay-enriched subsoil on a hillside lot all end up under the floor. Fixing those three is cheaper than any interior system, and it is the first thing to do. See downspout drainage and yard grading.
On hillside lots in the Red Hills, a curtain drain along the uphill side intercepts water travelling underground before it reaches the foundation. That is described on the foundation drainage page.
When an interior drain is needed
If the outside is right and water still arrives, typically on a lot where the house sits below the surrounding grade, the answer is an interior perimeter drain. A shallow trench along the inside of the foundation wall holds perforated pipe in gravel, which leads to a sump basin at the low corner. A pump lifts the water out through a solid discharge line to an outlet well away from the house.
A vapor barrier over the soil, sealed at the seams and up the walls, keeps ground moisture out of the framing once the standing water is gone.
Not sure which of these your yard needs? Describe it on the phone and get a straight answer.
Call (850) 604-5871Older Tallahassee houses
Homes built from the 1920s through the 1960s in neighborhoods like Myers Park, Levy Park and Los Robles commonly sit on block piers over a crawl space, and many have seen decades of regrading, additions and new driveways around them. Their original drainage often no longer fits the lot. The work there is careful: shallow access, old plumbing and wiring under the floor, and mature trees whose roots cross the drainage route.
Where the pumped water goes
A sump discharge line needs an outlet just like any other drain: a pop-up emitter downhill, a swale or a permitted connection to a storm system in the right of way. It should never discharge next to the foundation, where it would simply cycle back under the house.
Water standing under the house now?
Every week it sits is a week of moisture in the framing. Call and describe what you can see through the vent or access door.
Call (850) 604-5871Questions people ask
How much does crawl space drainage cost in Tallahassee?
Typically $2,500 to $8,000. Outside fixes like downspouts and grading sit at the low end; an interior perimeter drain with a sump pump sits at the high end.
Why is there water under my house after rain?
Usually roof water dumped at the foundation, soil sloping toward the house, or water travelling underground on a hillside lot. All three get in by gravity.
Do I need a sump pump in my crawl space?
Only if water still arrives after the downspouts and grading are fixed, typically when the house sits lower than the ground around it.
What are the signs of crawl space water problems?
Standing water or wet soil under the house, musty smells, soft or cupped floors, mold on joists, sagging insulation and termite activity.
Will a vapor barrier stop crawl space flooding?
No. A vapor barrier controls moisture from damp soil. Standing water has to be stopped outside or drained and pumped first.
Often done together
-
Foundation drainage
The house is the one thing in the yard that must stay dry. Foundation drainage moves water away from it before it can soak the soil the slab rests on.
-
Yard sump pumps
Most drainage works by gravity. On a flat lot, or a yard lower than the street, gravity has nowhere to send the water. A pump lifts it out.
-
Downspout drainage
Every downspout that dumps beside the slab is pouring a roof's worth of rain into the soil your foundation sits on. This is usually the cheapest fix on the list.
Talk it through before anyone digs
Describe where the water sits and where it comes from. You will hear which fix fits the yard, what it usually costs, and whether you need one at all.
Call (850) 604-5871