Neighbor pointed out my downspouts were dumping water right against the foundation

Last spring my neighbor Bob walked over while I was cleaning gutters and said 'you know that water is gonna crack your basement wall eventually.' I blew him off at first but then I looked and yeah, the downspouts ended like 2 inches from the house. I got some 4 foot extensions from Home Depot for like $8 each and routed the water 6 feet away. Huge difference now during heavy rains. Anyone else catch something dumb like that after buying their first place?

3 comments

3 Comments

anna4911mo ago

@park.miles I get what you're saying about Bob being the doom and gloom type, but I actually read a study from some university extension program that said even a few inches of splashback can cause hydrostatic pressure against the foundation over time. It's not about overnight flooding, it's about years of water slowly weakening the soil and causing settling cracks. My uncle had a house where the downspouts were like yours, dumping for a decade, and his basement corner was always damp until he finally fixed it, then the dampness stopped completely. Soil type matters sure, but clay soils like what I have here hold water like a sponge and push it sideways against the wall. A $8 fix seems worth skipping the potential headache, even if Bob was a bit dramatic about it.

park.miles1mo ago

gonna crack your basement wall eventually" - Bob sounds like one of those guys who thinks every little thing is gonna cause the apocalypse. Look, I get it, water against the foundation isn't great, but people act like a few inches of splashback is gonna turn your basement into a swimming pool overnight. My first place had downspouts dumping right next to the house for like 10 years before I got around to fixing them. The basement was fine, just a little damp in the corner during really heavy storms. Isn't it more about the soil type and how much rain you actually get? Bob probably just wanted to feel helpful, but I'd bet half the houses on your street have the same setup and nobody's basement is caving in.

owens.anthony1mo ago

Ha, Bob's probably the same guy who checks his tire pressure weekly and freaks out over a single CEL. I feel like @anna491 is over here quoting university studies like we're in a doctoral thesis defense about splashback physics. Look, I got clay soil too and my old house had a gutter that dumped right into a window well for like 15 years. Basement was fine, just a little musty smell that a dehumidifier handled. Sure, maybe Bob's right in some extreme case but most of us aren't living in a floodplain fighting hydrostatic pressure like it's a supervillain. A couple splash blocks aren't gonna hurt but I'd rather spend that $8 on beer and let the foundation fight its own battles.