Posted: 2/21/2015 10:40:04 PM EDT
| Just broke 31 degree in North Haven. |
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Basements are gonna start flooding like crazy soon. This is the worst part of winter. I won't be able to walk in my yard for a 2 months without mudding it up First melting season in my house. ...my basement was dry all summer into winter even with the rain we got.. Any tips/tricks i have no sump pump nor a hole to put it in... 
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First melting season in my house. ...my basement was dry all summer into winter even with the rain we got.. Any tips/tricks i have no sump pump nor a hole to put it in... Quoted:
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Basements are gonna start flooding like crazy soon. This is the worst part of winter. I won't be able to walk in my yard for a 2 months without mudding it up First melting season in my house. ...my basement was dry all summer into winter even with the rain we got.. Any tips/tricks i have no sump pump nor a hole to put it in... Not all basements will flood. Preventative - all you can really do is get stuff off the ground. Is it a finished basement? If not, go get some PT 4"x4"'s and use it to put under shelving units, washer/dryer etc. Basically just get all metal off the ground, or things that will otherwise be ruined by water. You can do the same with a finished basement, but furniture, carpet and drywall are a whole other beast. Then beat me to Harbor Freight or Sears etc and buy yourself a trash pump (Pump with a debris cage) and a couple hoses. I'm not kidding, get it now if you're concerned, they sold out everywhere a couple years ago and it'll happen again this year. They are cheap and available right now so get on it. Then just keep an eye on the basement. You can't stop the water from coming in, but if you are prepared you can keep it under 2" deep. Once it starts coming in, just keep running the pump(s) and keep the water below your 4x4's. The more hose the better, to pump the water out farther away from your house. Pump is not going to reach the last inch (likely), so a shop vac or wet/dry vac is in order. And then a de-humidifier. ETA: if you have a big enough shop vac, you can put the pump inside it and run the hose and power cord out the exhaust port and run it inside the vac while you suck up the last inch. Way easier and faster than filling the vac with water and carrying it outside to dump it. |
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If there is no sump for a sump pump you probably have a dry basement. Are there signs that water was ever in the basement?
Why anyone would buy a house with a wet basement is beyond me. So many houses with properly built foundations why pick one that is not done right? In the spring, you can do some things that will help. Slope the dirt away from the house. Install gutters and downspout that will direct the water away from the foundation. Even better is to connect the down spouts to a dry well that is located away from the house. |
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If there is no sump for a sump pump you probably have a dry basement. Are there signs that water was ever in the basement? Why anyone would buy a house with a wet basement is beyond me. So many houses with properly built foundations why pick one that is not done right? In the spring, you can do some things that will help. Slope the dirt away from the house. Install gutters and downspout that will direct the water away from the foundation. Even better is to connect the down spouts to a dry well that is located away from the house. Sloping the dirt is ny spring project as well as the drywell I should be alright i hope 
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Sloping the dirt is ny spring project as well as the drywell I should be alright i hope Quoted:
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If there is no sump for a sump pump you probably have a dry basement. Are there signs that water was ever in the basement? Why anyone would buy a house with a wet basement is beyond me. So many houses with properly built foundations why pick one that is not done right? In the spring, you can do some things that will help. Slope the dirt away from the house. Install gutters and downspout that will direct the water away from the foundation. Even better is to connect the down spouts to a dry well that is located away from the house. Sloping the dirt is ny spring project as well as the drywell I should be alright i hope Good luck! |
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Basements are gonna start flooding like crazy soon. This is the worst part of winter. I won't be able to walk in my yard for a 2 months without mudding it up The worst part is my dogs constantly bringing the mud in the house!!! It's going to be a total shit show....... |
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Yep I started in full snow gear(big waterproof jacket, hat with neck warmer attached, big snowboarding mits)
Ended in a t shirt, jeans, and sunglasses. 
Be careful under the trees though. Had a bunch of snowballs fall from the trees go under my collar down my back.....WOWWW |
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You guys aren't kidding.
I decided I should start my day so I took a shower - Went outside in normal winter attire (longjohns/jeans, couple long shirts/hoodie, wool socks etc), cleared the vehicles off and shoveled - then came back in to shower again so I can start my day non-sweaty. ha! |
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Yep I started in full snow gear(big waterproof jacket, hat with neck warmer attached, big snowboarding mits) Ended in a t shirt, jeans, and sunglasses.
Be careful under the trees though. Had a bunch of snowballs fall from the trees go under my collar down my back.....WOWWW This was me with full snow clearing gear and ended in shorts and tshirt !!! Sweating green tip bullets !!!!! 
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Plowed the drive and got the sides pushed back.
Path cleared for propane delivery. Roof raked, with snowshoes on. Deck shoveled. Rear roof shoveled. About 4" of ice on 120ft^2 of flat roof, broken up and discarded. Gutters, in rear, freed of ice. Deck shoveled, again. Path cleared for melt to runoff driveway into neighbor's yard. All in all, 6.5 hrs. This years must-do, heat trace gutters and 18" up. |
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Plowed the drive and got the sides pushed back. Path cleared for propane delivery. Roof raked, with snowshoes on. Deck shoveled. Rear roof shoveled. About 4" of ice on 120ft^2 of flat roof, broken up and discarded. Gutters, in rear, freed of ice. Deck shoveled, again. Path cleared for melt to runoff driveway into neighbor's yard. All in all, 6.5 hrs. This years must-do, heat trace gutters and 18" up. Hey you!! I know where you can get some heat trace... |
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Hey you!! I know where you can get some heat trace... Quoted:
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Plowed the drive and got the sides pushed back. Path cleared for propane delivery. Roof raked, with snowshoes on. Deck shoveled. Rear roof shoveled. About 4" of ice on 120ft^2 of flat roof, broken up and discarded. Gutters, in rear, freed of ice. Deck shoveled, again. Path cleared for melt to runoff driveway into neighbor's yard. All in all, 6.5 hrs. This years must-do, heat trace gutters and 18" up. Hey you!! I know where you can get some heat trace... Oh yeah. How ya doin old man. Actually, I've been looking into those gutter systems that block the leaves. They make some out of anodized Al with a channel for heat trace. The Al acts as a sink and melts not only the gutter, but about 4" up the eave. You don't need the trace on the roof or the electricity to power it. Lisa was looking for someone to put speakers through her hous . I told her to give you a call. |
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Hey you!! I know where you can get some heat trace... Quoted:
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Plowed the drive and got the sides pushed back. Path cleared for propane delivery. Roof raked, with snowshoes on. Deck shoveled. Rear roof shoveled. About 4" of ice on 120ft^2 of flat roof, broken up and discarded. Gutters, in rear, freed of ice. Deck shoveled, again. Path cleared for melt to runoff driveway into neighbor's yard. All in all, 6.5 hrs. This years must-do, heat trace gutters and 18" up. Hey you!! I know where you can get some heat trace... Hit me up! I'd like to do mine this summer. |
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I'm running a space heater in the basement as extra help for the boiler since the heating pipes aren't insulated. the basement hit 47° last week in the sub-zero temps and my boiler couldn't keep up. Temperature in the house dropped to 60° while set at 72°
I've got a relatively new Buderus 124 natural gas boiler from 2008 and is serviced annually |
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Reach out if I can help, I've dealt with them twice. Have a few heaters, tools, and I I'm available at strange times. Quoted:
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The weather report is showing temps of -10/-15 degrees tonight. I just don't want anymore frozen pipes! Mike Reach out if I can help, I've dealt with them twice. Have a few heaters, tools, and I I'm available at strange times. Yea, I've been dealing with it several times this winter. I've had a frozen toilet twice and one shower drain frozen. Previously I've had a problem once in the past 14 years. On very cold nights I just crank the heat up, usually does the job. Mike |
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I'm running a space heater in the basement as extra help for the boiler since the heating pipes aren't insulated. the basement hit 47° last week in the sub-zero temps and my boiler couldn't keep up. Temperature in the house dropped to 60° while set at 72° I've got a relatively new Buderus 124 natural gas boiler from 2008 and is serviced annually Design temp for heating systems is 0 degrees in Connecticut. If your boiler is not keeping up it is either too small or not working correctly. Looking at your pics of ice posted earlier you have an insulation,problem. Attic insulation is cheap. 30 inches of cellulose will pay for itself pretty quick. Insulate the heating pipes. If you are worried about pipes freezing turn the circulators on. Did,you have a proper heat loss calculation performed or just the rule of thumb by the contractor? Contractor just guesses. I bet you have major air infiltration issues if your house can't keep up and you boiler is sized and running properly. One last thought have cleaned all the dirt and dust off the baseboard fins? If not that will reduce heat transfer. |
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Design temp for heating systems is 0 degrees in Connecticut. If your boiler is not keeping up it is either too small or not working correctly. Looking at your pics of ice posted earlier you have an insulation,problem. Attic insulation is cheap. 30 inches of cellulose will pay for itself pretty quick. Insulate the heating pipes. If you are worried about pipes freezing turn the circulators on. Did,you have a proper heat loss calculation performed or just the rule of thumb by the contractor? Contractor just guesses. I bet you have major air infiltration issues if your house can't keep up and you boiler is sized and running properly. One last thought have cleaned all the dirt and dust off the baseboard fins? If not that will reduce heat transfer. Quoted:
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I'm running a space heater in the basement as extra help for the boiler since the heating pipes aren't insulated. the basement hit 47° last week in the sub-zero temps and my boiler couldn't keep up. Temperature in the house dropped to 60° while set at 72° I've got a relatively new Buderus 124 natural gas boiler from 2008 and is serviced annually Design temp for heating systems is 0 degrees in Connecticut. If your boiler is not keeping up it is either too small or not working correctly. Looking at your pics of ice posted earlier you have an insulation,problem. Attic insulation is cheap. 30 inches of cellulose will pay for itself pretty quick. Insulate the heating pipes. If you are worried about pipes freezing turn the circulators on. Did,you have a proper heat loss calculation performed or just the rule of thumb by the contractor? Contractor just guesses. I bet you have major air infiltration issues if your house can't keep up and you boiler is sized and running properly. One last thought have cleaned all the dirt and dust off the baseboard fins? If not that will reduce heat transfer. What this guys said ^^ |
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That big icicle was at work, not home. The boiler was installed at home 6 years before I moved in. I shrink wrapped 4 leaky windows and weather stripped 2 doors after the last deep freeze 5 days ago.
This house is 98 years old and needs an energy audit for a reality check. The windows on the 2nd & 3rd floor are original from 1917 when my great grandfather installed them 
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That big icicle was at work, not home. The boiler was installed at home 6 years before I moved in. I shrink wrapped 4 leaky windows and weather stripped 2 doors after the last deep freeze 5 days ago. This house is 98 years old and needs an energy audit for a reality check. The windows on the 2nd & 3rd floor are original from 1917 when my great grandfather installed them
My house was built in 1910. I replaced all the windows, had foam poured in the walls, added 30" cellulose to the attic. Replaced my leaky rear door. Cut my oil bill in half. Have to replace my front door, hope to do so this summer. Feels warmer too. No more drafts. |
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Oh yeah. How ya doin old man. Actually, I've been looking into those gutter systems that block the leaves. They make some out of anodized Al with a channel for heat trace. The Al acts as a sink and melts not only the gutter, but about 4" up the eave. You don't need the trace on the roof or the electricity to power it. Lisa was looking for someone to put speakers through her hous . I told her to give you a call. Quoted:
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Plowed the drive and got the sides pushed back. Path cleared for propane delivery. Roof raked, with snowshoes on. Deck shoveled. Rear roof shoveled. About 4" of ice on 120ft^2 of flat roof, broken up and discarded. Gutters, in rear, freed of ice. Deck shoveled, again. Path cleared for melt to runoff driveway into neighbor's yard. All in all, 6.5 hrs. This years must-do, heat trace gutters and 18" up. Hey you!! I know where you can get some heat trace... Oh yeah. How ya doin old man. Actually, I've been looking into those gutter systems that block the leaves. They make some out of anodized Al with a channel for heat trace. The Al acts as a sink and melts not only the gutter, but about 4" up the eave. You don't need the trace on the roof or the electricity to power it. Lisa was looking for someone to put speakers through her hous . I told her to give you a call. Thanks TOMB. That gutter system sounds interesting. I'm due for replacements, and getting weary of ladders and gutter cleaning. For you guys interested in heat trace. 3-5 watt per foot, rule of thumb is about 190 ft for a dedicated 15amp circuit. Termination is tricky at both the tag end and the power connection. Maintaining weatherproofing and getting to the power source are issues. But does not require an electrical engineer to figure out. The stuff is self regulating normally. I'll provide a link to a manufacturer I have used frequently. My experience is heating chemical lines in industrial environments. I believe you can purchase lengths that are pre terminated and that have a thermal sensor. You just tape it your pipe and plug it in. Beware. 3-5 watt can cost $3 per foot. |
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Check it out
Goes onto existing gutter, 5' sections I think. Keeps the leaves out and heat traces in winter. Only need one straight run instead of zig-zags |
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Check it out Goes onto existing gutter, 5' sections I think. Keeps the leaves out and heat traces in winter. Only need one straight run instead of zig-zags Great idea! |
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Heat trace can get costly to run. if you string up 200 feet of zig zag cable at 5 watts per foot you will use 1 kWh of electricity. if you run the heat trace for 24 hrs a day for 30 days you will use 720 kWh of electricity. This is over $100 a month. Obviously you would only run this for a few days or during daylight hours so your monthly costs would be less but still you are spending a lot of money to treat a symptom.
Why not take the money you will spend on the heat trace and electricity to run it and insulate your house properly? Ice dams are from incorrect/poor insulation. I used to get crazy icicles on my house. Looked like my house was made of ice. After I had it insulated I have almost nothing on my house. Just one at a valley where a southern and western facing roof meet. The advantage to insulating vs. treating the symptom with heat trace is you will save money instead of spending it to heat your roof. I find it hard to believe the gutter covers with the neat trace built in will solve ice dam issues. The ice forms over the unheated part of the roof. The gutter is too far from this area to be effectively warming it. |
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Heat trace can get costly to run. if you string up 200 feet of zig zag cable at 5 watts per foot you will use 1 kWh of electricity. if you run the heat trace for 24 hrs a day for 30 days you will use 720 kWh of electricity. This is over $100 a month. Obviously you would only run this for a few days or during daylight hours so your monthly costs would be less but still you are spending a lot of money to treat a symptom. Why not take the money you will spend on the heat trace and electricity to run it and insulate your house properly? Ice dams are from incorrect/poor insulation. I used to get crazy icicles on my house. Looked like my house was made of ice. After I had it insulated I have almost nothing on my house. Just one at a valley where a southern and western facing roof meet. The advantage to insulating vs. treating the symptom with heat trace is you will save money instead of spending it to heat your roof. I find it hard to believe the gutter covers with the neat trace built in will solve ice dam issues. The ice forms over the unheated part of the roof. The gutter is too far from this area to be effectively warming it. Nothing here I don't agree with. I have a 100+ year old home there are 2 rooms on one side of the house that are properly insulated they have zero ice daming, however the other half of the house has major ice daming because the rooms are not properly insulated. I did reroof the house and ice and watered the roof to 6' which is probably why I get no water damage. |
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I find it hard to believe the gutter covers with the neat trace built in will solve ice dam issues. The ice forms over the unheated part of the roof. The gutter is too far from this area to be effectively warming it. Quoted:
I find it hard to believe the gutter covers with the neat trace built in will solve ice dam issues. The ice forms over the unheated part of the roof. The gutter is too far from this area to be effectively warming it. This is not how ice damming works. The ice needs something to butt up against, to start going up the roof. Roof snow melts, from lost heat through the rafters, and fills the gutter. It freezes and, since it has nowhere to go, forms a dam, which travels back up the roof and under the shingles. The heat trace, on the leaf guard, keeps the gutter free of ice so the melting snow can become run-off. You do not need to run the heat trace as much as you think. 4 hrs a day, during the sunniest hours, will do the job. Once you keep the gutter clear, you just need to maintain it. Quoted:
Heat trace can get costly to run. if you string up 200 feet of zig zag cable at 5 watts per foot you will use 1 kWh of electricity. if you run the heat trace for 24 hrs a day for 30 days you will use 720 kWh of electricity. This is over $100 a month. Obviously you would only run this for a few days or during daylight hours so your monthly costs would be less but still you are spending a lot of money to treat a symptom. Why not take the money you will spend on the heat trace and electricity to run it and insulate your house properly? Ice dams are from incorrect/poor insulation. I used to get crazy icicles on my house. Looked like my house was made of ice. After I had it insulated I have almost nothing on my house. Just one at a valley where a southern and western facing roof meet. The advantage to insulating vs. treating the symptom with heat trace is you will save money instead of spending it to heat your roof. I agree, proper insulation is absolutely necessary to, not only stop damming, but, save you heating $$$. |
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This is not how ice damming works. The ice needs something to butt up against, to start going up the roof. Roof snow melts, from lost heat through the rafters, and fills the gutter. It freezes and, since it has nowhere to go, forms a dam, which travels back up the roof and under the shingles. The heat trace, on the leaf guard, keeps the gutter free of ice so the melting snow can become run-off. You do not need to run the heat trace as much as you think. 4 hrs a day, during the sunniest hours, will do the job. Once you keep the gutter clear, you just need to maintain it. I agree, proper insulation is absolutely necessary to, not only stop damming, but, save you heating $$$. Quoted:
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I find it hard to believe the gutter covers with the neat trace built in will solve ice dam issues. The ice forms over the unheated part of the roof. The gutter is too far from this area to be effectively warming it. This is not how ice damming works. The ice needs something to butt up against, to start going up the roof. Roof snow melts, from lost heat through the rafters, and fills the gutter. It freezes and, since it has nowhere to go, forms a dam, which travels back up the roof and under the shingles. The heat trace, on the leaf guard, keeps the gutter free of ice so the melting snow can become run-off. You do not need to run the heat trace as much as you think. 4 hrs a day, during the sunniest hours, will do the job. Once you keep the gutter clear, you just need to maintain it. Quoted:
Heat trace can get costly to run. if you string up 200 feet of zig zag cable at 5 watts per foot you will use 1 kWh of electricity. if you run the heat trace for 24 hrs a day for 30 days you will use 720 kWh of electricity. This is over $100 a month. Obviously you would only run this for a few days or during daylight hours so your monthly costs would be less but still you are spending a lot of money to treat a symptom. Why not take the money you will spend on the heat trace and electricity to run it and insulate your house properly? Ice dams are from incorrect/poor insulation. I used to get crazy icicles on my house. Looked like my house was made of ice. After I had it insulated I have almost nothing on my house. Just one at a valley where a southern and western facing roof meet. The advantage to insulating vs. treating the symptom with heat trace is you will save money instead of spending it to heat your roof. I agree, proper insulation is absolutely necessary to, not only stop damming, but, save you heating $$$.  ice damming happens on houses with out gutters? If it was only a gutter iceing issue people would only put heat tape in the gutter. Instead they zigzag it over the unheated area at the end of the roof.
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Insulation isn't the "be all end all" of ice damming. Heat loss is only a small contribution. As said before, it is mainly caused by run-off freezing in gutter and slowlying accumulating until it backs up under your shingles. The main issue is the sun melting snow and water hitting gutters that are at freezing temperatures and freezing on contact. The more water that runs into the gutters the quicker it builds, raking the roof slows (takes longer from water source to the gutter) the water down so it does not accumulate as quickly.The best way to combat ice dams is to roof rake after every storm, even the just last foot of your roof, before it hits the gutter, and clean fresh fallen snow from your gutters. The higher you can reach the better.
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So what do you guys insulate to stop ice daming? The attic floor, or the attic roof? My parents ranch is a disaster on both sides. Insulating the floor is easiest, but you need soffit vents, proper vents at the eves and a ridge vent up top to really make it right. Guys the goal is to have the temp. on the underside of the roof to be the same as the outside temp. This will eliminate 95% of your iceing |
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I see ice damming on houses without gutters. I think this is because the roof gets no sun. I agree the gutters collect the run off which freezes. I have thought about heat trace in the gutter but I really don't care if they fill with ice. I do not have ice dams or basement water problems.
Insulation will correct most ice damming issues. In addition you need a properly installed roof so if water gets under the shingles the ice and water underlayment stops it from entering the house. When you insulate your roof will no longer be heated so there will be much less run off. This runoff will mostly evaporate before it gets to the gutters. You want R49-60 in your attic. This is the cheapest and most effective energy savings you can do to your house. Your side benefit is ice dams are all but eliminated. |