Basement flooding: saved by the floor drain, but only just

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Ian Gills

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We have had some really heavy rain in the North-East and flash flooding in the last few days.

My walk out basement leads into my back garden. When it rains really hard, water from the garden can come gushing down my basement steps.

At the bottom of the steps is a drain (plumbed to the sewer and grandfathered - 1950s, all the houses in the street have them, inspected, challenged, accepted etc.).

In really heavy rain even this will not clear excess run-off from the garden, so water starts to flow under my basement door (I have only seen this happen once in the last three years I have lived in the house).

So then I have my final line of defence....a floor drain just behind the basement door plumbed to the sump pit.

Anyway last night, water was gushing under my basement door and the floor drain (bless it) kept up, but only just.

I am wondering whether there are any simple modifications I can make to the top of my basement stairs to stop torrential rain from the garden pouring down them. My first thought is to pave the top so they are higher than the garden by a few inches or so.

Any other thoughts or devices out there? This does not really justify regrading/french drains in the garden because of the rareity of the event.
 
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