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Lots of talk here about flushing WH's. I have never heard anyone but a plumber ever talk about doing that, so I suspect most people never do. My gas WH is going on 30 years without a flush. NOW - I have seen the inside of electric WH's. I believe you got to flush those things. But on a...

I should have thought of that. Reason enough to cut an extra hole in the floor. You never know when you might need or want to have access. Thanks for your patience and all the helpful advice!

I remember that game. Good observation frodo.

Well, that was what I considered first - to just pump the water onto the back yard as it flows in. The pump would need to have 100% duty cycle and enough capacity to keep up. If I could plug that pipe where shown in my sketch, there would be a lot less water coming in, or maybe none. My...

The short story - In the old days basements were essential to our farming community. We grew up with them and love our basements. Most homes have sump pumps or 2 or 3 of them, which are a constant headache. I purposely bought a home near the top of a hill to avoid that. It was 17 years old...

Perimeter tile / French drain / weeping tile - a lot of people around here call it "perimeter tile", possibly slang or a holdover from when it was actually clay tile. My house was built in 1965. Maybe you would know what material was used then. I dig a hole, ground water flows into it, I...

Point "C" in my diagram would be the most convenient place where I could install a sump pit. My basement is always dry with the exception of these flood events. Yet 10' from my house the water table is sometimes less than a foot below the surface. Can I assume my perimeter tile is in good...

That's a good point. That bottom layer of slime in an electric WH may never get to 130F even if the surrounding water temp is much higher. By the same logic, that "petrie dish" in a gas WH will get a frequent blast of sterilizing heat even if the thermostat is set to 120F. Should there be...

If I dig a pit at point "C" in my diagram, A) Would the water flow into it through the drain pipe at a sufficient rate to keep up with the water flowing in from the storm drain? Since the water gushes up through cracks in the floor, I am thinking that either the drain pipe is leaking under...

You forgot to mention Mao Tse Tung, the role model of Obama's close ally, and the dictator that he chose to honor with an ornament on the official White House Christmas tree. "Community organizer" is the Democratic party's PC term for rabble rouser. Hitler had his humble beginnings too...

It sounds like you are trying to impugn the integrity of our noble leader Barack Hussein. The same noble leader who endeared voters in 2008 when, after learning there would be no photo-ops, he decided to shoot some hoops while our wounded soldiers in Germany with their arms and legs blown off...

To install a back flow valve to pipe "C", I assume this has to be somewhere between the perimeter tile and the street. If I dig beyond the sidewalk, I can use an excavator. If I have to dig next to the house, I would have to go through the sidewalk, or dig by hand. There is shrubbery in there...

In the following diagram, "A" is where the municipal water enters the basement. "B" is where the stack for the toilets goes through the basement floor. "C" is the location of the floor drain. "D" is where the discharge from the washing machine goes through the basement floor. Can I assume the...

In the diagram, the drain from the ground floor toilet appears to be connected to the output from the sump pump. Is that necessary, and what would be the purpose? My house was built in 1965. The floor drain in the diagram connects to the drain from the basement toilet. I am certain mine...

Where do I install the back water check valve? Can that be anywhere between the house and the street? To disconnect the drain altogether, would I be correct in assuming that would be done between the perimeter tile and where the pipe passes through the foundation? Do I physically dig down...

OK, my local government officials call it "storm sewer" and "sanitary sewer", but I understand.:D "Your storm drain does what???" My storm drain flows west along my street, then south about 1/2 mile where it use to empty into a ditch. My sewer drain flows to the sewage treatment plant north...

The storm sewer, sanitary sewer and municipal water supply all run parallel along the street in front of my house. My basement layout (44' x 28') is approximately as follows: . +---------------------A--------FRONT--------------------------------+ . . | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...

Thanks for all the attention you have given to this non-standard plumbing project. I will post back with details of my final design when I have it.

The biggest drawbacks I see to a drain pipe graded from the lowest point is that an additional 70' trench has to be dug to the low point of the yard, the last 20' would be close to the surface and subject to physical damage, and if I don't get it drained before the ground freezes the slow moving...

You convinced me. Any Winter situation that leaves water in the pipe should have the extra insurance. If I could grade the drain pipe, that would be great. Very optimistically I might be able to have a 6" fall on a 70' run, the last 20' of which would be very close to the surface. I can see...