Wet Dirt

[hyrumbradshaw]

Ok so outside my house on the wall where both bathrooms are there is a spot of dirt that seems to be wet almost constantly but not always, maybe 80% of the time. It is not soggy mud but just a little soft and damp. I have included a diagram of my layout of bathrooms and the spot where it is wet. I am believing that it is the toilet since the toilet sometimes has a hard time flushing, meaning it takes two to three flushes sometimes to clean the bowl if you know what I mean. You also have to hold the handle down for the entire flush or the water will not all leave the bowl. If you just flush like normal the water level rises in the bowl swirls a little and settles to the normal level without droping water levels or emptying the bowl of the contents. Hope this is a good enough explanation and I am hoping for someone to give me an idea of what the problem is and solutions to fix the said problem.

Thanks.

 

[havasu]

I myself would get a shovel and dig down. You may just have a collapsed sewer line or a broken water line, and is worth investigating. Remember, a small fix today may become a major fix tomorrow!

 

[hyrumbradshaw]

I have dug down to the base of the foundation and it is about the same dampness at the surface. I have not dug under the footing towards the inside of the house. The live water runs thru the attic and there are no water lines (sprinklers etc) around the "wet dirt" area. Also there are no plants being watered in this area either. However weeds are growing in the area due to the water leak. Also my home exterior walls are 4x8x16 block and at the wet dirt area the slab and about two bricks up are cool and sometimes moist.

 

[phishfood]

Are your water supply lines copper? And does the one for that toilet come out of the block exterior wall?

The reason I ask is that it sounds like you might have a water leak in that wall. That wouldn't explain the problem with the toilet not wanting to flush, though.

 

[hyrumbradshaw]

The water line is copper that comes out of that block wall to the interior and hooks up to the toilet. Now I know that house used to have what I think is called poly butelene pipes or some crappy type of pipe and that was all falling apart on the previous owner and it was all replaced with PEX. So I am not sure where the change occurs from pex to copper or how long the copper has been there or what the norm is. I suppose leaking copper joints within the wall could very well be the culprit. Then the question rises why is the toilet slow to drain, maybe a whole seperate issue...

 

[havasu]

Lift the lid on the tank of your toilet and check that the water level is at the optimum level, which is usually indicated somewhere inside. If the level is incorrect, this could be a reason why you would have to double and triple flush.

 

[hyrumbradshaw]

the water level is correct but the tank size is much smaller than the other toilet, and I wondered if that could be the reason for it. Maybe I should find a bigger tank or extend the little pipe another inch or so since the water level is like 3 inches lower than the top of the tank. Also I have seen some power flushing device things how much do those cost and can they be retrofitted to an old tank?

 

[havasu]

Sounds as if you have a water saving toilet. This is probably why you need the numerous flushes. Many have this same problem and all I could recommend it to get a new toilet with good flush ratings. I have Kohler water saver toilets, and work good for me. As far as the power flushers, they can run alot of money and can get complicated to install. Many swear by them and others swear at them!