Have you checked the grading around your foundation too? Sometimes gutters and downspouts are doing their job, but if the ground slopes toward your house, water still pools up. I had a similar issue—thought my gutters were the culprit until I realized the soil had settled over time. Building up the slope with some extra dirt and landscaping made a huge difference. Maybe worth looking into if gutter upgrades alone aren't fully solving it?
"Building up the slope with some extra dirt and landscaping made a huge difference."
Yeah, that's spot-on advice. Landscaping fixed most of my basement water issues too, but honestly, ever thought about French drains? Bit of a pain digging trenches, but man, they're lifesavers in heavy rains...
Yeah, French drains can definitely help, but honestly, getting the landscaping right first is usually the simplest way to go. We had a similar issue at our place—water pooling near the foundation every time it rained hard. We reshaped the slope a bit and added native plants with deep roots to absorb excess water. Worked wonders, and now it looks pretty nice too.
French drains are solid if you have persistent issues or especially heavy rainfall, but they're a bigger project for sure. Digging trenches isn't exactly my idea of a fun weekend... Still, if landscaping alone doesn't quite cut it, I'd say it's worth considering. Either way, sounds like you're on the right track already. Good luck with it!
We had similar flooding issues, and landscaping definitely helped, but honestly, it wasn't enough for us. Our place sits on heavy clay soil—water just wouldn't drain properly no matter how we reshaped things. Ended up biting the bullet and installing French drains anyway. Yeah, digging trenches was a pain (my back still remembers that weekend...), but since then, basement's been bone-dry even after some pretty intense storms. Landscaping first is smart, but sometimes you gotta do both.
"Landscaping first is smart, but sometimes you gotta do both."
I get where you're coming from, but honestly, French drains aren't always the best solution—especially for older homes. My place was built in the 1920s, and digging trenches around the foundation was risky. We ended up waterproofing the basement walls from the inside instead, sealing cracks and applying a moisture barrier. It's been surprisingly effective, even with our clay-heavy soil. Every house is different, sure, but sometimes simpler methods can save you a lot of headache (and backache...).
