Window Well Drainage · Kitchener
Window Well Drainage and Repair in Kitchener
A window well that fills in a thunderstorm and pours through the window is one of the simplest wet-basement problems there is, and one of the most common on newer Kitchener houses. It is also the easiest to fix properly.
A basement window sits below grade in a hole held open by a steel or plastic liner. In a storm, rain falls into that hole, water sheeting off the lawn runs into it, and the downspout on the corner adds more. If the bottom of the well is clay or has no drain, the well fills like a bucket, and the water goes through the window frame, the sill, or the joint where the liner meets the wall. It is the wettest window in the house.
Why Kitchener wells fail
- No drain. A well should have a drain in its base running down to the weeping tile at the footing. Many were set with a few inches of gravel over clay and nothing else, including on new houses in Doon South, Huron Park and Williamsburg where the builder's well went in before the grading was finished.
- A clogged drain. Leaves, soil washed in from the lawn, and a decade of neglect fill the gravel and the drain pipe until they are solid.
- Grading toward the well. The lot settled after the builder left, or a garden bed was built up beside it, and now the lawn drains into the well.
- The liner sits below grade. A liner that has sunk or was set too low lets surface water run straight over the lip.
- The liner is loose from the wall. Water gets between the liner and the foundation, straight to the window's sill.
- The downspout. A downspout discharging beside a well feeds it every time it rains.
The fix
The drain. The well is dug out to below the window sill, and a drain is run from the base of the well down to the weeping tile at the footing, with a grate at the top and a filter around the pipe. Where there is no working weeping tile — the older houses downtown, in Cedar Hill and the post-war streets — the drain is run to a dry well of clear stone set deep beside the footing, or to the sump if an interior system is going in.
Clear stone. The base of the well is filled with clear stone, not pea gravel over clay, so water falls to the drain instead of pooling.
The liner. A liner that has sunk, rusted through or pulled away from the wall is reset or replaced, fastened to the foundation with the joint sealed, and set with its top a few inches above the finished grade so surface water cannot run over the lip.
Grading and the downspout. The soil around the well is graded to fall away from it, and the downspout is extended past it. This is the part that gets skipped and the part that matters most.
The window. A rotted wood frame, a cracked sill or a window that has been under water regularly is flagged. Replacing it is a window job, and it is worth doing before the well is rebuilt.
A cover. A clear cover keeps rain, leaves and snow out of the well while letting light in. On a well that serves a bedroom egress window the cover has to be one that can be opened from inside without tools.
Egress windows and bigger wells
A basement bedroom needs an egress window big enough to climb out of, and that means a bigger, deeper well. Ontario's Building Code sets the requirements for the window and the well, and a larger well collects more water, so the drain is more important, not less. When a well is being enlarged for egress, the drainage is built in from the start rather than added after the first storm. Cutting the foundation for a larger window is structural work and a building permit question, and it is done by the right trade under the City of Kitchener's permit; the well and its drainage are what this page covers.
Wells on older houses
On a century house with a stone foundation, the basement windows are often small, set in rotted wood frames, and surrounded by a well that is just a hole with a rusted liner. The drainage answer there is usually a dry well in clear stone or a connection to a new interior system, since there is no tile at the footing to run to. Where the lot is being excavated for exterior waterproofing anyway, the wells are rebuilt while the trench is open, which is the cheapest time.
New-build warranty
On a house still under warranty, a window well with no drain and a lot graded toward the house may be the builder's responsibility. It is worth checking before paying anyone.
What this page is not
Water through a window well is a water problem and it is fixed here. A crack running from the corner of a basement window that is getting wider, with the doors upstairs sticking, is a settlement problem for a foundation contractor. A crack at the window corner that only leaks and has not moved is sealed from inside as part of this work.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my window well fill up with water?
Because it has no drain, or the drain is clogged, or the lawn drains into it, or the downspout is feeding it. Usually more than one. A well is a hole below grade; without a working drain to the weeping tile or a dry well, rain and surface water have nowhere to go but the window.
Can a window well drain be added after the house is built?
Yes. The well is dug out and a drain is run from its base to the weeping tile at the footing, or to a dry well of clear stone where there is no tile, with clear stone in the base of the well. The liner is reset above grade and the soil around it regraded. It is a one-day job on most houses.
Do window well covers stop the leaks?
They keep rain and leaves out, which helps, and they are worth having. They do not stop surface water running in over a low liner or through the gap between the liner and the wall, and they do nothing for a well with no drain. The drain and the grading are the fix; the cover is the finishing touch.
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