The Sanity Inspector wrote:
I've got seepage in a corner of my basement. It's right under
a frequently-clogged downspout, which spills into a planter made of
railroad ties, which hugs the water right against the house. I'm up
on the roof every month, cleaning the gutters out. In springtime too,
since with seven century oaks even the oak blossoms will clog them.

So anyway, I've been calling in waterproofing contractors for
estimates. I looked at www.bbb.org and
http://www.sos.state.ga.us/corporations/corpsearch.htm to weed out
obvious red flags. Of those that came out, I've been surprised at how
many different solutions the different companies have been offering
me.

Some wanted to chisel a trench on the inside, lay down some
plastic conduit, and duct the water out the side of the house, with or
without a sump pump. Some offered to dig up all or a part of the
exterior of the house, seal it, and lay exterior drainage pipes. Some
wanted to do some combination of the two.

Some gave me seemingly straightforward estimates, while one
gave me the new car dealership treatment, steering me towards a
particular approach, sending a manager out to give me a second pitch,
complete with a "now or never" price.

I'm waiting for one more estimate to be faxed over, which I
hope won't be prohibitive, since I liked this last guy's solution the
best.




Well I see you have properly been scolded about fixing your gutters.
Foundation drains won't solve that problem at all. That is water coming
in from seepage down the wall. Its not water coming in because the
local ground water level is too high. With that being said we can move
on to the foundation drainage.


Perimiter drainage is best since it makes sure the water level is
lowered before it comes in contact with your foundation. Interior
basement drainage is secondary and may not even work for you as this is

1. below your basement level
2. inside the perimeter

Remember, these systems are designed to remove hydrostatic pressure that
causes floor cracking and foundation problems. An interior system will
accomplish this, but not much for the damp corners. I hear interior
drainage is cheaper though.




--
Thank you,



"Then said I, Wisdom [is] better than strength: nevertheless the poor
man's wisdom [is] despised, and his words are not heard." Ecclesiastes 9:16