In article ,
Harry Ziman wrote:
We have lived in our Victorian farmhouse for 2 years and the
cellar has always been bone dry.

In the last two weeks it has suddenly started flooding -
groundwater flows into an external sump which then backs up into
the cellar. We have blocked all the major sources of water
ingress, but we are now finding water seeping through joints in
the floor which is made of brick sized blocks.

We had a similar problem about 15 years ago. No cellar,
but suddenly the two old cottages started to be wet
around the walls. The cottages were on mildly sloping
ground, with a ditch uphill, about 200 yards away.

Turned out that the ditch was overflowing, and a clever
system of land drains that were there to channel any
overflow away from the cottages was in a state of disrepair.

So could it be worth investigating why the water has
suddenly appeared.... something blocked up on the exterior
land somewhere, and/or why that sump isn't draining away?

--
Tony Williams.