On Saturday, May 26, 2018 at 5:30:37 PM UTC-4, Roche wrote:
On 5/23/2018 2:44 PM, Robert Dickens wrote:
Hello all,
I am buying a house with 3 inches of water in the crawl space. No foundation
issues but need a permanant fix. I am looking to install a sump because
groundwater is the source of my mess.

A sump pump is a bandaid. You need a long term fix.

Is the ground sloped away from the house?Â* Do the downspouts drain water at least 10' away from the foundation?

That's simply not true. If the ground water is relatively high a house
may need a sump pump, particularly at certain times of the year.
You can't fix groundwater with grading. Millions of homes rely on sump pumps.
But why a house was built without one and has 4" of water in the basement,
that's a good question. Grading certainly can contribute to the problem.
And if a sump pump is needed, the only other option would be a gravity
drain and most places that can't be done.