Drainage Solutions
in Burquitlam, BC

Burquitlam sits at the boundary of Burnaby and Coquitlam, in the Como Lake area — one of the Lower Mainland's older suburban communities, with housing stock dating from the 1950s and 1960s. The neighbourhood has been experiencing rapid densification around the Burquitlam SkyTrain station, with high-rise development replacing some of the older single-family housing. What remains of the original residential stock has crawlspace foundations that are 50 to 70 years old and have had limited or no professional attention in many cases.

Drainage problems in crawlspaces have two distinct origins: water that arrives from outside (surface runoff, failed exterior drainage, high water table) and water that condenses from the air inside the crawlspace onto cooler surfaces. The solutions for each are different, and correctly diagnosing which problem you have — or which combination — is the critical first step. Applying interior drainage solutions to an exterior water problem provides partial relief at best; addressing the exterior source is far more effective and usually less disruptive.

Interior drainage systems — perimeter drain tile installed inside the crawlspace along the base of the stem wall — are the right solution when exterior work is impractical (due to finished landscaping, hardscaping, or very tight site conditions) or when the primary issue is groundwater rising from below rather than surface water entering through the wall. Interior drain tile channels water to a sump pit where a pump removes it. This approach does not stop water from entering the foundation, but it manages it effectively once it does.