On Tue, 28 Aug 2018 21:06:10 -0400, Ed Pawlowski > wrote:

>On 8/28/2018 5:57 PM, wrote:
>> On Mon, 27 Aug 2018 22:41:35 -0400, Dave Smith
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> On 2018-08-27 10:11 PM, jmcquown wrote:
>>>
>>>>> Yup. Sheldon has to 100% wrong here.
>>>>>
>>>>> Areas prone to hurricanes tend to be low water table to start with so
>>>>> no basements. He' thinking northern 'nor easters' and dryer mid-west
>>>>> with lower water tables.
>>>>>
>>>> He's obviously just arguing for basements because he has one.* If he was
>>>> in a hurricane zone he'd know better than to head underground. I hope.
>>>
>>> In this part of the world houses have basements. If I lived in a
>>> hurricane zone and had a basement it would be about the last place I
>>> would head in a hurricane.
>>
>> Another one who doesn't know that basements have drains.
>>
>
>There are thousands of houses in Philadelphia that have no drain in the
>basement. I've lived in a few of them.

I would think Philly has city sewers, if so that's part of the
basement drainage system. There's usually a drain in the floor but
many people never notice it or even look for it. it's not very
noticeable because it's small, usually a 6" rusty steel plate with a
pattern of 1/4" holes, laying flat on the concrete floor. Very often
they become covered with dust and other schmutz and go unseen.

If there's an outside entrance to the basement the drain is typically
at the bottom of the steps from that door because often that's the
lowest point and where rain water enters. The drain would normally be
closest to the roadway in front because on each street that's where
the sewer main is buried, with a buried pipe from each house connected
to the main. The basment drain is connected to the house main long
before it gets to the sewer main in the road. If Philly has a city
sewer system and most houses have basements I'm certain there are
basement drains, you just didn't notice. Very often it becomes hidden
by a stack of shelving or an old chest of drawers used for storing
dreck. A lot of older city houses have the garage in front with it
being an outside entrance to the basement, usually with a concrete
rampway. The basement drain would be at the lowest point in the
garage floor because the basment floor would be pitched to the garage.
The city sewer department maintains maps of the entire system
including where every basement drain is located. Whenever anyone
moves in it's a good idea to ask where it's located. Some imbeciles
have been known to cover the basement drain with carpeting, a rubber
mat, and other things that prevent the drain from draining because
rumors spread that gaters, rats, and water moccasins live in city
sewer systems.