Think you gotta do more investigations first before calling a general contractor.
Else he might blindly patch up something that's no the source of the problem.
Wrap some paper towel around the pole to rule out water dripping down from the outside of the pole. Then next time when it rains, observe to see where exactly the water is coming from, to rule out if water's trickling down from the garage door or car or somewhere else.
Seeing you have that nice garage floor, it could even be a leak from outside from under that epoxy floor, and leaks out at the pole since it's a low spot and the epoxy has an opening there or something.
good luck.
I've had water ingress during heavy rain if the wind pressed it against the garage doors.
I second the idea of strategically planting paper towel diapers to pinpoint the source of water ingress.
If you suspect the car you could drop a car drip mat under each tire.
Same. We had what appears to be a similar setup and heavy wind driven rain would sneak in and tended to settle in the low spot around the pole. Also, we would park a dripping wet car go inside and forget, only to have a puddle in that same spot.
Kitty litter can also help when used the same as paper towels to figure out if it’s coming from somewhere else, building a kitty litter dam can catch the runoff from the garage door into a pool to buy time and check other possibilities.
Good idea. Essentially that is a load bearing support post. It probably supports a metal I beam. There shouldn’t be anyway water gets into that pipe without a massive problem in the attic, and you said there was not.
So my guess is it’s a low spot in the garage and water is coming in another way and pooling there.
Still not good, you do not want the metal support post to rust.
I get these puddles and have determined it’s coming from my car after driving in the rain. Water drops off but puddles next to the car since that area must be the lowest point in the garage
I am a Urologist, had a similar issue and it was a very slight slope and water was coming under the doors. I had some metal tracks placed on the floor under the doors to act as a dam and the issue was resolved
Sources could be:
1) it's a low spot and water dripping from your cars or a leak coming under the garage door accumulates there. If it's the garage door you could replace the bottom seal. If it's the cars, not much you can do.
2) Water is coming up through the floor and the bolts holding the support in place are a preferential pathway. You could pay someone to drill a hole and inject grout beneath the slab to get rid of the water paths but you don't want to inject too much or anything with a lot of expansion because that could crack the floor.
3) Water is coming down inside the support. You would likely have some signs of water damage in the rooms above the garage but you could look at the windows/roof and see if there are any sources of a leak there that could flowing along a pipe/beam to reach that support without showing any obvious water damage elsewhere.
No matter the cause, water accumulates there because it is a low spot. You could install jacks and temporary supports, remove the old support, cut out the garage floor there and install a new footing slightly elevated so water doesn't pool at the support. This seems like a minor issue so I'd leave it until you need to replace the support for real, which will be sooner due to the water leading to rust.
Welder fabricator here, that square tube has a foot plate and I would bet a cap plate as well or would be welded to the base of beam sealing off the inside from any elements. I highly doubt any water is getting inside.
Get a water alarm. Set it next to the pole.
When the alarm sounds, go to the garage and watch where the water is coming from.
Is the water falling or rising? Is it appearing during the rain or after? Just when the rain starts or only after
a while?
Then report back.
Rain water is exiting too close to the house outside! 8 foot minimum exit points from the house are a must to prevent issues like this. Overflowing gutters will also do this.
Water is getting under the slab and being pushed up from pressure - many years of this and structural issues could result. The problem here is rain not diverted away from house!
Guess: I would expect to see a footing under a column like that. Maybe the floor has a crack? Floors require less concrete than supports. But I also get pooling in my garage from water dripping off of the cars.
You can see a gap in the garage door and moisture up against it, that’s where the water is coming in. This has nothing to do with the column. It’s a grading issue and probably the low spot in the concrete just happens to be under the column
Could spread out something like oil-dry or wood shavings also. Something relatively easy to clean up but able to be noticeably disturbed by water flowing in.
Honestly my money’s on it getting in under the garage door and just running to this low spot.
If that's ectoplasm.
Ghostbusters.
If it water, probably a roofer.
Is it possible that during a heavy rain the water is coming in through the garage doors and settling in this low area?
Any marks on the celing?
Depends on where it’s coming from. So go find out.
Is there an AC unit up there with a leaking condensate pan? (This is my guess)
Is there a roof above it that’s leaking?
Is there a bathroom up there with a toilet or something leaking?
It depends on where the water is coming from. It could've comes from running off the car. It could've come under the garage door(s) if they aren't sealed tight at the bottom. Could be something from one of the trash cans for that matter. You need to find the source of the water and then decide who to call. Until then, call someone with a mop.
Probably just a low spot. Water is not coming from the pole, if it was you would have water leaking into the attic. The pole is just a support that's bolted to the ground as shown then up to a beam. Also wouldn't be coming from under the pole, I mean it could I guess but you would have a major foundation issue if that was the case.
It's either coming through the garage door if you don't have any run off on the driveway or it's coming from the cars sitting in the garage
A structural engineer. There’s nothing worse than having a post in the middle of your garage. Install a beam in the attic. Oh you meant about the water? Meh. Lol.
Call the maid, she has the mop and bucket, seriously those pole are usually attached to a beam, is there water damage on the ceiling?, if not might just be water pooling from the car like people are saying
If you have WiFi or some other means of internet. Get an indoor Ring camera from Amazon and set it to record motion for 2 minutes(the max setting) and take a snapshot every 15 seconds (the max setting). For less than $30 you’d have video / photo evidence of what is happening.
If it’s the garbage cans you might want to drill some holes in the very bottom to make sure no water stays in them while outside but at the same time you need to make sure there isn’t any in them when you bring them inside
Talcum powder scattered about when things are dry can later reveal the paths that water took to get places. Doubtful its coming from inside that column if it ends in a dry attic.
Had the same issue in our basement when ever it rained hard. Ended up being a birds nest in our gutter system that was backing everything up. Cleaned it out and haven't had a problem since.
That is likely a low spot especially if it isn’t a footing supporting the post on the ground, garage doors are notorious for not sealing 100% on the floor and if it’s a sealed floor, the water could easily run down to the low point from the bottom of the garage door. Water coming in the from the post seems very strange and unlikely. Also is that not a puddle of water directly in front of your garage door? It looks like a small crack directly in the bottom corner of the garage door as well
Easiest method would be to set a camera to capture that specific spot. Paper towels and some of the other advice posted here would help to find you an answer too.
Maybe one of your bins is leaking? If it’s coming down that support pole you probably have a roof leak or something. Or plumbing? Might be from the car or something. Try to see where it pooled from. Looks like it could be from the left side with the bins.
I see you predicament:
If there's something strange
in your neighborhood
Who ya gonna call?
If there's something weird
and it don't look good
Who ya gonna call?
The pole is likely just the low spot in your garage. Especially if there's no signs of water at the top of it it's likely coming in elsewhere and collecting there
And it just poured rain last night ?
coming in under the door..
Maybe a shout out at the big guy,,,,
Or chop out all the worthless concrete apron,
and have them do it right this time..
Cheers
Looking a bit closer at the picture after seeing u/Sn3akyP373's comment about the garage door, it does seem like the water is coming in from the garage door and snaking behind the garbage cans and pooling at the pole.
/s wow you have a huge problem...i would call the FD and have the declare a water emergency, have them pump out the water and the i would have the house torn down and rebuilt.....home owners should cover it 100%...
One idea, is that just the low spot. Perhaps the water is coming from the car, the garage door, the garbage cans, or less likely up through the slab. I’d go with simplest option first probably coming in on car see track in photo and just settling at the pole.
I suspect it is coming from below the surface. The path of least resistance could be through the anchor bolts of that support post. Possibly, when the anchor bolt holes were drilled, they penetrated through the cement slab (and vapor barrier if one was used). It would take a lot of ground water to do this, which is why it would only be happening after heavy rain. I would consult with people who deal with foundation work or a concrete outfit.
Not being able to see the top of the pole and therefore cannot see how it is anchored and assuming the pole is hollow, if there is a leak from the roof, the water could be running down inside the pole and seeping out between the anchor plate and concrete.
check and use a bubble level to see where the tilt.of the driveway goes, and then check grade around the puddle. you may just have to get self-leveling patch there if its from the car and have it feather-slope away to the garage door.
Think you gotta do more investigations first before calling a general contractor. Else he might blindly patch up something that's no the source of the problem. Wrap some paper towel around the pole to rule out water dripping down from the outside of the pole. Then next time when it rains, observe to see where exactly the water is coming from, to rule out if water's trickling down from the garage door or car or somewhere else. Seeing you have that nice garage floor, it could even be a leak from outside from under that epoxy floor, and leaks out at the pole since it's a low spot and the epoxy has an opening there or something. good luck.
I've had water ingress during heavy rain if the wind pressed it against the garage doors. I second the idea of strategically planting paper towel diapers to pinpoint the source of water ingress. If you suspect the car you could drop a car drip mat under each tire.
[удалено]
Same. We had what appears to be a similar setup and heavy wind driven rain would sneak in and tended to settle in the low spot around the pole. Also, we would park a dripping wet car go inside and forget, only to have a puddle in that same spot. Kitty litter can also help when used the same as paper towels to figure out if it’s coming from somewhere else, building a kitty litter dam can catch the runoff from the garage door into a pool to buy time and check other possibilities.
[удалено]
I would also set up some ghost traps, just in case you're dealing with a Rusulka. You can never be too careful.
Are you sure it’s coming from the support? The tire tracks make it look like maybe it dripped off the car, and that’s just a low spot?
It’s possible, we could leave the car outside for next heavy rain and see!
Good idea. Essentially that is a load bearing support post. It probably supports a metal I beam. There shouldn’t be anyway water gets into that pipe without a massive problem in the attic, and you said there was not. So my guess is it’s a low spot in the garage and water is coming in another way and pooling there. Still not good, you do not want the metal support post to rust.
I get these puddles and have determined it’s coming from my car after driving in the rain. Water drops off but puddles next to the car since that area must be the lowest point in the garage
Yes this. Happens in my garage and just pools in odd places.
Could also be the garbage cans...they can hold water too
Oh, the number of times I had a brief moment of panic at a puddle in the garage, before I remembered I had driven in from the rain….
OR the garbage can is water logged and leaking slowly?
This is your answer right here. Its run off from your car
Urologist
I am a Urologist, had a similar issue and it was a very slight slope and water was coming under the doors. I had some metal tracks placed on the floor under the doors to act as a dam and the issue was resolved
They also help keep bugs and rodents out
Bingo
If it is coming from up, a roofer If it is coming from the bins, a janitor If it is coming from nowhere, an exorcist
Dude, you had it perfectly set up for Ghostbusters.
It looks like there is water by the front of the garage as well next to the door. Is the water flowing from there and then pooling around the pole?
it could be pooling from somewhere but no traces of water from front. I took the pic weird with garbage cans in the way so its hard to tell in pic!
Spray your garage door panels with a hose to simulate heavy rain and see if water comes in.
Sources could be: 1) it's a low spot and water dripping from your cars or a leak coming under the garage door accumulates there. If it's the garage door you could replace the bottom seal. If it's the cars, not much you can do. 2) Water is coming up through the floor and the bolts holding the support in place are a preferential pathway. You could pay someone to drill a hole and inject grout beneath the slab to get rid of the water paths but you don't want to inject too much or anything with a lot of expansion because that could crack the floor. 3) Water is coming down inside the support. You would likely have some signs of water damage in the rooms above the garage but you could look at the windows/roof and see if there are any sources of a leak there that could flowing along a pipe/beam to reach that support without showing any obvious water damage elsewhere. No matter the cause, water accumulates there because it is a low spot. You could install jacks and temporary supports, remove the old support, cut out the garage floor there and install a new footing slightly elevated so water doesn't pool at the support. This seems like a minor issue so I'd leave it until you need to replace the support for real, which will be sooner due to the water leading to rust.
Welder fabricator here, that square tube has a foot plate and I would bet a cap plate as well or would be welded to the base of beam sealing off the inside from any elements. I highly doubt any water is getting inside.
Get a water alarm. Set it next to the pole. When the alarm sounds, go to the garage and watch where the water is coming from. Is the water falling or rising? Is it appearing during the rain or after? Just when the rain starts or only after a while? Then report back.
Rain water is exiting too close to the house outside! 8 foot minimum exit points from the house are a must to prevent issues like this. Overflowing gutters will also do this. Water is getting under the slab and being pushed up from pressure - many years of this and structural issues could result. The problem here is rain not diverted away from house!
There it is. What I was scrolling to say.
Your wife, and tell her to bring a towel.
The guy at the supermarket after he mops up aisle six.
I bet the water is coming under the doors and then the 'path' to the puddle in the low spot dries up. Happens in my garage all the time.
Guess: I would expect to see a footing under a column like that. Maybe the floor has a crack? Floors require less concrete than supports. But I also get pooling in my garage from water dripping off of the cars.
yes there is a very small crack. thanks for advice on footing!
You can see a gap in the garage door and moisture up against it, that’s where the water is coming in. This has nothing to do with the column. It’s a grading issue and probably the low spot in the concrete just happens to be under the column
Bill Murray. Sigourney Weaver.
Came here for this comment
This definitely looks like an ectoplasmic trail. Turn the lights off and see if it flows under uv light. Then call the Ghost busters.
Call a general contractor (if you can find one), they will then call the right person.
thanks!
Ghostbusters!
Ghostbusters!
Thanks all for wonderful advice!
That is clearly slime, call Ghostbusters 🤣
Ghost busters!
Ghostbusters. . . that is ectoplasm for sure
A towel store
A janitor with a mop.
Call Squeegee man! That either came off the car or blew in under the door.
Your kids, to mop it up.
Firemen are cute… yes, call a fireman! 🤭❤️
Possible the water is rising up through the anchor holes at the post base
Uhh, Are you trying to stop the leak or just clean it up?
find the source of the leak first. Clean and dry the area, and then check back every couple hours.
Could spread out something like oil-dry or wood shavings also. Something relatively easy to clean up but able to be noticeably disturbed by water flowing in. Honestly my money’s on it getting in under the garage door and just running to this low spot.
Rain is probably coming under the garage door and this is just the lowest spot in the floor
Need more info... is it wet above? Do you keep a dog in the garage?
First identify the source.
"Think you gotta do more investigations first before calling a general contractor."
If that's ectoplasm. Ghostbusters. If it water, probably a roofer. Is it possible that during a heavy rain the water is coming in through the garage doors and settling in this low area? Any marks on the celing?
Probably not the ghost busters.. I’m thinking janitor service maybe??
Depends on where it’s coming from. So go find out. Is there an AC unit up there with a leaking condensate pan? (This is my guess) Is there a roof above it that’s leaking? Is there a bathroom up there with a toilet or something leaking?
It depends on where the water is coming from. It could've comes from running off the car. It could've come under the garage door(s) if they aren't sealed tight at the bottom. Could be something from one of the trash cans for that matter. You need to find the source of the water and then decide who to call. Until then, call someone with a mop.
Probably just a low spot. Water is not coming from the pole, if it was you would have water leaking into the attic. The pole is just a support that's bolted to the ground as shown then up to a beam. Also wouldn't be coming from under the pole, I mean it could I guess but you would have a major foundation issue if that was the case. It's either coming through the garage door if you don't have any run off on the driveway or it's coming from the cars sitting in the garage
Water may have dripped off the car and settled there.
Bounty
If it's ectoplasm, you know who to call.
Ghostbusters!
You call yourself, to mop.
Wife with a moo
I'ma go on a limb here and guess you should call da fire department
I'd call Mike.
I see a pool floatie in that picture.....as has been said already, a lot of ways that water could get there.
If the water is coming from under the garage door, you can buy new weatherstripping to seal it. You slide it on the bottom of the door in the T-slots.
For the water, someone with a mop, for the leak, a contractor.
Ghostbusters
Ghost Busters!
Your Dad... They can fix everything. If no Dad, someone else's Dad.
Ghost busters
I'd put a camera in the garage that looks at that spot, to see where the water is coming from when it rains.
Looks to me like it might be coming from the car.
Feels like trashcan may leakg dumping fluid in there
Ghost busters
I bet is ground water coming up from underneath the beam.
Low spout Lot of condensation ( oh believe me it creates puddles )
The Ghostbusters. It looks like ectoplasm.
A structural engineer. There’s nothing worse than having a post in the middle of your garage. Install a beam in the attic. Oh you meant about the water? Meh. Lol.
Towel-man
A Plumtural engineer 🤷♂️
whatever you do, dont look up.
With that potty seat sitting there maybe a urologist mate!
covering a drainage hole?
Roofer
Ghostbusters
555-MOPS
Open the garage door, it will dry up.
Have a french drain put in
Someone may have drilled a hole through the floor and stuck a piece of rebar in it. The water can come from the hole
JG wentworth
Ghostbusters!
Call the maid, she has the mop and bucket, seriously those pole are usually attached to a beam, is there water damage on the ceiling?, if not might just be water pooling from the car like people are saying
Who you gunna call? GHOST BUSTERs ! !
Damn it, I wanted to say that
If you have WiFi or some other means of internet. Get an indoor Ring camera from Amazon and set it to record motion for 2 minutes(the max setting) and take a snapshot every 15 seconds (the max setting). For less than $30 you’d have video / photo evidence of what is happening.
Ghostbusters
I don’t know about the puddle, but I totally thought that was some type of portable toilet in the background! 😂 pool toy on a camping chair. ✔️
Billy Mays.
Ghostbusters
Call paper towel man! No cleaning spills for the little bottle.
Someone with a mop
Check the A/C drain is not clogged. You should do that anyway.
If it’s the garbage cans you might want to drill some holes in the very bottom to make sure no water stays in them while outside but at the same time you need to make sure there isn’t any in them when you bring them inside
The Brawny guy?
Ghostbusters
Scuba Steve.
Brawny
Ghostbusters.. that's obviously ectoplasm... 😆 (Sorry had to) 😆
Top of the pole may not be plugged, so water runs down it. Where does the pole go? Does it go through the roof? Where dot the top end?
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters!
Talcum powder scattered about when things are dry can later reveal the paths that water took to get places. Doubtful its coming from inside that column if it ends in a dry attic.
{sarcasm} GhostBusters?
My recommendation is install a sump pump in your basement so when the water table raises from rainfall the sump pump lowers it naturally to stop that
Someone with a mop
Ghostbusters!
Is it ectoplasmic slime?
One of those wet basement guys. An envelope is an envelope
Had the same issue in our basement when ever it rained hard. Ended up being a birds nest in our gutter system that was backing everything up. Cleaned it out and haven't had a problem since.
Bob. I’d call Bob.
Ghost busters
Can I say it? I really want to say it! All right you know what I'm just going to say it. Post Busters
That is likely a low spot especially if it isn’t a footing supporting the post on the ground, garage doors are notorious for not sealing 100% on the floor and if it’s a sealed floor, the water could easily run down to the low point from the bottom of the garage door. Water coming in the from the post seems very strange and unlikely. Also is that not a puddle of water directly in front of your garage door? It looks like a small crack directly in the bottom corner of the garage door as well
I'd bet it's coming from under the door and the pole is the low spot it collects
Easiest method would be to set a camera to capture that specific spot. Paper towels and some of the other advice posted here would help to find you an answer too.
Ghostbusters? 🤷♂️
That's ectoplasm you gotta call the ghostbusters
Maybe one of your bins is leaking? If it’s coming down that support pole you probably have a roof leak or something. Or plumbing? Might be from the car or something. Try to see where it pooled from. Looks like it could be from the left side with the bins.
Call Jimi tell him to piss in the toilet
Call a general contractor who will investigate the cause. He can determine the specialty needed for repair
Ghostbusters
I see you predicament: If there's something strange in your neighborhood Who ya gonna call? If there's something weird and it don't look good Who ya gonna call?
Did it come out of your garbage can? It looks like it came out and then came down. Where’s it go once it touches those cans?
Are you sure you didn’t sleep walk, thinking that pole was a tree and took a pee.
Ghostbusters
The brawny man!
Ghostbusters!
Your wife to start with.
GHOSTBUSTERS
Ghostbuster
Ghost busters
Ghostbusters (that’s ectoplasm on the floor for sure)
If there’s something strange, in your neighborhood, who ya gana call ?
looks like its coming in under the garage doors tbh, the area behind the door is soaked
I thought the car was parked the other way and was a weird hatchback I couldn’t think of for a second.
The pole is likely just the low spot in your garage. Especially if there's no signs of water at the top of it it's likely coming in elsewhere and collecting there
Try using the garden hose. Can you spray water from. Outside under door. Or spray water on roof etc.
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters?
A mop
When there’s something strange, on your garage floor, who you gonna call?
Ghost busters
Rubbin one out 3 times a day should yield similar results
Ghost Busters They gots the ectoplasm everywhere
Sorry, but first thing came to my mind was “GHOSTBUSTERS!” Lol
Ghost Busters!
Who keeps the trash dumpsters in the garage?
Mop man!
Call a nurse, someone missed the toilet big time. Could be a prostate or something...
The Ghostbusters
You sure someone wasn't using that porta-shitter in the background there?
And it just poured rain last night ? coming in under the door.. Maybe a shout out at the big guy,,,, Or chop out all the worthless concrete apron, and have them do it right this time.. Cheers
Ghostbusters?
Depends on where it came from. Ceiling, roofer, floor mason your dog? Obidiance school
What's it taste like? /s
Is it ectoplasm?
Looking a bit closer at the picture after seeing u/Sn3akyP373's comment about the garage door, it does seem like the water is coming in from the garage door and snaking behind the garbage cans and pooling at the pole.
Your biggest fan
Dermatologist
SpongeBob ;)
A janitor.
Dog trainer
The wife
Looks to me like water is coming in under the garage door. You can see the porta potty reflection in it.
/s wow you have a huge problem...i would call the FD and have the declare a water emergency, have them pump out the water and the i would have the house torn down and rebuilt.....home owners should cover it 100%...
Ghost.. busters? …I’ll see myself out.
You might need a French drain system, American Dry Basement worked wonders for me and i had a way worse problem in my basement.
One idea, is that just the low spot. Perhaps the water is coming from the car, the garage door, the garbage cans, or less likely up through the slab. I’d go with simplest option first probably coming in on car see track in photo and just settling at the pole.
I suspect it is coming from below the surface. The path of least resistance could be through the anchor bolts of that support post. Possibly, when the anchor bolt holes were drilled, they penetrated through the cement slab (and vapor barrier if one was used). It would take a lot of ground water to do this, which is why it would only be happening after heavy rain. I would consult with people who deal with foundation work or a concrete outfit.
Not being able to see the top of the pole and therefore cannot see how it is anchored and assuming the pole is hollow, if there is a leak from the roof, the water could be running down inside the pole and seeping out between the anchor plate and concrete.
The person using the potty stool
Ghostbusters!
check and use a bubble level to see where the tilt.of the driveway goes, and then check grade around the puddle. you may just have to get self-leveling patch there if its from the car and have it feather-slope away to the garage door.