McLean at a glance
McLean sits in northeastern Fairfax County, between Arlington to the east, Great Falls to the west and Tysons to the south, with Route 123 and the Dulles Access Road running through it. Fairfax County provides its services, and its two ZIP codes, 22101 and 22102, also cover much of Tysons, where high-rise condominiums and apartment towers have gone up around the Silver Line stations.
The residential streets are heavily wooded, with lots larger than in most of the inner suburbs. Many original houses date from the 1950s through the 1970s: brick Colonials, ramblers and split-levels, most with basements. A great many have been expanded, and many more have been torn down and replaced with much larger new homes. Older homes typically have oak hardwood floors throughout; newer ones often have wide-plank hardwood over radiant or conventional heat. Nearly all are on public water and sewer.
"The kitchen was just redone, so the plumbing must be new."
Not necessarily. Renovations in McLean's older houses often replace everything you can see, including cabinets, fixtures and supply lines, while leaving the drains under the floor untouched. In a house built before about 1970, those drains are usually cast iron: a vertical stack through the house and horizontal lines under the basement slab to the sewer.
After fifty to seventy years, cast iron corrodes from the inside and wears thin along the bottom of horizontal runs. McLean's big trees add roots in the joints of the sewer lateral outside. The signs are quiet ones: a sewer smell in the basement, a floor drain that gurgles, a lower-level shower that fills when a washing machine drains, or a stain that spreads slowly under a bathroom.
A plumber can camera the line and recommend clearing, lining or replacing it. Water from a drain leak or backup is treated as contaminated, so porous materials it soaked are removed rather than dried, and surfaces are cleaned first.
A new kitchen can sit on top of a seventy-year-old drain.
Hardwood, plaster and drywall dried slowly and measured.
Get Help Drying It Out"The hardwood is ruined."
Often it isn't. When water gets under solid hardwood, the bottom of each board swells more than the top and the boards cup: their edges rise and the middle dips. If drying starts quickly and runs slowly and steadily, many cupped floors settle back close to flat as the moisture leaves. Sanding cupped boards too early is the real mistake, because once they dry the edges can end up lower than the middle, which is called crowning.
The crew measures moisture in the boards and the subfloor beneath them, and dries from below where possible with dehumidifiers and air moved across and under the floor. Specialized panels that draw moisture out of the wood can speed things up. Drying hardwood can take longer than drying drywall, and it's done when readings in the wood match unaffected areas of the same floor.
Refinishing waits until then. Boards that stay badly cupped, split, or were soaked by drain water may need replacing, and the crew will tell you which.
We'll help you find the shut-off and protect the floors.
Call and We'll Walk You Through It"Water in the basement means the foundation is failing."
Usually it means the roof water isn't going where it should. McLean's tree cover fills gutters quickly in the fall, and a blocked gutter overflows along its whole length, dropping a roof's worth of rain beside the foundation. A downspout that empties onto a splash block at the wall does the same in one spot. On lots graded long ago, or next to a rebuilt house with new hard surfaces, runoff can head straight for an older basement.
Window wells are the other common entry point. Their drains fill with leaves and soil, and in a heavy summer storm they fill until water pours over the sill. Some older houses also have downspouts tied into buried pipes that have long since clogged or broken, sending water back against the wall underground.
Clean gutters after the leaves drop and again in spring, extend downspouts several feet onto ground that falls away, clear window well drains and add covers. Then watch the house in a hard rain. Most "foundation problems" turn out to be solved at the roof edge.
Finished lower level or a drain backing up?
Water in the Basement? Call NowMcLean water damage questions
Our house was rebuilt on its old foundation. Which parts are old?
It depends on the rebuild, but the foundation walls, footing drains and sometimes the sewer lateral may be original. Those are the parts that most affect basement water. Ask your builder or a plumber what was replaced, and have the lateral checked with a camera if nobody knows.
Our condo is in a Tysons tower with a 22102 address. Who do we call first?
The building's front desk or management office, so the building engineer can find and stop the source. Then call us. The crew will coordinate with the building on access, elevator use and work hours, and trace the water through any units below.
What goes wrong with cast-iron drains in mid-century McLean homes?
Corrosion inside the pipe and cracks along the bottom of horizontal runs, often leaking slowly under a slab or into a wall. A sewer smell is usually the first clue. A plumber can inspect the line with a camera, and any leaked water is handled as contaminated.
Why is our McLean basement wet after rain?
Usually drainage: overflowing gutters, short downspouts, a full window well or ground sloping toward the house. Saturated clay can also push water through the joint where the wall meets the floor. A plumbing leak shows up in dry weather too, which helps tell them apart.
Why would a room in a McLean home still smell after it looks dry?
Something is still damp: pad, the back of paneling, a subfloor or a bottom plate. Moisture readings find it, and drying or removing it clears the smell.
Our McLean house has a finished basement. Why do the gutters matter so much?
Under heavy tree cover they clog fast, and when they overflow, roof water lands right at the foundation. Keeping them clear and extending downspouts prevents a lot of repeat basement water.
What should I have ready when I call about our McLean home?
Where the water is, where it seems to come from, how long it has been there, and whether it's clean or from a drain. Mention flooring types, any finished lower level, and how to reach the property, including gates or building access.
How long will drying take in our McLean home?
Several days for most drywall and carpet, longer for hardwood and anything over a slab, and longer again in humid weather. Readings on each visit decide when equipment comes out, not the calendar.
Is water from a toilet overflow in our McLean home treated differently?
Yes. Water from the tank or a clean supply line is handled like any clean-water leak. Water from the bowl, especially after use, is treated as contaminated, so porous materials it soaked are removed and surfaces cleaned before drying.
Services for McLean homes
- Basement Water Damage
- Finished Basement Flood Cleanup
- Sewage Backup Cleanup
- Burst Pipe Water Damage
- Water Leak Behind a Wall
- Gutter & Drainage Water Intrusion
Honest timing on the phone, never an empty promise.
Get a Crew Out TodayMcLean service area
We connect homeowners, condo owners, landlords and managers across both McLean ZIP codes, 22101 and 22102, including the residential streets off Old Dominion Drive and Chain Bridge Road and the Tysons towers that share the McLean name. Traffic around Tysons can be slow, so we'll give you honest timing when you call.
ZIP codes served: 22101 and 22102
Also near McLean
McLean is part of our Fairfax County & City of Fairfax service area. Neighboring pages cover Great Falls, Vienna and Dunn Loring in Fairfax County, the City of Falls Church, and Arlington County.