We pump water out of basements and lower ground floors in Riga and the Riga region and take it away, rather than pouring it out in the yard. Prices start from €75 for up to 4 m³. In your request, give the size of the basement and the depth of the water.
Before pumping: safety
- If the water reaches sockets, the boiler or electrical equipment, switch off the basement power at the distribution board, and don't step into the water until you have done so.
- Leave a gas boiler in the basement to a specialist and don't touch it yourself.
- Don't run a petrol pump or a generator in the basement or in any enclosed space, because the exhaust fumes are dangerous.
- If there is sewage in the basement, don't walk in it without rubber boots and gloves, and keep children and animals out.
What kind of water is in your basement
This determines how it can be pumped out and where it may go.
| Situation | What is happening | Best solution |
|---|---|---|
| Groundwater or snowmelt | Water comes through the floor or the walls when the surrounding ground is saturated | Pumping removes the water, but it will come back until the groundwater level drops. In the long term you need drainage or waterproofing. |
| A burst water pipe | Clean water; the source is inside the house | First close the main water inlet valve. Clean water without mud can also be pumped out with a submersible pump. |
| Sewage in the basement | Wastewater is coming up through a floor drain or a toilet (an overfilled septic tank, a blockage or backflow from the mains sewer) | Only pumping and removal to a reception point. This water must not be pumped out into the garden or a ditch. |
| Murky water with mud | After a flood or a downpour, sand and mud have washed into the basement | A vacuum tanker also takes the mud, which an ordinary pump can't take or gets damaged by. |
When an ordinary pump is enough
If the water is clean, there isn't much of it and there is a ditch or a stormwater sewer close by, a submersible drainage pump and a hose can be cheaper than a vacuum tanker. It is worth bringing us in if the water is dirty, if it contains sewage, if there is nowhere to drain it, or if a pump can't cope with the mud.
How much water is in the basement - how to work it out
Multiply the length of the basement by its width and by the water depth in metres. Example: a basement of 8 × 10 m with water 20 cm deep, so 8 × 10 × 0.2 = 16 m³. That is more than one trip with a 10 m³ truck. This calculation helps you understand the price even before we arrive, so give the dimensions and the approximate depth in your request.
How basement pumping works
- Request The address, the basement dimensions, the water depth, the type of water and where the hose can be fed in (a window, a door or a hatch). After you fill in the form, we contact you within 5 minutes.
- Pumping The hose is fed into the basement and the water is pumped out together with the mud, down to the floor. A large volume needs several trips.
- Removal We take the dirty water and sewage to a wastewater reception point. You receive a document stating the volume removed and the date.
- Afterwards The remaining mud is swept up and removed, and the room is ventilated and dried. After sewage, the floor and walls are disinfected.
Riga City Council Binding Regulations No. 66, point 22: wastewater and sludge from decentralised systems must be taken to domestic wastewater treatment plants or special reception points. Mārupe Municipality Binding Regulations No. 13/2023, point 15.2: discharging untreated wastewater into the ground, ditches, drainage and the stormwater sewer is prohibited. Sources: likumi.lv, checked on 30 October 2026.
Keeping the basement from flooding again
- Sewage backflow from the mains network: basement floor drains and toilets need a non-return valve or a pump station. See sewer installation.
- An overfilled septic tank or holding tank: the tank must be pumped out in time. If it is already full, see emergency septic tank pumping.
- Groundwater: check that the foundation drainage wells aren't clogged. See drainage well cleaning.
How much basement pumping costs
The price is set by the volume pumped out per trip and the travel distance. If there is more than 10 m³ of water, each additional trip is charged separately, so we give you the total price based on the dimensions you provide, before the work starts. Outside Riga we add a travel charge of about €1 per kilometre.