How to Prevent Spring Water Damage

• By Larry Parrish, CR, CGR, CAPS, GACP

• The sounds of Spring — birds, lawnmowers, sump pumps. Flooded basements: a rite of Spring. With a little planning, however, you can minimize the likelihood of hauling soggy carpet out to dry.

• Most flooded basements/crawlspaces are caused by surface water ponding near the foundation, soaking into the fill dirt, leaking in through the joint between floor slab and foundation wall. Backfill can settle over time to trap water. Window wells fill up, leak in around windows—or soak the ground and seep in at floor level.

• If surface water is your source, the solution is to keep it well away from your foundation through proper grading of soil. If it is expansive soil, moisture can cause it to swell, possibly causing serious damage.

• The ground near foundations should slope away from the house at least six inches in the first ten feet. Sometimes houses were built too low to the ground for proper drainage, difficult and expensive to correct. If your lot doesn’t allow for proper drainage, get the water to pond far from your house. (Do not grade your yard to drain into your neighbor’s basement!)

• Most houses should also have a perimeter drain system installed, draining safely to a sump pit with a pump or, drain by gravity to a low discharge point. Some houses have drains and pits, but no pump. It is a good idea to install redundant pumps, one set a few inches higher than the other. The extra pump can serve as a backup, or can double the pumping capacity in severe flooding.

• An ounce of prevention…

1. Verify the pump is operating: pour water in pit – does pump function and discharge to the outside, well away from the house? It is illegal to discharge ground water into the sewer system. Remember—if you wait until your basement is flooding, it is too late. Hundreds of other people will have already bought, rented, and borrowed every pump in the county!
2. Landscaping near the foundation should not require irrigation. Irrigation will saturate the soils, so they can absorb no more. Foundation perimeters are a good place for xeriscape.
3. Turf, sidewalks, or edging should not dam surface water near the foundation.
4. Clean your gutters. Clogged downspouts make gutters overflow, dumping water against foundations. Downspouts should discharge well away from the foundation, perhaps requiring extensions or underground drainage pipes.
5. Buy the inexpensive devices that sound an alarm when wet. Similar to smoke detectors (battery operated) place them in areas prone to flooding. Early warning can save you trouble. If out of town during “rainy season,” arrange for a check on your basement. Early detection can be critical.
6. Homeowner’s insurance does not cover all flooding. If a hailstone breaks your window, allowing water in, you’re probably covered. If you forgot to clean your gutters, and water seeps in around your basement window, you’re not.

• If your best efforts fail, a few things you can do to minimize damage:

1. Furniture legs up on blocks, or on aluminum foil/ plastic patches, prevents them from absorbing water or rusting.
2. Remove wet carpet as soon as possible.
3. Rent special fans designed to blow air under carpet loosened around the edges.
4. If dry weather, open windows/doors, use fans to get air moving.
5. Rent dehumidifiers to dry things out quickly.
6. Water vacuums are helpful for floors.

• I hope this article didn’t dampen your spirits. Happy Spring!

• We always welcome your comments, questions and suggestions. Please feel free to post in the “Comments Box” below.