One of the most frustrating and challenging things that can happen to a home during a major storm is a water backup. If your home suffers from a water backup during a major storm, it could create a significant amount of damage in your basement. Fortunately, there are eight key things that you could do to prepare your home that could help to prevent damage during a major storm.
Flood Protection System
When you are looking to protect your home from a flood, the most important thing that you need to do is invest in a flood protection system for your basement. There are a variety of great systems that you could invest in that could help to keep your basement and home dry and protected. One of the best things that you could do would be to invest in a sump pump, which will pump excess water back into the sewer system.
Ensure You Have Power or Backup
While having a sump pump installed is very beneficial, you also need to make sure that it is properly backed up. If the storm system is so significant that it takes out all the power in your area, they could end up knocking out the sump pump as well. Because of this, you need to make sure that you have a backup sump pump that is attached to some form of small generator. This will give you the additional protection that you need.
Grading
One of the main reasons why people end up getting water into their basement is because the soil around their home is not properly graded. When you own a property, you will want to make sure that the soil around a property is not too high and it sits below the foundation line. If it sits above the foundation line and is not slope in the right direction, it could lead to an accumulation of water around the house. Over time, this will lead to water seeping into the home.
Fix Cracks
If you have routinely gotten water into your home, it would be a good idea to have your foundation inspected by a professional. More than likely there are some small cracks that could be the cause of the leak. To ensure that this does not develop into a more serious problem, you should make sure that you have the leaks investigated by a professional. If there are any leaks and cracks, you should make sure that they are properly filled and sealed.
Keep Valuables Above Ground
While you will want to be able to make sure that water does not get into your basement, you also want to use common sense when it comes to storing personal items in your basement. If you have some very expensive items stored away, you should make sure that they are stored high off the ground and in waterproof containers.
Check Sewer System Regularly
In many places across the country, people have direct access to a sewer line through the basement. If you have access to a main sewer line in your basement, it does require some maintenance every few years. To make sure that you are sewer line is ready to withstand a major storm, you should have it checked out by a plumber at least once every three to five years. This will help to ensure that the pipes are in good condition and are not clogged. During a major storm, this can help to prevent some serious issues.
Clean Gutters
One very effective routine maintenance tip that you can call out that can help prevent water damage is to clean out your gutters. Depending on where you live, you should clean out your gutters several times during the year. This will help to ensure that water does not accumulate and spill out over the gutters. This will ensure that water then is taken through the proper channels away from your home.
Prepare
Ultimately, when a major storm is coming, you will have some advance notice. If you are located in an area that is near a pond, river, or other area that is prone to flooding, you should make sure that you are prepared for it. If the flood waters are getting very high, you should consider placing sandbags around your home and taking other preventative and protective measures.
