Is Your Property Flood Safe?

4/30/2020 (Permalink)

Perhaps you think you have heard it all before.  Flood warning, flood watch, flood insurance, blah, blah, blah.  I don’t live near the ocean, a river or stream and my property is on high ground so I don’t have to worry!  Is this really true?  I thought so as well, until I moved into a house that is mid-way down a hill.  My house has no sump pump, the water table is not high here, and there is no evidence of past water intrusion.  So, we’re good, right?

Wrong!

Along comes a damaging, heavy rain.  All of the drain water from properties above mine comes racing down the hill.  The municipal drain at the top of driveway gets quickly blocked with leaves, sticks and other debris that came down with the raging torrent.  I hear what sounds like rushing water in my lower level.  Little did I know that the water that could not empty down the drain has flowed down my driveway and breached the garage.  As I open the inside door leading to the garage from the house to discover the source of the noise, there is resistance.  I push harder.  Big Mistake!!  Once the door has opened just slightly, the force of the water opens it the rest of the way and that water is now entering my house and flooding down the stairs.  I quickly get help to get that door closed, but not before a lot of water has soaked floors, carpets and a few inches of sheetrock in the hallway. 

I grab boots, a rain slicker and a shovel and head to the top of the driveway to clear out the drain.  I am able to clear enough of it with help from a neighbor so that the water is no longer flooding down my driveway, but is now going through proper channels into the drain pipes.  I head back into the house to assess the damage.

At least I was home and able to stop the water with minimum damage done.  But there was damage done.  I don’t have flood insurance, and the water came in from an outside source.  My homeowner’s policy did not cover it. 

Make no mistake.  Ground water is not “clean water” by any stretch of the imagination  It has traveled over yards treated with chemicals for weed and pest control, yards polluted by animal waste and garbage left on the roadside by careless passersby, not to mention possibly sewage.  This was now what sat in my lower level.  I had to make plans to have the damage remediated.  I wish I had known about SERVPRO back then! I wish my insurance company had recommended them!

After having the house dried out and repaired, I also had to make a plan to prevent this from ever happening again.  Long term solutions included getting the town involved to install proper drainage on the street and under the street.  However, since these drains can still fail due to leaves and branches and even basketballs getting lodged in the openings, I also installed a back-up drain at the bottom of the driveway and a small drain in the middle of the garage floor.    I have not had a water instrusion since, and am holding out hope that with due vigilance, it won’t. 

To that end, when I become aware of heavy rain in the forecast, I don’t fail to prepare my property. 

You can too by following the advice of FEMA:

Clear drains, gutters, and downspouts

Relocate furniture, appliances, and rugs to higher areas in the home where flood water is less likely to reach.

Inspect your sump pump and be sure it is in working order

If you live in a flood-prone area, consider the following:

Install an interior or exterior backflow valve to prevent sewage back up.

Redirect flood water away from your home by changing the grade of your yard.

Install typical basement units, such as furnaces and water heaters, on elevated platforms.

Obtain flood insurance if possible. Keep important documents in a waterproof container. Create password-protected digital copies. 

If you experience property loss or damage due to a flood, or for any other reason, call the professional team at SERVPRO of North Morris County.  We are ready to help you get your home back “Like it never even happened.”