How To Plan & What To Do Immediately
If you’ve ever suffered flooding in your home, you know what a huge problem it can be. While a major flood can be catastrophic, even a small amount of water in your basement can cause major issues that affect the comfort and safety of your family and the value of your home.
While there are some steps to take to protect your home from flooding, once flooding occurs, it’s important to act fast to limit damage and prevent further problems in the future.
Act Fast To Avoid Further Damage
Safety is key when your home floods. Even a small amount of water in your home can create an electrocution hazard.
Turn Off the Power
At the first sign that water is entering your home, cut the power to all low-lying power outlets. Unplug all machines and equipment — including freezers, heaters, lamps, and power tools — and move them to a higher location if possible. Put large appliances in your basement up on blocks to keep them out of the rising water.
If water has entered your home quickly or while you’re asleep or away from home, it may be necessary to contact your local utility company to cut the power to your home. Touching electrical devices or your electrical panel with your feet in water can cause electrocution.
Use Your Sump Pump & Generator
If you have an electric sump pump, it must stay plugged in, which is when a backup generator can be a big help. Remember to shut off the gas or have your gas company do it for you if your home is heated by natural gas.
A backup generator can also be used to power additional pumps, water vacuums, and lights. Remove water as fast as you can, and that way, it doesn’t have time to destroy carpets, flooring, and drywall. Document as you go, taking pictures of the flooding level and damage.
You should also contact your insurance company as soon as possible — they’ll likely send out an adjuster to inspect your property and assess the cost of the damage.
Once the bulk of the water is removed, install fans to move air and dry your basement and belongings out. At this point, you’ll want to contact a qualified flood restoration expert to determine what steps are necessary to repair your home from the flood damage.
Plan Ahead To Avoid Disaster
While planning for a major flood due to a storm or river overflow is difficult, you can take some small precautions to ensure your home is protected against small to mild rain and flooding conditions:
- Keep your rain gutters and downspouts clear of leaves and debris.
- Ensure your downspouts direct water away from your basement or foundation.
- Be certain the ground slopes away from your home.
- Watch for small leaks in your roof, windows, doors, and foundation, and fix them promptly.
- In winter, remove snow from your roof and avoid ice and snow buildup around drains.
- Verify that your sump pump is working properly and comes on automatically.
- Consider installing a standby power generator for your sump pump.
During most rainstorms, your home’s drainage systems can deal with the volume of rain. When the rain is extremely hard and lasts for a long time, however, flooding lakes, rivers, ditches, and sewer systems can cause water levels to rise.
When this happens, it’s only a matter of time before water starts to flood your home. Sandbagging and trenching can help in some cases, but if water finally starts getting into your home or basement, you need to know what to do.
Flooding can also occur if a water pipe or line to a washing machine, dishwasher, or fridge breaks. When this happens, turn off your main water supply to stop the water flow. If you catch this kind of leak when it happens, the damage is often limited. Pipes may burst when you’re away from home, though, meaning significant amounts of water can accumulate.
How To Equip Yourself for Any Flooding
If your home floods because of a storm or general flooding in your town or area, there’s a good chance you’re not the only homeowner or business affected. Finding and purchasing a sump pump or backup generator after a flood can be difficult or even impossible.
Crucial Appliances To Have To Avoid Flood Damage
Plan by equipping your property with a sump pump to remove water as it enters your basement. In many cases, this is enough to avoid damage to your property. A working sump pump is also helpful all year to remove small amounts of water as it enters your basement, not just in the case of a flood.
A backup generator is also useful to have. Automatic standby units are ready to take over the moment the power goes out and are especially popular for businesses and commercial properties with valuable equipment.
You can also purchase a portable unit as a short-term solution to power your sump pump, vacuum, fans, lights, or other flood response equipment. If you use a portable generator, make sure to keep it outside to avoid dangerous CO buildups in your home or garage.
Check out our site to discover all the equipment necessary to protect your home against a flood. We have a wide range of quality sump pumps available to keep your basement dry year-round and ensure peace of mind in case of a flood or water leak.
Contact the team at Haller today to learn more and schedule service.
