Use your head while shovelling all that snow
When snowbanks melt, you don’t want the excess moisture near your foundation
I write this amid a freezing rainstorm in Ontario. This comes one week after a major snow fall, followed by a deep freeze and, to cap it off, some beautiful spring weather that melted most of the white stuff that had piled up. My point is this: there’s a LOT of water that’s now melting, flowing, draining, and falling near our homes.
Water is enemy No. 1 when it comes to home hazards. If water manages to sneak into your home, you could be looking at a flooded basement and ruined drywall, not to mention mould and rot.
During the aftermath of a big winter storm (and the ensuing melt), how do you protect your home against this threat?
WHERE DOES THE SNOW GO?
You’re a good neighbour, so that means you always shovel your driveway, sidewalk and walkways — but are you letting snow pile up around your house? Now, I’ve heard some people say you should let snow cocoon around your foundation as it adds some extra insulating power, but I don’t like that. Why? That snow is going to melt, and your porous foundation will want to absorb it (even if it’s crack-free).
You want to do everything you can to prevent water from seeping into your home.
When you’re shovelling your walkways, definitely avoid tossing that excess snow toward your home and foundation. Also make sure to shovel out any exhaust lines, fresh air intakes, gas meters, dryer vents, and fire hydrants.
GRADING ON A CURVE
OK, so you’ve made sure to shovel away from your home, but when the snow melts on the rest of your property, where does it go? This is where your landscaping comes into play. The ground should slope away from your home so that water can’t flow back toward your foundation.
Grading is something you can easily mess up on your own if you’re not careful. Even something seemingly simple as adding a garden or some patio stones to your yard can have a bigger effect on your grading than you might think. These are jobs you can take on yourself if you feel able — but if you’re considering making landscaping changes near your foundation, it wouldn’t hurt to get the opinion of a professional landscaper before you start moving soil around.
All the grading in the world won’t make a difference if the melt from your roof gets dumped right next to your foundation by some poorly planned eavestroughs.
Make sure the water from your roof is expelled a few feet from your home. You can pick up an extension for your downspouts at any hardware store for cheap — and you can easily attach it yourself.
It’s worth it.