HOME DRAINAGE ISSUES EASY TO SEE THIS YEAR
After heavy rainfall, check for any standing water, basement flooding or dampness
Water, water everywhere — what does it mean for my home?
This year has been unseasonably wet, and it’s not without consequences to homeowners. Even basements that don’t normally flood are flooding.
There have been several types of water and flooding issues throughout our city and surrounding area. Torrential rains in various communities have overcome the city’s stormwater capabilities and have led to backups and basement flooding. In some areas, the runoff from these downpours has led to mini rivers of water seeking out low land — and sometimes that’s a basement window.
In other areas, the soil has become saturated, and water is finding its way into basements through cracks that have been dry for years. There are places where the water table has risen and water via the “bowl effect” enters between the home’s footing and basement wall or cracks in the basement flooring. This is known as hydrostatic pressure.
Many homes have had failing sump pumps. With no backup pump or alarm, many homeowners who don’t frequent their basement may not notice the moisture for weeks or months, which then may lead to a mould issue. One of my clients who purchased a home this spring had his pump fail and his home is only four years old.
When you are building new, why not make an upgraded sump pump a priority, or at least one with an alarm? I’m surprised sump pump alarms are not code.
Not all home insurance covers water infiltration, and even if you have coverage, it may be limited. It’s best to read your policy thoroughly and discuss your coverage with your insurance broker. If you have a new or nicely developed basement, you may want to review your policy and make sure you have appropriate coverage.
If you have an older home without weeping tile and a sump pump, you’ll need excellent grading, including a clay or other non-permeable barrier. Just adding topsoil may not help. What’s important is a minimum two-metre positive slope of the underlying clay. And almost all homes require grading maintenance.
If we have lots of rain before the soil freezes, there could be more trouble. If the soil against your home is full of moisture and the soil freezes, it will expand and century-old homes may see horizontal cracking.
The concrete today is much stronger and should withstand some lateral pressure. In spite of this, it is still a good idea to make sure water doesn’t pool within two metres of your home’s foundation.
So what can you do to protect yourself? First, check your insurance and see what is and is not covered.
Second, get the water away from your home. There are several ways of doing this. The simplest ways include increasing your positive grade and ensuring that downspouts, eavestroughs and sump pumps are working properly and moving water far enough away from your home’s foundation.
Other options, depending on your lot drainage, can include creating swales or waterways to move the water from heavy rains away from your home. French drains can be installed and can be very effective. Some homeowners auger or drill deep holes in their yard and fill with gravel to deal with excess water.
The granddaddy of fixes could be to dig up all around your home and install a waterproofing membrane to the foundation as well as install weeping tile and an alarmed sump pump. This can easily cost well over $20,000.
There are several benefits to doing this, however. It can provide peace of mind, possibly reduced insurance costs (or better coverage), better resale value, and often it can deal with a humid, musty basement. I’ve known clients who have done this and immediately say their basement is way less humid and much nicer to spend time in.
And it’s not just basements that can be the problem; it’s the home’s entire envelope. We are talking roof, chimneys, flashing, exterior siding, stucco, brick, windows, doors, trim, and vents. You don’t want water or moisture getting in or behind any of these products. Making sure everything is painted, caulked and/or sealed is very important.
In the spring, I typically advise our clients to walk around their home during and after a rainfall. You want to know how the water is moving on your property and you will want to ensure it doesn’t pool anywhere within two metres (I like to see at least three or four metres) of your foundation.
In some ways, this is a great buying year. You certainly can weed out the homes that have flooded or ones that seem to have excessive humidity levels in the basement, if that’s important to you. Water infiltration is considered a material-latent defect which almost always has to be disclosed to a potential buyer by the homeowner, if known.
For more information on flood prevention, check out this website from Epcor: epcor.com/floodprevention.
And, as always, feel free to contact me directly with any real estate questions.