Having water damage in buildings is a nuisance that serves to compromise the foundation and the infrastructure of your homes or building. Eventually, the building may either collapse or at least endure enormous damage.
Nothing is as stressful to land and business owners as water damage. It can potentially damage homes beyond affordability. This is why businesses suffer a lot and mostly the owners are anxiety-ridden. The need of the hour is to stop the damage before it becomes expensive to repair.
Oftentimes, the damage escalates when the problem is left unnoticed. When dealing with water damage, “time is money,” and it’s cardinal to act fast. Not only water leaks will create a mess of your furniture, carpets, and ceilings but will also crumble important documents and possessions that are worth their weight in gold.
Water that collects from rain, floods, or broken pipes, generates pressure on the entire home or building which may result in cracks or leaks.
These leakages permit water to penetrate the building and cause electrical hazards, health issues, mold growth, and structural damage. All these damages demand immediate repair. If not, it will bring on too much fuss, inconvenience and cost you heavily.
It’s primarily the moisture that weakens the solid foundation of a building to a great extent. Thus, water damage is an increasingly common and expensive disaster one would never wish to encounter in homes and commercial buildings.
Fortunately, there are a good number of low-cost ways that can help avoid these soggy disasters. If you’re lucky, you’ll address the core problem as early as possible.
In this very article, we’ll expand your knowledge about water damage by stressing upon the strategies or tips on how to restrict water damage.
How to Prevent Flooding in Home?
1. Prevent Water Damage in the Basement
Oftentimes, water slips into the basement owing to the cracks, leaks, or burst pipes. After heavy rains or floods, if the drain is not downslope, the soil will aid in pushing water towards the building. Additionally, condensed water dripping from cold surfaces is also a big problem. Insulate the surfaces and walls to prevent condensation.
The soil that becomes saturated with heavy rains is almost like creating a moat that gathers runoff which is then destined for your basement and building walls. This makes things worse.
To overcome this problem, it’s beneficial to go for interior basement drainage excavation. Do not let the water seep into the basement as it will favor mold growth.
2. Ensure Proper Drainage
Ensuring good drainage functions to avoid high-priced water damage restoration.
The soil in your home vicinity should slope roughly 6 inches within about 10 feet of the foundation. By letting the water divert away from the base of your building keeps it from the risk of damaging. Therefore, creating proper grading prevents moisture accumulation.
For optimal functioning, always check drains and remove any kind of clogging materials from them. Also, look for the condition of the discharge pipes and see whether they are draining water to appropriate locations or not.
3. Make Sure the Gutters and Downspouts Work Appropriately
It should be your prime responsibility to keep the gutters clean and clear of leaves and debris. If you’re not heedful and the gutters become choked, heavy rain will pose massive damage by directing water down your foundation.
Make sure that the downspouts (drainage pipes) effectively route the surplus water away from your building.
Recommended Read: Can Smelling Sewage Harm You?
4. Install HVAC System
Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems need to be installed for a conducive work environment. If this system is allowed to run on its own for decades, the poor maintenance will verily cause you costly water damage.
HVAC system leads to condensation that is to be drained effectively. If, in any case, condensed water/moisture accumulates in HVAC collecting pans, it will favor water overflow and corrosion.
If you ever decide to include the HVAC system in building maintenance programs, always check the functioning of pans, pipes, and drains after regular intervals.
5. Protect Your Home’s Exterior From Water Damage
To prevent the exterior from water damage, you need to maintain the building by making it leakproof. But how can you do so?
- Inspect the walls for cracks and also notice the paint of drywalls
- Make sure that water doesn’t trickle from the roof
- Check for plumbing system routinely and cautiously
- Look for leaks in sinks, bathtubs, bathrooms, and kitchen drains
- Do not let the water to stand around your building
- Seal the windows to prevent water seepage
6. Maintain Interior Plumbing System
Inspect your home appliance hoses and faucets carefully. See whether the showers and tubs are watertight or not. If not, get them resealed. Scrutinize your entire home and if you find breaks, leaks, or cracks anywhere, it will be indicative of leaking issues.
Without any delay, fix this water problem and repair or replace the hoses. A novel strategy is to install an emergency pressure release valve that is believed to avert bursting of pipes. Furthermore, this valve protects against the increased pressure that may result from freezing pipes in chilling colds.
Recommended Read: Can A Water Damaged Home Be Saved?
7. Protect your Possessions from Water Damage
Never store or treasure your valuables in areas that are prone to water damage. The affected areas are more likely to bring with them the threat of mold growth. Store your family possessions in waterproof containers that are as high as they can be so the water cannot reach them and their integrity can be maintained.
The Takeaway:
Water damage is a serious problem as can affect your home’s interior and exterior. Indeed, we can’t stop floods, storms, or hurricanes from occurring, yet we can stop the damage from getting on our nerves and becoming too expensive to deal with.
Following the above-mentioned tips can help protect your building, assets, and possessions. If you are unable to do it yourself, it’s best to contact a water damage restoration company to avoid any costly repair in the future.
Leave a Reply