Prep Your Home To Avoid Water In Your Basement

If you’ve ever had water in your basement after heavy rains or after snow melts, you know just how frustrating (and expensive) it can be to clean up. Most people call a plumber when the find their basement is filling up…but by then the damage is done to your furniture, carpet and walls – and the damage to your wallet is coming up!  Let’s look at a few ways you can future proof your home from having water in your basement.

First, if your home already has a sump pump, check to make sure it’s a sump pump with a battery back up.  This is a must!  Older sump pumps may not have a battery back up, but we all know that  power can go out during severe thunderstorms or winter weather.  A downpour is the absolute last time that you want your sump pump to lose electricity.  Battery back up units help your home keep up with rising water until electricity  is back up and running!

The health of your sump pup is another priority.  Make sure and check your unit for debris and ensure it’s operating functionally.  This is a simple step and it only takes about 5 minutes.  Just run water into the sump pump to make certain it’s fully functioning.  Then go outside and check the exterior pipe, making sure to remove any leaves, dirt, mud or other debris that may be blocking the natural flow of water. A blocked pipe can force the water back inside.

If you are constantly cleaning out debris and finding in hard to keep your exterior area unblocked, you may want to consider installing a French Drain.  Below is a great resource video on installing your own French Drain:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bd9WJufRVEc

Next, look at the roof.  Make sure and check your  downspouts for the same leaves and sticks that can block your exterior sump pump pipe.  This is a very important step.  Here in Columbia, we can get some really nasty snow.  When it starts melting, your downspout can get put to the test. If the downspouts are blocked, your water can be forced to run back into your basement, overloading your sump pump.

Finally,  just do a basic walk through of your basement or sub-basement.  This is one of the first thing that plumbers do when they tour your home.  If you see plumbing valves that are showing signs of discoloration or rust, or have deposit build-up, make sure and switch them out.  These are the kinds of things that you can fix yourself, BEFORE you have to rack up a big bill with a local plumber!

Happy plumbing!!!