The basement of a house can be put to numerous uses. Whether you use yours as a safe haven during a storm, as a storage room or even as a second living space, the last thing you want is to have it flooded.
Flood and other types of water damage can take a heavy toll on your finances and damage a lot of your valuable properties. This more necessitates the need to take proactive measures in preventing basement flooding.
Below are 5 things you can do to keep your basement dry:
1. Proper Sump Pump Maintenance
The majority of basement flooding in homes is caused by the absence or failure of a sump pump. Having a sump pump in your home is a great way to combat mold, water damage, and flooding. However, owning a sump pump is not enough. Properly maintaining your sump pump to make sure it’s always in good working condition is the best way to prevent basement flooding in your home. In case your sump pump fails to function during a storm of basement flooding, you have to contact the nearest water damage restoration company to you.
2. Inspect and Repair Foundation Cracks
Water can easily get into your basement if you have a crack in your foundation or the walls of your basement. Regular inspection of your foundation and the walls and floors of your basement for visible cracks is an effective way to prevent basement flooding in your home. Once you notice an opening in your foundation or the walls of your basement, quickly call a professional or water damage restoration company to get it fixed before it escalates.
3. Clean and Maintain Gutters
Cleaning and maintaining your gutters is an important part of home maintenance that shouldn’t be neglected. When your gutters are free of debris and your troughs are positioned to channel rainwater away from the foundation of your home, you won’t have to worry about water pooling up around your foundation and causing your basement to get flooded during a rainstorm. This simple exercise of cleaning your gutter regularly and ensuring your troughs are well-positioned will save thousands of dollars in repair cost and keep the water damage restoration company away for a long time.
4. Properly Landscape Your Land
Do you know the topography of your compound or that of your flower bed could be a major cause of water damage or basement flooding in your home? If the slope of your compound wards rain and stormwater towards the foundation of your home, this could lead to serious basement flooding. This problem can easily be corrected by doing proper landscaping of your yard to direct water away from your foundation. To tune things up a notch, you can also take the extra precaution of installing a French drainage system in your home.
5. Install Window Well Covers
If your home has below-grade basement windows, then you should definitely be looking to install window well covers that will guarantee your basements’ full-protection during rain or storm. Window well-covers perform excellently and are a great investment when installed properly. You can get a clear acrylic window well-cover to give your basement a good outlook and keep it bright during the day.
