Lessons Learned from Basement Flooding?

[Anonymous]

Our basement flooded and now we are drying out.

Anyone been there, done that and have tips on contractors, materials to replace carpet, etc?

What do you wish you had known?

[Anonymous]

Depends on how the water came in. Outdoor grading and the condition of gutters can make a huge difference.

[Anonymous]

Our major lessons? Invest in sump pumps, worth every penny.

[Anonymous]

We moved. New house has sump pumps and we were very vigilant about running the gutter discharge well away from the foundation.

[Anonymous]

We wanted to do upgrades and insurance contractor was not willing to do it. Took us ages to start the work after getting dozens of quotes from other general contractors. In hindsight we should have just gone with the insurance approved contractor.

We also installed a flo by moen since our damage was due to a pipe burst, not a flooding.

Another thing I wish we had known - never give the lowest estimate to the insurance adjuster. Give the highest quote you get and go from there. You will have more leeway when bridging the gap in quotes between their approved contractor and yours.

And for itemizing your personal property, create a spreadsheet and link similar items if you can. I saw a reddit thread where an adjuster said that if we just say coffee table, they will give you the amount for say something from Target, at the depreciated value. But if you give details like coffee table from Pottery barn and link a similar one, you will get whatever it is worth after depreciation. Details is the key. It took me some time but I went through everything that was damaged and gave a detailed description of the item, with a link to where it is available, and the condition before the damage. I also provided lots of pictures that I had taken right away after the damage. The adjuster was fair when they paid out for the personal property loss.

[Anonymous]

Water sensors, battery and wi-fi. Inexpensive.

[Anonymous]

Depends on what caused the flood.

[Anonymous]

Make sure not to use anything but concrete or porcelain/ceramic tile in your basement floors. Other types of flooring will get ruined with flooding. Check your gutters to see if they are sufficient in a hard rain. Get them cleaned regularly if you have large trees in the area (we have this done 4x per year). Make sure your downspouts drain away from the house. Snake them. Check the grading of your yard to see if puddles develop near the house and whether water moves away. You want it to move away, not settle. If you dig around the house, you can check the mortar, the parging, and seal as needed. Have your remediation firm (I assume you're getting one to dry things out and prevent mold) to check for leaks and the source of the water. Once the source is identified, if it's due to rot or deterioration elsewhere, get it fixed. If the flooding is due a sewer backup, then it's probably time to replace your sewer and water lines. That's a start. I hope it helps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make sure not to use anything but concrete or porcelain/ceramic tile in your basement floors. Other types of flooring will get ruined with flooding. Check your gutters to see if they are sufficient in a hard rain. Get them cleaned regularly if you have large trees in the area (we have this done 4x per year). Make sure your downspouts drain away from the house. Snake them. Check the grading of your yard to see if puddles develop near the house and whether water moves away. You want it to move away, not settle. If you dig around the house, you can check the mortar, the parging, and seal as needed. Have your remediation firm (I assume you're getting one to dry things out and prevent mold) to check for leaks and the source of the water. Once the source is identified, if it's due to rot or deterioration elsewhere, get it fixed. If the flooding is due a sewer backup, then it's probably time to replace your sewer and water lines. That's a start. I hope it helps.

What about LVP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Make sure not to use anything but concrete or porcelain/ceramic tile in your basement floors. Other types of flooring will get ruined with flooding. Check your gutters to see if they are sufficient in a hard rain. Get them cleaned regularly if you have large trees in the area (we have this done 4x per year). Make sure your downspouts drain away from the house. Snake them. Check the grading of your yard to see if puddles develop near the house and whether water moves away. You want it to move away, not settle. If you dig around the house, you can check the mortar, the parging, and seal as needed. Have your remediation firm (I assume you're getting one to dry things out and prevent mold) to check for leaks and the source of the water. Once the source is identified, if it's due to rot or deterioration elsewhere, get it fixed. If the flooding is due a sewer backup, then it's probably time to replace your sewer and water lines. That's a start. I hope it helps.

What about LVP?

Good catch. Vinyl flooring is fine too.

[Anonymous]

We were renting a really nice new house, and our basement flooded. They had a GFI switch on the sump pump that at one time triggered off, so either then or at a later date the pump was off when a big storm came.

Don't put your sump pump on a GFI switch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We were renting a really nice new house, and our basement flooded. They had a GFI switch on the sump pump that at one time triggered off, so either then or at a later date the pump was off when a big storm came.

Don't put your sump pump on a GFI switch.

Uh, couldn't you get electrocuted if you don't? What we did is have a battery backup included in our sump pump installation. The power is likely to go out during a storm...the very time that you're likely to need the sump pump.

[Anonymous]

We keep an extra sump pump on hand. We’ve had too many fail at inopportune times and they’re not particularly expensive…

[Anonymous]

Pull the baseboard and cut holes through the drywall and into the joist bays. Rent an industrial dehumidifier. That should head off the mold. You need to do this ASAP.

Buy a moisture meter and measure frequently to make sure everything is dry. Then patch the drywall and reinstall the baseboard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our basement flooded and now we are drying out.

Anyone been there, done that and have tips on contractors, materials to replace carpet, etc?

What do you wish you had known?

Why has it flooded? Is it a foundation issue or did a pipe burst? Too much rain?