The Causes of a Flood in Your Basement
June 30, 2010
Finding your basement flooded can come as a huge shock. The reality is though that this is probably the most likely room in the house to suffer this type of event. There are many possible causes for why your basement is now full of water and many of these could be preventable. Here are just some of the reasons why you could now have to deal with this problem.
There is a Blocked Drain Somewhere
A blocked drain outside could be causing water to enter your basement from above. This is a common problem especially during those times when it has been raining hard for a while. One way to prevent this issue arising in the first place is to reposition drains so that they can’t cause problems with for your basement. This moving of drains is work that is probably best left to the professionals unless you know what you are doing.
Water is Seeping Up from Under the Floor
Heavy rain can cause the water table to rise and this could lead to water entering your home from underground. This can be difficult to deal with and if you are living in an area that is subject to flooding you might want to take steps to insulate your floor. Sometimes the water table can get so high that there is little you can do to prevent this type of flooding and the advice then would be not to keep things that can’t handle water damage in the basement.
Water Seeping Down from Upstairs
Because of the position of the basement it is a likely place for water to accumulate. Things like showers or leaking washing machines can lead to water getting to the basement. If your walls are not properly insulated you are also at risk of water getting in from outside.
Condensation
Condensation is not going to cause a flood but it can lead to an accumulation of water in your basement. This is why it is often a bad idea to keep a shower down there. If you do have a problem with condensation then you want to do all you can to improve the ventilation in the basement.
Once you know the cause of a flood in your basement it is important that you get to work to rectify the problem right away. The longer you leave water the more damage will be caused to your home.
Tips for Dealing with Mold Following Water Damage
June 21, 2010
If you have had any problems involving a water leak there is risk that you might have to deal with mold afterwards. If you discover mold then it is important that you do something about it. Just ignoring mold could eventually mean that it will cost you a lot of money to remedy, and in the meantime time it could be causing health problems for you and your family. In most cases you should be able to deal with this mold yourself, but if it is very extensive you might want to call in the professionals.
When taking action to remedy mold the first thing you need to do is assess the situation. This means giving the area a thorough search to make sure that there is not any more mold anywhere else; if you miss some it could mean that your current clean up won’t be effective. Once you are sure about the extent of the problem then it is time to get into action. Your first bit of business will be to remove those items that have been affected by mold and just won’t be salvageable – things like cloth and other dead organic material can be unsalvageable once they are touched by mold. Throwing belongings that are precious to you out can be a bit heartbreaking but you may have to do this.
Cleaning up mold can be a bit of a risky business – especially if there is any chance that you could be dealing with toxic black mold. This is why it is probably best to cover your body fully with clothing and wear eye protectors as well as a respiratory mask. There is some debate as to what is the best thing for killing mold. In the past people would just use bleach but this might not be the best solution – some experts claim that bleach only slows the mold down. Other people have found a vinegar solution to be effective, but if you want to be really sure you are probably best purchasing something that has been specifically created for this type of work. Getting rid of mold is a messy job and you don’t want to have to go back again and redo it so it pays to be through. Once you have finished the clean-up it is recommended that you use a borate based solution as this will stop mold from ever returning.
Tornado in Ohio Kills Seven and Wreaks Havoc
June 8, 2010
A violent tornado left behind what is being referred to as ‘total devastation’ in the northwestern corner of Ohio this past weekend, ripping apart numerous homes and an emergency building as a line of very violent storms thrashed through the area doing heavy damage.
The storms also made their way through parts of Illinois, Indiana and Michigan but reserved the worst of their fury for a seven mile stretch just south of Toledo, Ohio. The area in and around the small town of Millbury is littered with crushed vehicles, splintered boards and wood and is with personal possessions. In Illinois, a movie theater roof was collapsed and a nuclear power plant in Michigan was forced to shut down after siding ripped from the side of a building there. The Fermi 2 nuclear plant is located in Southeastern Michigan.
The Lake, Ohio High School had its roof and back wall torn away several hours prior to the school’s graduation ceremony. Two school buses were tipped over and another was picked up and moved to another location – fifty yards away, landing on its roof by the football field. There were over fifty homes destroyed in and around Lake Township and another fifty heavily damaged. Six commercial properties were also severely affected by the tornado. Thankfully the tornado did not strike on the southern edge of Toledo which is heavily populated. The Lake Township emergency service building was transformed into a tangled mess of framing and insulation. Inside, dispatchers who were working the phones at the time reported that the building was shaking and said that they witnessed the roof being blown off. Six of the twelve township’s police cars were destroyed.
One of the victims who was killed was outside the emergency response facility at the time and another was in his vehicle. Three other of the fatalities were from neighboring Millbury – one was a young child and the other two adults. Also, two others reportedly lost their fight for life at area hospitals after being severely injured. Over thirty people in the Toledo area were hospitalized which included two adults and two children who were listed in critical condition. In Dundee, Michigan, eleven people sustained minor injuries which all required trips to the hospital. Wind speeds were recorded as being 130 mph in Dundee. In a mobile home park in Dwight, Illinois, more than four dozen homes were totally destroyed.
The severe weather also left a path of damage throughout northern Indiana where two tornadoes were seen. Luckily no one was hurt. In Iowa, one resident sustained injuries as a result of a tornado touch-down. A weather front consisting of cold air met warm and unstable air which triggered the storms. The storm finally fizzled out as it moved in an easterly direction toward New England.
