You Don’t Have To See A Flood To Suffer From One
The most dramatic images that come from floods involve someone slogging through water that’s up to a person’s thigh or higher, and either he or she is working to protect an area from further flooding or else he or she is in a boat and traveling street by street either to scavenge for supplies or else find any stranded survivors. However, not every flood has to lead to canoes replacing cars, and even if it never reaches the surface of the earth a flood can do some significant damage to an unprepared basement.
Every part of the world that gets a regular amount of rainfall has a water table, a depth at which water saturates the dirt or rock beneath the surface. Not so long ago people dug wells down to the water table to get access to fresh water, and while we don’t use open wells today, towns across America still pump water out of the ground and treat it in order to serve all their residents’ bathing and drinking needs.
However, most water tables don’t stick with a stable, consistent depth. When it rains, the water grows closer to the surface, and when it doesn’t rain, the water falls away. And if the water table rises above the depth of your basement, and if your basement isn’t watertight, then much like a well it will fill up with water. Thus, even if a heavy rainfall or a big spring melt doesn’t result in an actual flood, it can still cause you an incredibly expensive headache.
If you own a new home with a basement in a flood zone, then chances are good that your house has already been waterproofed with strong foundation walls, a sump pump, and a decent drainage system, but if you live in an older building you may not be so lucky, and even a house built to modern standards needs the occasional inspection and maintenance call.
AA Action Waterproofing services buildings throughout Maryland and her neighboring states. If you live in this area and you believe your property needs a checkup, don’t hesitate to contact us for a free estimate.