mercredi 29 juillet 2015

What Homeowners Have To Know If You Are Dealing With A Flooded Basement

By John Pattrico


Anyone who owns a home knows that there can be many problems that you can face. One of the most frustrating and frightening is a flooded basement. By knowing what to look for when this occurs, how to speak with your insurance agent and what may be involved when dealing with a restoration company you can meet this issue head on should it ever affect your house.

Many people check where a home is located before they buy or rent. They think that if the home is sitting on raised land that it may be less susceptible to water in the basement. This can help but it may not be the only consideration that you need to take into account if you are worried about water infiltrating your basement in large amount.

There are many problems that can come from flooding. The first is direct damage from the flood itself. If you know that your basement is wet, packing items in waterproof bins can help prevent everything from becoming saturated and ruined. Keep in mind that some moisture will be absorbed by flooring and even walls and this can cause problems if it is not addressed properly.

While some homes are susceptible to flooding due to their proximity to a river or body of water, all homes may deal with this issue at one time or another. A flood may result due to a ruptured hot water tank, a pipe which has burst or even heavy rainfall that can overwhelm a property's drainage system. There are other reasons why this may occur but these tend to be the most common.

Once you have identified that there is, in fact, water flooding into your basement, you need to try and stop the flow as quickly as possible. If it is because of flooding in general, this may be impossible. If it is due to burst pipes or hot water tanks, you can simply turn off supply valves and halt the flow.

Calling your insurance company should be the next step. You need to know how they want you to handle the situation. You should also ask them if there are specific restoration companies they work with as this may make it easier for you to get payment issued when the restoration process is taking place. Keep in mind that this can be a very lengthy process.

Do not be surprised if your agent or an assessment specialist turns up at your home. The company will want to see the damage for themselves and may ask you a number of questions about what happened. Do not be stressed out by this although some questions may seem intrusive or very detailed. At this time, it can be helpful to take pictures and have a list of items that have been damaged.

By learning the causes for flooding in a basement as well as how to talk to insurance agents and deal with restoration companies, you may find that you turn a stressful experience to one that is unpleasant but still very manageable.




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