Melanie Zoltan writes the Boston Home Improvement Blog for HomeStars.com. She lives in the metroWest Boston area and enjoys the Big Dig, putting a chair on the street to mark her parking spot during snow storms, driving on 128 during rush hour, and rotaries. 
Is your basement flooded right now?
Anyone else need an ark?
Boston averages about 42 inches of rain and 41 inches of snow per year.
But does all the rain have to fall right now?
We've experienced two basement floods while living in the area: in 1998 and 2001. In 1998 we were living in a basement apartment in East Cambridge. We went out in the driving rain for a lovely trip to the Burlington Mall. Came home to a dark apartment and as we walked down the cement stairs to the living room, we confronted about 3" of water in the 400 square foot room.
And no dog. Where was the dog?
Our landlord had gone into the basement to do laundry and discovered the flood. He entered our apartment to find the poor dog whimpering and hopping from the couch to the coffee table. The awesome landlord took our poor dog upstairs to his apartment for safety.
After the apartment was drained, the basement needed to be cleaned and sanitized, carpet removed and new installed, and our poor dog was afraid of even small puddles for a while.
The second flood was simpler, and involved our home purchase in Leominster, MA: read about it here.
See basement restoration companies if you're facing water in the basement right now: http://www.homestars.com/ma/boston/basement-renovation
In the meantime, a few Boston flooding tips:
1. Keep an eye out on the news or on Weather.com for flood watches and warnings.
2. Clear the sewer drain in front of your house or apartment. Leaves build up and cover the drains, and that water can back up and cause building damage if your home is close to the street.
3. Check your basement frequently. Even if you hear the sump pump running, it might not catch all the water, so don't rely on sound. Perform a visual check.
4. Elevate anything that is on the floor in your basement to prevent loss.
5. Here's a timely movie to rent this weekend.
Labels: Emergency Repairs, Home Maintenance
Posted by Melanie Zoltan
1 comments | Permanent Link
1 Comments:
That is a nifty ark! So far so good for this storm, our neighbor was not as lucky though. She has a field stone foundation, sump pump and had a french drain put in a few years ago.
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