Floodway Preparation Steps For Flood Prevention

If elevating your home is not feasible, another flood prevention method is putting up a floodway around your house. Due to global warming, typhoons, tsunamis, storms and extreme high tides during odd seasons and floods happen. These natural calamities may visit small and big cities, communities and even entire countries. Typhoons cause flooding of rivers and lakes, and due to global warming, even in places where there was no flooding before, flooding has become a problem. Homeowners must make sure the homes are protected from flooding to avoid damage and to protect their families from harm. Putting a floodway around your home can be a quick solution for flood prevention.

Constant Awareness

If you are in a flood prone area, it is advisable that at least one house member watch television or listen to weather radios to be well informed and updated on the status of upcoming storms or typhoons. Knowledge of these things will give you enough time to prepare your floodway. Make sure you are well informed about the dams in your area and the implications if any of them are destroyed. Always be aware of local emergency evacuation plans.

Determine Flood Water Passage

Before you begin your floodway preparation, determine which area of your home is the passageway of flood water during typhoons or high tides. These entry points will be the starting point of your floodway.

Sandbags or Beams

Knowing the entry point of the flood water, determine how many sandbags or beams you need to create your floodway. Prepare enough sandbags and beams for your floodway.

Building the Floodway

Using the sandbags and beams, create a barricade higher than the expected food water level or height. Put a wall outside and away from your house to prevent the flood water from reaching your home. Stack the top layer securely and direct the floodway wall towards the direction where you want the water to flow out to. The floodway can go around the house and back out to the entrance or out into an open water area. This floodway will ensure that the flood water remain outside of your home.

Sealing Your Home

Prepare waterproofing compound and seal the walls of any basements or low-level floors. This will prevent the seepage of flood water from saturated soil. Seepage from saturated soil can cause water contamination of your household drinking water so it is advisable to keep this water out. Brush the waterproofing compound on the walls, applying thick and even coats. These compounds are absolutely waterproof but these compounds won’t bend if in case there’s a movement on the walls. This will result to cracks on the sealants which may open up and allow seepage.

Gutters play an important role to make sure that water freely flows out of your home. Make sure these gutters are cleaned regularly and make sure to keep debris off the roof. Dirt and debris can hinder water from flowing out freely. Clogged gutters can cause flood water back-up. Despite having a floodway, this will result in a leak and eventually cause flooding inside your home from the roof.