Preparing for a Flood: A Guide

7/18/2021 (Permalink)

Is your house located in a known Massachusetts flood zone? If you don’t know the answer to that, you probably don’t, as it’s something you’d find out when you bought your house. However, you could still be at risk for a flood. Just think of the flood that caused Norwood Hospital to close just last year after a storm. Downtown Norwood is an area that’s listed as minimal risk for flooding, according to the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA). But that didn’t stop the floods from coming in and causing havoc.

Whether you live in a Massachusetts flood zone or not, there are steps you can take to prepare your home for a flood in case one hits. As a side note, this will also help you shore up your home in case you ever have to deal with a burst pipe or a heavy rainstorm that causes your basement to flood. 

What to Do to Prepare for a Flood

Before a flood happens, you should have a qualified professional: 

• Inspect your basement (or the lowest floor of your home if you don’t have a basement) and raise up your water heater, furnace, and electric panel so they’re nowhere near the floor. 
• Install “check valves” in your home’s sewer traps to prevent rising flood waters from backing up into the drains of your home. 
• Seal your basement walls with waterproofing compounds to help avoid seepage. 

If a flood does hit your home, you need to handle it right away. Even the smallest of floods can cause lasting water damage to your home when not treated quickly and properly. Flooding can also create lingering moisture residue that elevates the risk of mold growth, so it’s important to involve trained storm damage specialists like SERVPRO of Haverhill / Newburyport in restoring your home. 

See what just one of our customers (Lauren E of Haverhill) said in a testimonial about our services in dealing with her Massachusetts flood damage:

“My parents’ basement flooded a few weeks ago and Nury from the Haverhill branch came and helped with the last part of the clean up. She even cleaned my parent's living room carpet and stairs. She did a superior job and we are very pleased.”

Did you find this blog because you’re dealing with a flood? Reach out to the Massachusetts storm damage cleanup and restoration experts at SERVPRO of Haverhill / Newburyport. We offer state-of-the-art technology to remediate storm, water, and mold damage in your home.