We hope you’ve never had to experience a basement flood, but if you have, you know how devastating it can be. We often store valuables in our basements, and it can be a huge loss when an unexpected floods damage the valuables, floors, carpets, and walls in our basement. If you experience a basement flood, here is what you should do about it.
Get valuables out.
The most important thing to do when your basement floods is to get the most valuable items out of the standing water. If you have any important documents that have gotten wet, put them in the freezer to stop mildew from forming until you can dry them out later. Be aware of any electrical lines that may be in the water, as these can cause electrocution. Remove the most important things that need to be saved and put them in a dry location to start drying out.
Remove the water.
Once you have removed the most important items, the next step is to start removing the water. Depending on how much water has accumulated, this is going to be a different process on a case by case basis. If you have drywall and insulation installed, we recommend contacting a professional mold remediation company. You could also rent some professional-grade water vacuums, fans, and dehumidifiers. During this process, you will want to dispose of any items that cannot be salvaged. Depending on the amount of water and the length of time the area is wet, you may need to rip out carpets and padding.
Clean it up.
Once you have removed as much water as possible and dried out the space, you will want to clean the area. Scrub any non-carpeted flooring and walls, and clean up items that were able to be salvaged.
Prevent future floods.
Now that you’ve experienced a flood, we know you’ll never want to go through this again. Identify how the flood happened in the first place. If there are any leaks in your basement that caused the flood, you’ll want to have them repaired immediately. If your home is not equipped with a sump pump, a plumber can help determine if you can have one installed. Sump pumps detect excess water and pump it out and away from your home. Since it is common to lose power during a storm, it is best to have a sump pump that is battery operated or has a backup battery system, like the PumpSpy Backup Power System. Maybe you already have a sump pump, but it malfunctioned during a storm and that is what caused the flood. In that case, you can install the PumpSpy WiFi Battery Backup Sump Pump System, which works with your existing 120-Volt primary sump pump. It includes free monitoring, so PumpSpy will send you alerts about your sump pump malfunctioning BEFORE a flood happens.
Here at PumpSpy, we know how important it is to keep your basement dry. That’s why we created multiple sump pump solutions that can be used to prevent future floods in your basement; 1/2 HP Primary Pump, SmartPump, and SmartPump Combo System. You’ll receive free 24/7 monitoring in the PumpSpy app! For more information about PumpSpy’s innovative smart home sump pump technologies, call 1-833-PUMPSPY.
