Want to Beat Flood Season? Be Like This Guy and Build Your Own Dam
Want to Beat Flood Season? Be Like This Guy and Build Your Own Dam
Randy Wagner
Torrential rains have soaked parts of Texas over the past few weeks, leading to evacuations and severe flooding. But one Houston-area family found a way to stay safe and dry through some pretty innovative (albeit expensive) thinking.
Their secret? A two-and-a-half-foot-tall, 400-foot-long dam that was filled with water and installed along Randy Wagner‘s property late last month.
When the rain started to fall, Wagner knew he needed something to insulate his Rosharon home against the rising Brazos River, according to CBS affiliate KHOU11. His neighbors thought he was nuts.
“I was the crazy guy. Everybody was kinda going by, laughing at me,” he told the station. “But today, they are really impressed with this AquaDam.”
Before the floods began, Wagner drove to Louisiana and plunked down $8,300 on the AquaDam, according to the station. Then he waited. Despite an evacuation order, Wagner, his wife, and their two children stayed home while the water rose to 27 inches outside his property. His neighbors’ homes took on water, while his did not. (They live several miles away from the river.)
Sure, Wagner shelled out some big bucks for a preventive measure. But the superintendent of a local chemical plant says it was worth every penny.
“There was no damage to my home or my personal belongings,” Wagner, 48, told realtor.com®. “If my house had been flooded, I would have had to spend $150,000 to $200,000 just to [fix up] my home.”
Thousands of Texas residents’ homes were affected by the storm, according to Houston Public Media. President Barack Obama signed a disaster declaration for 12 Texas counties, including Wagner’s Brazoria County.
The Abbeville, LA–based AquaDam, which saved Wagner’s home, makes barriers that start at a foot tall and go all the way up to 16 feet, costing $6 to $495 a foot.
“It stops the water from inundating the homes and businesses,” Larry Campisi, president of the 30-year-old company, told realtor.com. “It basically is water fighting water.”
Affordable alternatives to safeguard your property
Not ready to drop thousands on your own personal dam? That’s OK—there are other steps you can take to beat the floods.
If you’re in a flood-prone area (or even if you’re not), you should use sealants to waterproof your home’s foundation, says Chicago-area architect John Hrivnak. But beware: Safeguarding the outside of the foundation is a bit trickier, he warns, as the dirt (or beloved flower beds) surrounding it will need to be dug up to apply the sealant below the ground.
Homeowners can also hire a specialist to dig a small trench in their basement foundations, just a couple of inches deep and a few inches wide.
“When the water does come in, it lands in that trench,” Hrivnak says. “Then the water goes into your sump pump … which forcefully pushes the water out of the basement.”
That reminds us: Get a sump pump! And a big one, too, to keep up with the water coming in. This will be your lifesaver in the event of rising waters. (The average cost of getting and installing a sump pump is around $1,000.)
Make sure to stock up on sandbags, and stack them at least a foot high. Use two or three bags at minimum.
And no matter what, have an exit strategy. Flooding is seriously scary stuff, and no matter how much you prepare, you may need to seek shelter elsewhere. Plan ahead so you know what to take with you and what you can leave behind.
The post Want to Beat Flood Season? Be Like This Guy and Build Your Own Dam appeared first on Real Estate News and Advice – realtor.com.
Source: Real Estate News and Advice – realtor.com » Real Estate News