There is not much better than an ice cold glass of water on a hot summer day.
Most everyone knows that life wouldn’t be happening without water.
Most of our environment is what it is because of water.
Water does a LOT of good.
Water can also be mischievous.
A large percentage of house related structural issues are a direct result of water-related issues.
Too much water . . .
Natural weather patterns can wreak havoc on even the best human designed water flow systems – creeks, rivers, dams, levies, culverts, storm drains, roofs . . . Mother Nature does as she pleases and can overwhelm just about any water barrier we humans can construct. Too much water will go over, under, around, through just about any obstacle. When there’s too much, we must adapt or move.
Not enough water . . .
Natural weather patterns wreak just as much havoc with an extended drought. The earth dries up and contracts leaving otherwise stable foundations in precarious conditions. Cracks and shifting happen . . . and these droughts can alternate in some areas with “too much water” creating much confusion . . . yet it’s still about water.
Just the right amount of water but not managed well . . .
If there’s water in your crawl space or basement (where there really shouldn’t be water), the fix is seldom in the crawl space . . . sure, check out the walls to discover any portals for water intrusion from the outside – odds are good , you’ll find plenty, and the water will always find them as long as your house is the “obstacle” I mention in the “too much water” paragraph above. So . . . the fix for most water-related issues WRT a house have to do with “managing the flow” by diverting the water and letting it flow naturally DOWN stream.
so . . . Start at the top (source) of the water.
You can’t change the weather
ROOF – Be sure that the roof design doesn’t leak water inside the house – has proper flashings and routes the water strategically to a gutter system without overwhelming the system – over-flowing gutters can deliver water directly to to basement.
GUTTERS – If you have a big roof, have big gutters – We had water issues that we fixed immediately simply by replacing 4″ gutters with 6″ gutters. That was about a $1,000 expense that magically transformed our wet crawl space into a dry one. Another trick . . . Downspout extensions – For $10 per downspout, get at least a 10 foot plastic extension to divert the water out of the downspout downhill away from the house.
GRADING – Walk around your house during a heavy rain and observe where the water is going . . . any ponding? be sure that the dirt along the edges of your foundation slopes down and any ponding areas have ways to drain.
So . . . It’s all about water – too much – too little – proper management 🙂
When we sell a house, we always recommend a home inspection . . . and on every home inspection, we see issues arise relating to water. The good news is that they are almost ALL relatively easily (and inexpensively) handled with a bit of know-how and creativity.
Of course as your resource for all things real estate, I and all of our Pareto Realty team stand poised and ready to help you solve any house related issues . . . beginning with helping you Buy or Sell successfully. Just give us a ring 🙂
Happy Monday!
Best,
b