Tips To Prevent Water Leaks

2/24/2020 (Permalink)

Being prepared

  With spring showers right around the corner, SERVPRO of East Evansville would like to share a few tips to help prevent water from entering your home uninvited. 

1. A major component from keeping unwanted moisture from your home is to keep your gutters clean and making sure the water is being diverted far enough away from the foundation of your home.  If it is not, water can easily make its way into your homes crawlspace, and if that goes untreated, the likeliness of microbial growth in your home increases dramatically, putting your health at risk. 
2. To follow up on the first tip, regularly check your sump pump in the crawlspace. It doesn’t take long for water to accumulate if the pump is not working properly.  Make sure to check the area immediately surrounding the pump, make sure the ejection hose is clear and lead far enough away from your home.
3. Knowing the integrity of your roof. A typical roof lifespan is roughly 5 years, after that, your shingles begin to degrade at a more rapid rate.  A sunburnt shingle can allow moisture from a heavy rain to penetrate to the wood and into your attic.  Once moisture enters your attic, you run the risk of your insulation becoming saturated, sometimes even soaking through and causing extensive drywall ceiling damage.  Fortunately, SERVPRO of East Evansville can help prevent this damage.  If you cannot get a roofer out to fix or replace your roof before a storm, SERVPRO of East Evansville can have technicians on location and place a tarp on the roof to keep water from entering your home. 
4. Make sure your siding is securely fastened to your home. Strong winds can unfasten your siding, especially over a long time.  If water gets behind your siding and becomes trapped, mold can begin to form as well as compromising the structural integrity of the wall. 

SERVPRO of East Evansville suggests performing an annual inspection of your home and keep the provided tips in mind.  By spending around an hour at the beginning of every season, you can prevent costly storm damage repairs.  Getting on the roof (or having a professional come and inspect if you aren’t comfortable with heights) you can ensure that water won’t make its way into your house through a loose or damaged shingle.  While up on the roof, or on a latter, you can take a quick look in the gutters to make sure water can flow to the downspouts. Checking the downspouts and making sure the water is flowing away from the house to keep water from entering the crawlspace.  Taking a quick look at the sump pump to make sure it isn’t clogged and that it is properly placed.  Finally, inspecting the siding to make confirm that strong winds haven’t unfastened your siding.

From everyone here at SERVPRO of East Evansville we wish you all a happy spring!