Rainy weather is a great time to check for leaks.
Yards are usually over-watered to begin with, then you add in the deluge we’ve had over the last few weeks and you’re going to find some problems.
For those who don’t mind tilling your own soil, you can fix exterior water issues with common sense, and a few weekends of sweat equity; 1. Gutters, 2. Add french drains, 3. Drainage/slope away from the house, 4. Move plants and sprinklers away from the house.
What about fixing the damage inside?
Here are some of my best vendor referrals:
Remediation – for moisture testing and removing the damaged material, contact Roni Daher at 911 Restoration of San Diego at 1-888.243.6653 or
http://www.facebook.com/pages/911-Restoration-of-San-Diego/156924044317952
Restoration – drywall, flooring, painting, elec/plumb, roofing, etc., contact general contractor Greg Thomas and Brian Carter at Thomas Construction tcbuilt@gmail.com or (760) 427-6925. (they did the Del Mar Heights bathroom remodel here).
Roni does the rebuilds too, but his specialty is remediation.
The “after” version of the Del Mar Heights bathroom remodel was linked above.
Here is the “Before” version, the JtR anti-OSHA demo tapes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zFuSP_9dng&NR=1
Somebody asked about this one the other day:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LTirsWGVzQ
It’s the one where they tried to flip a short-sale, but got foreclosed instead.
The trustee sale amount was $471,336 in 11/2009, and no takers. A month later the bank sold it for $601,000 VA.
These are some of the best JtR posts — red flags to look for, how to fix stuff…
good video jim. poor drainage is all too common these days. Most subdivisions have the back yard sloped toward the front street to collect storm water.If you have water sitting around in clay soils it can raise h@ll on a foundation.
I have seen where they run steel cables through the foundation with adjustment bolts on the end.
What do you think of some cities charging people for the amount of drainage created from their homes?
Great info Jim.
We’re on a slight slope and during heavy rainstorms about a year ago we had a FOOT of water against the side of our house! Hubby went out in pouring rain to dig a deep trench all along the property to get it to drain. We installed a “french drain” ourselves. Dig a trench and make sure its angled “downhill” away from the house, fill with landscape fabric, cover with as much gravel as it can hold, then fold fabric over that to keep out dirt, then cover with dirt (or with rocks to make it look like a dry river bed). Our house/yard would be a swamp right now if we hadn’t done that.
Yes! That was the house, Jim. I would love to know what that living room looks like after last month’s deluge….
We’ve installed a number of dry wells around our property to enhance drainage. Basically everywhere there is a rain gutter drop we put in a dry well beneath it. All the wells held up beatifically during the recent storms.
We thought the roof was leaking on our guesthouse. Called roofers to get quotes. Turns out it was a leaking pipe in the cealing. Pride of home ownership.
Steel cables running through foundation == post-tensioned concrete. Mostly for construction on expansive soils. (Sounds like “expensive” and they can be.) In some cases it’s actually better to keep your yard slightly wet to avoid shrinkage during the summer.
A lot of newer developments are built on expansive soils. Huge problem in TX and AZ, not quite as much in CA. Those areas were too costly to build on when there were alternatives … now that all the alternative sites have been developed, you gotta spend a few extra bucks for stabilization or fancy foundations. Or … just not and skip town before the lawsuits hit.
Another great video from JtR University.