Flooded

[woodjin]

Well, I got back online after my house got flooded Saturday night, through Tuesday. I live in a bi-level. I have been in the house for over two years without the slightest hint of water getting in. Then, Saturday night it started and I spent every second till late tuesday, when the leaking finally stopped, bailing out water. It also didn't help that I was/am sick with a virus all at the same time. Due to my efforts I was able to keep the water at a minium height but I am concerned about mold now.

The down stairs are a living area complete with my studio so it was real frantic. A real nightmare. It was a seeping situation where the water came from below the base boards in six different locations around the perimeter of the house.

Anyway, thought I'd share my misery, just looking for sympathy.

Jeff

 

[ecampbell]

Jeff, your place doesn't look that low, do you have a drainage or gutter problem?

 

[piker56]

Jeff,
The ground water in my area is the highest I've seen it, and we've been in our house 24 years. The wind on Saturday snapped a few fence posts. I pulled what was left of the posts out of the ground Monday night to replace them, and as of last night the holes were still half filled with water. My sump pump in the crawl space is running almost constantly, it's the first time it's run in years. My neighbors pump burnt out and he didn't realize it until Wednesday night when he found his crawl space flooded with about 18" of water.
Greg

 

[46er]

I had to put the sump pump to work for only the 2nd time in 22 years. Fortunately I had it going soon enough to avoid a wet basement. The first time was no fun. Many neighbors are still pumping out. We are near Mill Creek that feeds into the Toms River. The river flow levels were the highest I have ever seen, around 2200cfs.

 

[Teegate]

Sorry about your problem Jeff. Since I know where your house is I am surprised that it occurred.


GUy

 

[bobpbx]

Jeff, this saved my butt Sunday Nite.

http://www.basementwatchdog.com/battery_backup_sump_pump.htm

I had my main pump cycling every 18 seconds even with the 2 submersible pumps I threw in the hole with it. When the power went out for an hour Monday morning the battery-operated one took over and was frantically pumping it out with that big battery! After the December Storm I had a bad feeling so put this battery one in 4 weeks ago.

 

[bobpbx]

PS: Next time you are sick and trying to do that, please call me. I'll help you if I can.

 

[Boyd]

Jeff, this saved my butt Sunday Nite.

http://www.basementwatchdog.com/battery_backup_sump_pump.htm

Your luck was better than mine. When I had the house in upstate NY, basement flooding was a real problem. Since nobody was in the house most of the year, I got one of those pumps as a backup for the regular one just in case. A couple months later I went up for a visit and the basement was flooded. Both the regular and battery powered pumps were burned out.

My heart goes out to everyone with flooding problems. I see lots of flooded property everywhere, and am sure that most of the homeowners never dreamed it would happen to them. After my experiences in several houses, I am of the opinion that rooms below ground level are not a good idea...

 

[woodjin]

Jeff, your place doesn't look that low, do you have a drainage or gutter problem?

No, the gutters are good. The only problem is I get all the run off from my neighbor's house which has been graded very high. The run off is still aways from my house but must contribute to higher ground water levels. The leak didn't come from surface water at all. It came from the high ground water level...seeping in around the base board.

thanks for all your sympathy. I am going to arrange everything down there now for "quick escape" should the problem occur again.

Jeff

 

[46er]

I am going to arrange everything down there now for "quick escape" should the problem occur again.

Jeff

Jeff, if you have a utility room or closet on that floor, consider putting in a sump pump and water warning device. They are not difficult to install, get the largest capacity you can and have it drain far from your home, the street is best if you have storm drains in them. The water warning device was the best thing I installed as it gives me plentty of warning that water was present so I could get the sump hooked up. If your sheetrock became wet, I would have someone come in and check it after things dry out for mold, running fans would help the dryng process and one of those carpet cleaning machines should help vacuum dry any carpeting if it isn't ruined.. Best wishes.

 

[Spung-Man]

Those who Ignore History are Doomed to Repeat It

sorry, technical difficulties

 

[Spung-Man]

Those who Ignore History are Doomed to Repeat It

Jeff,

You, too, have my sympathies. There's hardly a dry basement in my area. In the past, basements frequently flooded on even seemingly high ground. I post this observation so that others are made aware of this effect.

It's only going to get worse as we allow and even encourage development to occur on even more marginal ground. As wetlands dry, they become buildable. We no longer recognize land once too wet for development as problematic. But what happens if precipitation increases and historic wetlands reappear? We must at least consider the scenario during land-use planning. Even if wetlands desiccate for whatever reason, it is foolish to build upon their carcasses. For example, Pitch Pine Lowland is touted by this municipality's planning and zoning board as perfectly buildable land.

Figure 1 Three views of the Comar Redevelopment Area, Buena, NJ, a NJDCA and Township funded project. The intersection of Pine Road and US Route 40 is marked by a red arrow on each insert.

Figure 2 A close-up of high groundwater conditions at the intersection of Pine Road and US Route 40 (red arrows in Figure 1), the proposed main entrance to Comar Place.

 

[Boyd]

Spungman: I have driven past that flooded road on Rt 40 in your "Comar" picture a number of times recently, and recognized the location from earlier photos that you posted. Great location for a housing development... sheesh!

 

[Spung-Man]

Here’s a Sampling of Springtime Vignettes, Richland Village:

Figure 1 A cripple bisects Richland’s largest parcel “in need of redevelopment,” yet no wetlands appear on Township plans.

Figure 2 The head of cripple in Richland Village. The Township just approved a new 8,400 sq. ft. structure just beyond the chicken coop on right.

Figure 3 More land in need of redevelopment within Richland Village, intersection of Moody and Main Avenues.

These properties have remained vacant over the last 125-years for good reason.

 

[MarkBNJ]

It's all about tax revenue, isn't it? A lot of these municipalities are getting low on undeveloped buildable land, so the only way for the politicians to keep the tax base growing is to create some more.

 

[Spung-Man]

Yes Mark,
Redevelopment may benefit a politician’s needs, but at what cost to the local cultural, natural, and economic environment? The pressure to develop the Pinelands is exogenous, inspired by highly paid lobbyists and their shadow organizations like the League of Municipalities.

 

[Kevinhooa]

Flooding

Yeah, this years rain and snow has really made some wet woods. It is incredible to see just how flooded everything really is. I had a day off from work two mondays ago and went out after the storm. The photos I took can be found here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinhooa/sets/72157623547529921/

Weymouth was pretty crazy looking.