Evaluate Your Home For Flood Risks And Workarounds

Are you living in an area prone to flooding? Have you been there for a while, or do you have no idea about the flood risks? Flood area natives and unprepared occupants have the same sets of dangers, and it's helpful to know your risks. In addition to knowing the risks and having insurance, you need to have a plan for how to either fix the problem, move to somewhere safer, or some combination of the two. Here are a few flood area risk and mitigation points to help you understand your risks, avoid some risks, and work around the unavoidable or surprising moments:

Why Bother With Flood Insurance When Floods Are Rare?

For many people, flood insurance can feel like a tax for the distant, off-chance event that a historical flood will happen. Unfortunately, the human mind and the movement of history can throw off that perception.

Consider South Carolina, an east coast state that is known for hurricanes and the occasional floods. The occasional part is the most dangerous because several years can pass between floods and a decade or so between the biggest flood. 

A lot of new people can enter the housing and rental market in that time. Homeowners who lived through the worst floods have fewer excuses for not having insurance or knowing how to protect their investments, but children growing into fresh homeowners and renters or people moving into the state can live four or five years with flooding seeming like a myth.

When it comes to flooding being rare, are you sure of the facts? Are you questioning insurance because you've reviewed local charts and know the waterways in relation to historic rainfall, or is it because you personally haven't seen much flood water? Take the time to research your area, nearby areas, and figure out what it would take to lead to flooding.

Ahead of hurricane seasons or unseasonably long raining seasons, you may want to bring in flood insurance just in case. If not for major damage, then to handle the smaller, time-delayed problems such as wood rot and termites.

Understanding The Less Dramatic Flood Problems

Flood insurance isn't just for a totally submerged home, or for belongings that are swept away in violent torrents. There are a lot of issues that come from standing water of even a few inches over a few days.

What is the foundation of your home made of? Is wood involved in any of the home's structure? The first issue to be worried about is wood rot from water not only standing in deep puddles for longer than usual, but the underground soaking that you won't notice until your home starts leaning in strange places.

Or if wood dust starts flying around.

Even if your home isn't damaged by the water, keep in mind that some pests may retreat to your home because of its safety and strength. You could have an infestation of termites, roaches, spiders, wasps, or bees simply because the local biome has shifted just enough to make your home just as attractive as a really nice tree.

Mold can also become a problem if humidity levels remain high, and mold that can build up on the outside of your home may creep inside in ways that are hard to notice. Get flood insurance if your area may be prone to flooding or standing water, and contact an insurance professional for an inspection if you're not sure about your area's risks.