Renovation After Flooding: Helpful Tips for Remodeling Your Home After Water Damage

People can control many things. Nature is not one of them. Here you will learn remodeling tips for repairing your flooded home after a house flood.

Did you know that a lot of hurricanes devastated the United States?

After all, the past 30 years brought a lot of deadly storms like the infamous Hurricane Katrina. This storm’s classification is Category 3, and it resulted in $125 billion in damage.

These natural calamities can change the way you live. Your roof, even if you follow maintenance tips, can’t last if the storm is destructive enough.

However, life goes on and repairing your flooded home is always a must. This is easier said than done, though.

Do you find yourself in a similar situation? Do you need to renovate after a house flood? Read on and find out what you can do:

1. Renovate the Basement for the Better

The basement and crawl space often have problems when it comes to moisture. In most cases, the best time for renovations is after it gets flooded. If you don’t have the expertise to do it on your own, you can always ask a basement expert.

This helpful page can give you a list of flood insurance options in your location. With insurance, you can cover the cost of making a basement free from possible moisture. You can then install sump pumps, perimeter drainage tiles, and a French drain.

The combination of these can help in pumping away water from your house. The cost can differ depending on the kind of drainage system you want. Most perimeter drainage tiles can cost around $8,000 at the minimum.

You need to rip out the materials affected by flood damage. After that, you need to deodorize the area to get rid of the smell. If you have burst pipes from the flood, it’s a smaller issue that you can fix without problems.

2. Toughen Up Your Interior Walls

Your flooded home will most likely get damage from water due to its contaminants. After cleaning and deodorizing the framing, you need to get water-resistant replacements. Don’t opt for materials like fiberglass wall insulations that soak up water like sponges.

Instead, you need extruded polystyrene foam boards for insulation. Replace your drywall with a cement board since it doesn’t absorb water at all. What this means is that you don’t have to worry about mold infestations when the time comes.

You can use polyvinyl chloride-based boards for the baseboard while avoiding wood trim. This ensures that, while your carpet gets wet, your walls will stay dry. You can use waterproof paint to finish it off.

3. Stomp Out Poor Flooring

Calamities that involve water are always harmful to your flooring. After all, your carpeting will absorb large amounts of water, making it almost unusable. Remember, you can clean and dry it, but you still need new carpet pads.

Areas like your basement need special treatments since it’s below the ground. You need flooring materials that can handle the wetness better. But you need to be fast in renovating since water can damage even the toughest tiles if you let them sit for days.

Stay away from materials that get damaged by water easily. These materials include:

• Carpets

• Hardwoods

• Laminates

These materials aren’t great for areas ripe with moisture. Even light flooding can seriously damage these materials. You may want to consider raising your flooring off the concrete using rubber feet. This ensures that moisture can run under without affecting your actual flooring surfaces.

4. Fix Windows and Exterior Walls

After flooding, you need to check your windows and exterior walls. These might be the toughest parts of your home, but it doesn’t mean they’re not susceptible to damage. You never know, flying debris or tree limbs can do a lot of damage if the winds become violent enough.

If you’re in a hurricane-prone area, you need to be more careful with your choices. You need the hurricane-rated or wind-rated windows and doors as replacements. Always check with your city code to ensure you’re following the rules.

Check your house exterior for signs of significant damage. Solid brick exteriors are some of the best materials that resist damage from water and storm. For extra protection, you need to use waterproof bricks instead.

If you don’t use bricks, check for materials that resist the effects of winds. Vinyl siding and other similar materials can get torn off when hurricanes hit. Your best bet is stucco since it can withstand the harsh weather when maintained well.

5. Take Time to Do It Correctly

The most important thing to remember is to invest time and money to accomplish your renovation.

Use the highest-quality materials since it lasts for longer periods of time. That way, your chances of having to do these renovations will decrease in the future.

As always, don’t use products that absorb water. Do this even when the right materials cost a lot more. The peace of mind knowing that you won’t need to worry about water damage is worth the price.

You need to understand that disasters will make local contractors booked to the brim with repair orders.

Some people wait for half a year until they get their house repaired. Your renovation might not be on the top of the list, but with perseverance and skill, you might perform these repairs on your own.

 If you want priority, make sure to contact restoration experts in your area ahead of time. Do your research and know the right ones for your location. It’s especially important if you live in an area prone to disasters like storms and hurricanes.

Repairing Your Flooded Home is Easy!

No matter how much disaster strikes, preparedness is the key. Never lose hope whenever you need to get some renovations done. Repairing your flooded home should mean improving on its past shortcomings as well.

Take this opportunity to change your home for the better. Doing this ensures that the frequency of renovations decreases. After all, your home becomes more adapted to the extreme weather and thus sustains minimal damage.

Do you need tips on home improvement? Visit us now and check out our other guides. Try this one to learn about deals that shave off money from your home improvement project’s price tag.