Keeping your Basement Dry in Spring

Spring Rains Rain on camera women with umbrella background

The advent of spring can make your basement susceptible to flooding. Rain isn’t the only culprit – dormant snow is a major cause of basement flooding during spring. Runoff from melting snow more readily enters your basement if the ground is frozen because the water can’t seep into the soil and may enter through foundational defects instead.

Here are some tips to prevent basement floods when spring arrives:

Check for Cracked Windows 

Runoff can enter through cracks in your basement windows. Spring’s warm days and cold nights can cause thermal stress cracks in your basement windows due to the different rates of expansion and contraction of the sections of glass. Cracks can be discovered by surveying the perimeter of the glass where most cracks start. 

Runoff can also enter through damaged caulking in the window frame. Inspect and re-caulk any cracks.

 Clean Your Rain Gutters 

Rain gutters direct runoff from the roof away from the foundation. 

If you haven’t cleaned the autumn leaves from your gutters they can cause clogs. Clogged gutters can’t keep runoff from flowing to the foundation walls, which causes gradual structural damage and increases seepage into your basement. The problem is exacerbated in Spring when melting snow from the roof can’t pass through clogged gutters. 

Prevent these by cleaning your gutters before the weather gets warm. Also check your gutter system to assure connections are water tight.

 You can also decrease chances of seepage by extending your downspouts 20 feet away from the foundation toward downward sloping terrain. 

Install Sump Pumps 

Poor drainage and melting snow can result in high water tables that reach above the basement floor and crawlspaces and lead to flooding. 

We can install sump pumps near your basement wall to drain infiltrating water. This requires drilling into your basement floor, so definitely a job for professionals. 

Install Backwater Valves 

Runoff from melting snow can cause overflow in poorly-designed municipal sewage systems, which causes sewage to seep into your basement. Backwater valves automatically close off your sewer line when there’s a backflow from the main sewer line.

Provincial building codes aren’t ubiquitously interpreted as requiring installation of backwater valves in newly-built homes. Thus, even if your home was built within the decade it may not have a backwater valve.

Check for Leaks in Your Sprinkler System

Once it’s warm enough to start watering your lawn again you should check for irrigation leaks. These leaks can saturate the ground when your sprinklers are running, leading to high water tables and basement flooding.

Doing routine maintenance like checking your basement windows, cleaning your gutters, and checking your sprinkler system for leaks can save you from costly repairs arising from foundational water damage. If you’re still having flooding problems call Ashworth Drainage for a free no obligation quote.  Remember, we do not ever require a deposit!