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Need Advice Basement flooding Insurance Claim being denied

Discussion in 'Homeowners Corner' started by prasads, Jan 7, 2010.

  1. boomertsfx

    boomertsfx Booyakasha!

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    agreed, don't ruin your rep with such a big reach ;)
     
  2. Roofer911

    Roofer911 New Member

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    I agree, who would ever think that a home could develop a major flood in the basement and show no signs of any damage any where upstairs, but it happens when water travels inside the walls! I am not a waterproofing contractor and don’t know all the terminologies of the business but I do know exactly how water can travel from one point to another. I have seen atleast 100 sump pumps fail in my 37 years experience due to being over worked from water resulting from ice dam.

    The only way to determine for sure if this a foundation problem or a leak originating from ice dam is to check for damaged insulation inside the walls by a moisture meter or infrared survey, this will detect the exact source of the problem. Any water coming into a home is not normal and should be fixed asap!


    Please read "Causes for Sump Pump Failure at: http://activerain.com/blogsview/140...owners-water-management-and-damage-prevention

    Lack of Maintenenca of Sump Pump
    http://www.therestorationresource.com/Water_Damage_What_Causes_Water_Damage
     
  3. boomertsfx

    boomertsfx Booyakasha!

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    hey I'm sure it happens, but to have your basement flood with hundreds/thousands of gallons of water from just the snow on your roof that you said could be traveling down the inside of your walls and into your finished basement without any sign of it isn't very likely.

    I'd say it's more likely the water from the snow melting outside on your property and flowing through the weeping tile system around your house and into your sump well and then the pump failing is what i would put my money on.

    But I'm not a pro, so... *shrug*
     
  4. Roofer911

    Roofer911 New Member

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    I'm not saying ice dam is the definate problem, I would need to see the home to know for certain. Thousands of gallons of water can settle in the basement from ice dam when the temperature is above freezing. At night when the temperature was in the teens the ice dam froze solid so the leak stopped. Next warm day the melting process start all over again.

    Also, I can't tell you how many homeowners and contractors as well disagree with my evaluation about ice dam but come the next heavy melting snow, no more basement leak after our repairs are done.
     
  5. hells_bells

    hells_bells New Member

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    So is the solution Heated gutters???
     
  6. Roofer911

    Roofer911 New Member

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    A heated gutter works well to keep the snow and ice out of the gutters but doesn’t stop the ice dam problem 2' up from the gutter line. Once the ice starts to melt along the gutter line water can travels up and under the roof shingles and leak inside the home.

    The best prevention is to make sure the attic space is properly ventilated which consists of intake and exhaust vents. The key is to have the attic space equivalent to the outside temperature.

    In Snow Belt areas Ice and Water Shield is always recommended which is a self-adhered membrane to be applied to the wood deck underneath the roof shingles 24" above the gutter line and adhered to the wood fascia behind the gutter. By having the Ice and Water Shield adhered to the fascia it prevents water from leaking through the sides of the spikes that are holding the gutter into place and water over-flowing the back of the gutter.
     
  7. boomertsfx

    boomertsfx Booyakasha!

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    on a side note, you mention attic vents... I just noticed (after 8 years of living here) that the builder, Ryland Homes, forgot to install a vent on the side of my house (end-unit townhouse) ... every other end-unit in the subdivision has a vent, but not mine.... good times!

    It would be a pain to put in after the fact seeing as it is 3 stories off the ground, but I guess there has been enough air flow from the eave vents to the ridge vents as we haven't had any moisture problems up there.

    No house-wrap either :(
     
  8. Roofer911

    Roofer911 New Member

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    A gable vent is most often used as an intake vent, if you an open soffit area like most homes in Broadlands have, you should be fine. Also, the wood sheathing underneath the ridge vent has to be cut 2" at each side or it will not ventilate properly. More than two inches can present a problem with leakage due to wind-driven rains.
     
  9. hells_bells

    hells_bells New Member

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    I didn't even know heated gutters existed...
     
  10. Roofer911

    Roofer911 New Member

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    The gutters are warmed by heated cables or tape that are placed within the gutter.
     

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