A flood is one of the most terrifying experiences a homeowners can go through. The last thing they wish for when their house is locked up tight and everything starts to rain outside, that you walk into your home only in time realizes it’s flooded with standing water from floorboards all way up!
Standing puddles throughout any part of our houses are not just dangerous but costly too.
Why Would Water Come Up Through The Floor?
Here in Georgia and throughout the USA there are many homes that are on a slab or have a basement. Water can certainly leak up through these floors.
There are several reasons why water would be coming up through the floor.
- Excess rain – The soil near your home is water-soaked and this can lead to flooding in the basement. The ground becomes oversaturated with all that extra moisture, pushing on walls or porous floorboards until they give way under pressure from layers above them!
- House has no weeping tile installed – The weeping tile is a pipe that channels water from the ground and redirects it into another area. This could be your sewer, sump pit or even outside for you to use!
- Gutters are clogged – Yes, clogged gutters can definitely lead to flooding in your home. The water has to go somewhere and if the gutters are clogged the water can run down your walls or up through your floors and into your home.
- Broken sump pump – When you’re experiencing water in your basement, there’s a very good chance that the sump pump has burned out. This device is designed to take care of this problem by removing excess moisture and moving it elsewhere outside of our homes
- Poorly graded property – It’s important that the ground around your house slopes away from it. This helps to keep the water away from your home’s foundation.
- Foundation cracks – Water loves to find its way into cracks in concrete. It’s not just because of how absorbent these materials are, but also the channels that water can use when it gets through – which means more chances for leaks!
- Broken pipes – Pipes can corrode and crack and cause leaks. Or they could somehow be punctured by a home maintenance task or tree roots. Whatever the cause of the leak in the pipes – this could be the reason you are seeing the flood in your home.
- Leaking appliances – Lastly, the puddles of water you are seeing on your floor could be coming from appliances like your refrigerator, dishwasher or washing machine. Or even your water heater.
How Do I Find A Water Leak Under My Floor?
Here at Atlantis Plumbing, one of the tools we use is an ultrasonic leak detection tool. It’s an effective and non-invasive method of detecting water pipe leaks.
It is the use of a listening device to amplify the sound of water or air escaping from a pipe, valve or fitting. Basically there is a head set, an amplifier and a mini-subwoofer that picks up the sound.
How Do I Stop Water Coming Through My Floor?
Once you and/or your plumber have identified what issue(s) are causing the water that is coming up through your floor the next step then is to fix the problem areas.
This of course can be costly (or not) depending on what has to be corrected. It could include any of the following:
- Clearing and properly grading the property around your home
- Cleaning out the gutters and drain spouts
- Repairing leaking appliances
- Repairing foundation cracks
- Installing weeping tiles
- Repairing sump pump
- Locating and repairing or replacing broken pipes
Your plumber can help you identify what the problem(s) are that are causing this intrusion of water into your home.
If you have any questions about water leaks, call Atlantis Plumbing today at 770-443-8229. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.