When I was complaining about the flooding that recently took place here in GA…and in particular, our own home…I never expected such an outpouring of encouragement. Your kind words got us through it peeps. So thank you from the bottoms of our hearts.
Overall – we had very little damage because of the flood. But I thought I would share with you what we did to counterattack the onslaught of dirty water that decided to take up residence in our newly finished basement. Our situation started with Jeremy discovering that the water had entered the space and was creeping along under the hardwood boards. When he stepped into our workroom – SLOSH. It was about 1/2″ of water. Since this area of the basement was one that we had been using for storage and was currently NOT watersealed…I figure that our experience is closest to what normally goes down when a flood strikes.
First – my boyfriend broke out the shopvac and some towels for soaking. After he got the majority of the water up in the lower concrete-floor area, it was time to break out the fans and remove the rugs, furniture and any other item that might get damaged from water. By four o’clock in the afternoon, we both assumed the worse was over.
Around five pm, I got home and found Jeremy in panic-mode. Apparently, he found out that the water was not coming in the back door (like we had previously assumed) but through a crack in the cinder-block wall in the workroom area. I ran inside and immediately started getting buckets out (mine were drink pails – but hey, they worked!) to squeeze the sopping wet towels into. Both my dad and Torrey were there to help too. Believe me, we couldn’t have done it alone!
So four hours later, we identified the area where we believe the water was making the grand entrance.
A semi-circle of playsand bags helped ensure that any future leakage (heehee…I said ‘leakage’) would be contained. They were laid in a brick-like pattern to cover the seams for maximum flood-water-containage.
Thankfully my boyfriend had moved the majority of his tools outta the workroom and into our garage during the previous weekend. So the damage-causing-water was far-far-away from our ‘home-improvement-station’. The garage also took shape as a rug-drying station. We recommend that you dry rugs over a couple of saw-horses or some chairs…do not hang the rugs from a rope that you attached to the garage-door-track. It won’t be good. We speak from experience.
In the end, minimal damage ensued. A couple of our unfinished baseboards took a hit. Thankfully – we hadn’t invested the time yet to finish them up.
And our newly laid flooring…well, it definitely received a little wrinkle-treatment. Now it looks a little more rustic than chic. But hey – that’s what area rugs are for…right?!?!
Overall – our underwater experience was no biggie. I even told my boyfriend that it was just good practice for the future (very, very future) day when I go into labor. It was God preparing him for when my water breaks. Either that or when we have kids – and everything gets ruined anyway 🙂
So – in review, it is a good idea to water seal your basement…all of it. And definitely have a few things on hand – just in case a minor flood comes your way such as:
- shop-vac
- buckets (or drink pails)
- old towels
- sandbags
- fans
- dehumidifier
For a few tips on how to waterseal your basement – check out this post. And if you have anything you think is oh-so-necessary for a minor flooding incident, let us know by leaving it in the comment section. Otherwise – stay high and dry 🙂
I’m glad it wasn’t any worse than it was. We have had flooding before and it is not fun. Way to think on your toes with those drink pails!
“practice for the future (very, very future) day when I go into labor.”
I feel as if I missed an announcement of some sort…
Phew….I am glad that was all that happened for you! I saw a man on the news carrying his two kitties out of his flooded home and it broke my heart. Did you have other friends or neighbors with worse problems?
Hi Nicole –
No news to announce – just like to make jokes to get the boyfriend to squirm 🙂 I will definitely let you know when I get sperminated.
Danielle darling – actually a bunch of friends had many issues – everything from a collapsed basement wall to trees falling on their house to being completely stuck in their homes because of flooding waters. Many people had damaged vehicles, completely submerged homes and even some deaths. I even heard that our Governor declared GA in a state of disaster.
Thanks for your concern guys – and don’t forget to continue to give little prayer shoutouts for those people that are still suffering!
XO – Katie
Wanna know the number one reason why I love Katie Bower? Your positive attitude. So inspiring. So glad things are almost back to normal, but still thinking of you and Jeremy.
Wow, I’m glad your damage was relatively minor. Will you have to do anything special to dry the floorboards or the slab so that you don’t get mold or mildew? Or will they dry (even underneath) on their own?
Been thinking of you – saw GA in the news, and I live in WA! Glad things went as well as they did, but still really sorry you had to go through that. No fun at all, esp. with your beautifully finished basement!
P.S. Your new word, “sperminated” definitely made my list of Top 10 most disgusting words – ewwww!!!!
so sorry you had any damage at all, but you have a great attitude by not dwelling on it and knowing it could have been worse!
So glad you made it through okay. It was great what you wrote about the wrinkles in the floor being rustic and how you can cover them. I think it’s so easy get worked up over the little things and forget the big picture. I hope others in your area are mopping up the mess and getting through too.
okay, I’m behind! so glad you guys are okay!
I’m glad that you guys were okay. I did’nt realize how bad the ran was until I turned on the news. And did you see the news about the 2 year old? Wow it’s so sad. It make you treasure the simple things even more. My heart goes out to everyone who was affected by this weather. I heard that this was the worst flooding we’ve had in a long long time.
Katie you are so positive and I am so glad you new basement is no totally destroyed. If you haven’t already done so you should still tell your insurance company in case something happens later on (mold, floor coming up) When we had our water problem with a broken water heater, we used the shop vac and towels to but the insurance co sent in servicemaster with some huge ass dehumidifiers to ensure no mold at all. It seemed a little excessive but we were under contract to sell our condo and did not need it to fall through so we did whatever we could to ensure the best.
sump pumps and an extra water hose are really handy, it can be a small one–when our house started flooding here in TX bc of rain, it was coming in through our sliding doors. my husband used the landscaping stones to build a sort of barricade and then just hooked up the sump pump with the water hose on it to allow the water to run down the yard. we also used bags of soil because it’s just what we had. Good luck to you both!
Glad to hear that you got your flooding under control..we had flooding in our basement last winter and had to fork out the $$ to install a sump pump! Ugh!
And maybe I’m confused, but you’re married, right? Why do you call your husband your boyfriend? Maybe I’m mistaken, but I don’t get it!
Am loving how you are keeping your chin up. You go girl!
oh no….glad that you guys have a positive attitude towards it. If it were me, I know I would have been bi-atching about it!
Hi Rebecca – Actually that is one of the questions that I get asked the most…for a full explanation – you can check out this post:
http://allbowerpower.wordpress.com/2008/09/30/letter-to-my-boyfriend/
Hope this helps clear up the confusion!
XO – Katie
Hey Katie! Thanks for sharing your story. We have had several incidents with flooding in our basement, and I would highly recommend calling a restoration company (perhaps your insurance company first to see if they will pay for it; our company has paid several times) to get the giant dehumidifier to ensure you do not get mold. Although it may look and feel dry to you, often times the drywall does not dry uniformly, and even if it is dry on the bottom, it can be wet a few feet up from that point. I am very interested to hear how your wood flooring weathers once it dries out. We are refinishing our basement for the second time, and I am leaning towards using wood floors. Good luck!
I’m so glad the damage done was minimal. I was worried about y’all!
Oh sweetie! Way to keep your cool and composure. I would have been running around pulling my hair out. I’m glad your beautiful basement wasn’t too affected. I would have hiked my arse down there myself to help you bail out the water, seriously.
What a relief the damage was minimal. I’m so relived to hear that you were able to get all your valuables out in time!
Will your home owners insurance not help over the wrinkley floors?
run that dehumidifier day and night for a while. you won’t beleive how long it takes to suck out all that water. i also reccomend a product called dry-loc. you paint it one the concrete walls after you feel your area is pretty dry and you have repaired any cracks, it works wonders! we used it on our lower level after revealing a very water damages wall while removing fake brick paneling…don’t ask