How to keep water out of your basement in a rain storm

A rain gutter downspout with water coming out from the side.

As rain continues to fall in Edmonton some residents and homeowners are starting to experience flooding in their basements.

The president of a local foundation repair company says most people put off pricey repairs on their basements until it’s too late.

“It’s an expense that a lot of people don’t want to take on at this particular point in time in their life. When it’s not leaking it’s easy to put things off, but when it starts to leak everybody’s in a panic and needs it done yesterday,” Todd Ivanachko of Shield Foundation Repair Inc. told CTV News Edmonton on Tuesday.

If water does start coming in, it can take time to get a repair person to your home.

“We’re fielding about 200 calls a day, and it’s a big impact to take on,” he said.

“You hear the panic in people’s voices and they want you there in the next hour and it’s not physically possible.”

He says if you’re experiencing flooding there are some steps you can take on your own before a professional arrives.

“Move your personal belongings away from the problem area as good as you can, and try and contain the water with towels and bed sheets and whatever you’ve got.”

“Roll back your carpet in the underlay, because if you’ve got a finished basement, the underlay as it gets wet will act like a sponge, and it’ll start to wick things further into your basement.”

If you aren’t currently experiencing flooding there are steps you can take to prevent it.

“Check [your] sump pumps, make sure that they’re functioning properly, making sure that their discharge hoses are on, moving the water away from the foundation,” he advised.

“You’re supposed to actually service it every year and make sure it’s functioning, because the concept of the sump pump is to move the weeping tile water away from your house and if it fails then your water can’t drain away from the outside of the house.”

He also says homeowners who have a back water valve should check to make sure there’s no sediment or other buildup blocking the line.

“We’ve gone through two years of drought, so if there’s any sediment it can shut that thing and prevent your weeping tile from draining.”

Regularly cleaning your eavestroughs and ensuring your downspouts are functioning is another way to prevent water from getting indoors.

“Making sure your downspouts are actually on moving water away from the house and not just spilling it next to the foundation,” he said.

“Grading is probably the most important thing that you can do around the house for preventative maintenance. Making sure that you got a positive slope moving the water away from the house rather than allowing all this surface water to come towards your house, because you can overwhelm the weeping tile system.”

He also suggests making sure window wells are kept free from leaf and other debris from organic matter.

“Sometimes you’ll see trees growing out of those things.”

“A window well can fill with water, and it’ll look like a goldfish tank in no time, and the amount of water that can come into a basement is phenomenal in hours.”

Rainy conditions are expected to continue in the Edmonton area until the weekend.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Geoff Hastings