Making your home flood resistant and resilient
Flood resistance measures add extra protection to your home to stop water entering it. There are various products available that will help you do this. They include:
| Pump and sump systems | A pump which sits below the ground floor to pump out water which enters through the ground. The pump removes water at a faster rate than it can enter. |
| Flood skirts/barriers | Barriers are erected around any potential inlet for water including windows, doors and air bricks. These are permanently fixed on to the building, but need to be pulled/slid into position and fixed there when there is the threat of flooding. |
| One-way valves | No-return valves can be fitted to water outlet pipes to prevent water backing up into the property in the event of a flood. |
| Water resistant sealants | These can include the use of silicone sealants around door and window frames, or anywhere where there may be small gaps which would let water in. And it also includes sealants that can be painted onto porous materials such as bricks and mortar to prevent water penetrating them. For floods deeper than a metre, you should allow water to enter the property to prevent any structural damage that could be caused by a build-up of water outside. |
Flood resilience measures can be taken by homeowners to minimise the damage caused to their properties by flood water. These include:
| Replacement of perishable materials | Some materials will be ruined beyond repair if subjected to flooding, whilst others can be saved. It is therefore possible to replace perishable materials with those that will withstand a flood. For example - replacing chipboard floors with concrete or treated timber, swapping carpet for tiles, and replacing gypsum plaster with lime or concrete render alternative. |
| Moving expensive electrical equipment out of harms way | Some items do not have to be housed on the ground floor and instead can be raised up out of harms way. For example, boilers can be moved to higher levels (for example upstairs) to reduce the possibility that they may be damaged in a flood. |
| Replace with plastic | Some kitchen and bathroom fittings can be made out of chipboard or other types of reconstituted wood. In the event of flooding these materials disintegrate. To avoid replacing fittings after each flood replace with plastic alternatives. Steel fittings are also suitable for kitchens. |
| Replace wooden frames | Wooden door and window frames will be saturated in a flood, and if not dried out correctly they can bow. Avoid these problems by replacing with plastic alternatives. This also applies to wooden skirting boards. |
| Raise electrical points | Electrical points can be raised above likely flood levels. |
| Use denser concrete screeds on concrete floors | Screeds can be damaged in floods and resistance can be improved by using a denser proprietary concrete screed. |
| Raise floor levels | This is not always possible, but if it is it can be useful to raise inside floor levels out of harms way. |
| Replace insulation | Mineral insulation rots after flooding, but it can be replaced with cell insulation which will survive a flood. |
| Protect joists | Wall joists can be protected by installing a chemical damp proof course below the joist level. This will limit water seeping upwards and causing more damage to the rest of the property. |
NHDHG9440 11.2009
