Springtime is one of the worst times for flooding, and any water damage restoration company in Surrey will spend a lot of time pumping water out of people’s basements and garages.  A flooded garage can cause a lot of damage to anything stored inside, plus if the garage is attached to your home, there’s a high chance the flooding could spread.

Fortunately, there are ways to prevent garage flooding or lessen the damage if it happens.  Here are some tips from our experienced team.

Five Ways to Minimize Flooding in Your Garage

1. Maintain the weather-strip on your garage door

Nearly all garage doors have a small rubber strip on their bottom edge, which is specifically designed to seal the bottom of the door against water.  However, over time this strip can easily become brittle, cracked, or fall off entirely – removing that protection. Maintaining that weather-strip can prevent significant losses.

2. Examine your garage foundation for cracks

One of the worst ways that floodwater can damage a building is by seeping into the foundation, and this happens when the foundation is cracked.  You should periodically survey the outside of your garage, looking for any cracks in the foundation’s exterior that might allow water in.

3. Improve drainage around the garage 

When it rains, does the water tend to flow towards your buildings, or away from them?  Your landscaping should include drainage features that encourage waters to flow away from your home and garage.  They cost a bit to install, but if they prevent even a single flood, they’ll more than pay for themselves.

4. Use sandbags to hold back the water

Is your garage in a situation where it’s unavoidably going to attract water, such as being at the bottom of a slope?  A wall of sandbags can do a lot to prevent water from getting through to the building itself.

5. Consider installing flood vents

In a situation where water flowing towards or into your garage is simply unavoidable, the final option are flood vents.  These are drainage holes in the walls of your garage.  The basic idea is, if you can’t stop the water, then at least encourage it to keep flowing out rather than pooling.

Fight Water Damage with Malkin Cleaners

Malkin Cleaners has been the go-to water damage restoration company in Surrey since 1923!  If you ever have a flooding emergency, call us immediately for fast cleanup!