Storm came through, flooded basement, large tree down

Daox · 06-29-17, 02:17 PM

We had a storm roll through last night. It would be interesting to hear how high of wind speeds we had, because there was a good amount of damage done around the neighborhood. I came home from church to find the power out. So, I go and check and sure enough the basement got a good start on flooding. It was probably 4 inches or so of water. I tried to rig up a deep cycle battery system with a power inverter I have. I've done this before, but apparently the inverter is shot. It would arc as soon as I hooked up 12V power to it, and it blew the fuses. So, I called up my in laws and borrowed their generator. It ran the sump pump until it emptied the crock. This took about an hour, and then I went to bed. The rain had died down and it was after midnight at that point. I figured I would be waking up to a few inches of water in the basement again, and I was right. I fired up the generator again and let it pump the water out. This time it only took about a half hour. I also plugged in the fridge to cool it back down. Today about mid morning I get a text from my wife that the power was back on. Yay!

This is the 3rd time the basement has flooded in 9 years now. I'm really thinking I should come up with something to deal with it... Ideas are welcome!

Now, it is clean up day when I get home. This is what I'll be chopping up tonight. Thankfully, it didn't do too much damage. The gutter is obviously going to be a bit mangled, and it ripped off some drip lip, but I don't think there is any structural damage. The windows are fine.

pinballlooking · 06-29-17, 02:32 PM

That is a pretty big tree down. There is enough work to be done without Mother Nature creating more.

Is your basement finished?

Daox · 06-29-17, 02:38 PM

Nope, its much more akin to a dungeon.

Its an old field stone basement. After the first flooding, I moved everything up a few inches off the floor. So, no real harm done. I'm mainly only worried about soaking the furnace (again). I did that once and that is a bit worry some in spring when everything is melting, but its still really cold out!

pinballlooking · 06-29-17, 02:50 PM

Glad it did not mess up a bunch of belongings. It is still a pain to deal with.

Daox · 07-03-17, 10:45 AM

I got the family out to help on Saturday with the tree clean up. It was a larger job than I anticipated and really glad to have the extra help. There were 6 of us working and we started around 8 am, and got done cleaning up by 3 pm.

My cousin going at it with the saw.

Here is the damage. It doesn't appear to be too bad. I haven't crawled up there yet to examine it closely though.

MetroMPG · 07-03-17, 10:49 AM

How many saws did you have going?

Bummer about the eaves troughs. (To Canadians, "gutters" are the things that run along the sides of paved roads.

)

Daox · 07-03-17, 10:58 AM

The most we had running at once was 3. Most were electrics which are really nice IMO. They don't make much noise and with a sharp blade go through the wood just fine. My cousin had the larger gas saw.

06-29-17, 02:17 PM	#1
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Storm came through, flooded basement, large tree down We had a storm roll through last night. It would be interesting to hear how high of wind speeds we had, because there was a good amount of damage done around the neighborhood. I came home from church to find the power out. So, I go and check and sure enough the basement got a good start on flooding. It was probably 4 inches or so of water. I tried to rig up a deep cycle battery system with a power inverter I have. I've done this before, but apparently the inverter is shot. It would arc as soon as I hooked up 12V power to it, and it blew the fuses. So, I called up my in laws and borrowed their generator. It ran the sump pump until it emptied the crock. This took about an hour, and then I went to bed. The rain had died down and it was after midnight at that point. I figured I would be waking up to a few inches of water in the basement again, and I was right. I fired up the generator again and let it pump the water out. This time it only took about a half hour. I also plugged in the fridge to cool it back down. Today about mid morning I get a text from my wife that the power was back on. Yay! This is the 3rd time the basement has flooded in 9 years now. I'm really thinking I should come up with something to deal with it... Ideas are welcome! Now, it is clean up day when I get home. This is what I'll be chopping up tonight. Thankfully, it didn't do too much damage. The gutter is obviously going to be a bit mangled, and it ripped off some drip lip, but I don't think there is any structural damage. The windows are fine. Attached Thumbnails __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-29-17, 02:32 PM	#2
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	That is a pretty big tree down. There is enough work to be done without Mother Nature creating more. Is your basement finished? __________________ Current project Aquaponics system , Passive Solar Greenhouse build To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Solar Install 12.5 Kwh- To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Mini Split installs - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. EV Chevy Volt - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-29-17, 02:38 PM	#3
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Nope, its much more akin to a dungeon. Its an old field stone basement. After the first flooding, I moved everything up a few inches off the floor. So, no real harm done. I'm mainly only worried about soaking the furnace (again). I did that once and that is a bit worry some in spring when everything is melting, but its still really cold out! __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-29-17, 02:50 PM	#4
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	Glad it did not mess up a bunch of belongings. It is still a pain to deal with. __________________ Current project Aquaponics system , Passive Solar Greenhouse build To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Solar Install 12.5 Kwh- To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Mini Split installs - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. EV Chevy Volt - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

07-03-17, 10:45 AM	#5
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	I got the family out to help on Saturday with the tree clean up. It was a larger job than I anticipated and really glad to have the extra help. There were 6 of us working and we started around 8 am, and got done cleaning up by 3 pm. My cousin going at it with the saw. Here is the damage. It doesn't appear to be too bad. I haven't crawled up there yet to examine it closely though. Attached Thumbnails __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

07-03-17, 10:49 AM	#6
MetroMPG Infrequent noob Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: 1000 Islands region, Ontario, Canada Posts: 402 Thanks: 37 Thanked 20 Times in 19 Posts	How many saws did you have going? Bummer about the eaves troughs. (To Canadians, "gutters" are the things that run along the sides of paved roads. ) __________________ . To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

07-03-17, 10:58 AM	#7
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	The most we had running at once was 3. Most were electrics which are really nice IMO. They don't make much noise and with a sharp blade go through the wood just fine. My cousin had the larger gas saw. __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.