Floating In Your Basement

As many people in southeast Michigan experienced last summer, there are three ways water can enter and damage your home:

1. Basement backup (usually through the floor drain)
2. Flood (as defined by FEMA)
3. Backup of stormwater over the foundation of the home

Insurance companies typically only insure the first cause above. If you have a sump pump then you won't be covered unless the sump pump suffers a complete mechanical failure. Where is the sledge hammer and what does a complete mechanical failure need to look like? 

It's important to know how much coverage you have for a basement backup. Without asking, you may only end up with $5,000 worth of coverage when the damage is tens of thousands. My house is a tri-level so my sump pump is on the same level as some of the most expensive things in my house.

Flood insurance is only provided through FEMA for flood zones. Let me tell you that with the stormwater problems we have in Michigan, many areas are being added to that list. A flood is defined by FEMA as something like the overflow of a body of water or a rare rapid accumulation of surface water that travels over the foundation of a home. Not up through the drains.

The last cause of water that could enter your home from outside is the backup of stormwater. I've found that many insurance professionals deny this third distinction exists. I call it a loophole. Stormwater can overwhelm a drain system and accumulate and rise up in the streets eventually flooding into your home. It's different from the above two causes because (1) it does not come up the drain in your "basement" and, (2) it is not a rare rapid accumulation of water.

I've personally seen this stormwater backup in front of my prior home in St Claire Shores. The street would flood and so would my yard. Water came in through/over the foundation and down my basement walls. An insurance company would most certainly deny a claim based on damage from this cause. Why? Water didn't back up through the floor drain and there was no flood. 

Precautions! 

Insist on specific broad coverage for water damage on your home owners policy. Hire a professional licensed plumber to assess the risk to your home and install back flow preventers and a standing pipe. These may not prevent water damage but will at least slow it down if it happens (i.e., a few inches of water in your basement vs a few feet). Don't store anything valuable on a basement floor. Use shelving and still don't store anything not worth risking damage on those shelves, depending on where you live!

It's important to find out how close you are to a water retention basin or drainage facility. If stormwater builds up too much gravity won't allow it down the pipes out to the rivers and lake. It backs up from there. Sometimes all the way into your local pipes and into your basement. Systems just are not designed to handle some of the harsh storms we are experiencing today.

Equally important is to find out if you live in an area with a combined system, a separated system, or you have your own septic field. The longer a community has been in existence in a suburban area, the more likely it has a combined system. Combined of what, you ask? Sanitary and stormwater run through the same pipes. Yep, if stormwater backs up, guess what's in that stormwater? Royal Oak residents are a prime example of people who get turds in their basements. Waterford, it's separate. Woo!

And I just have to say to all those parents who let their kids play in the flood water after the storm that I've seen on the news - your kids are playing in crap, people. 

Pure Michigan!