April Showers Bring May Flowers

3/11/2019 (Permalink)

April showers bring May flowers was a phrase I heard growing up.The month of April would be an oversaturated event every year and the April rain served its purpose well with the rapid bloom of flowers planted a few weeks before, the lawn being revived back to its green glow after winter had turned it brown and the budding of the trees along the neighborhood streets. April showers had seemed to create a magical, colorful and new world every year as a child.

April showers was this marvelous event that helped usher in the spring blooms but one thing I failed to hear growing up was the other events created by the heavy rains. No one mentioned the flooded basements, over saturated yards which contributed to trees falling when they had no stable ground to hold steadfast to or the leaky roofs that had occurred from the freezing and thawing of ice and water between the shingles of the roof. I am sure it had to do with my young and naive mind not being able to deal with adult responsibility but that has definitely changed now. What can be done to prevent damages from happening to homes with the spring thaw?

• Make sure gutters are clear of any debris. Clean gutters at least twice a year.
• Rain spouts should be attached to downspouts that are directed away from the foundation of the house.
• If there is large puddles of water in your yard the installation of a dry creek bed, a french drain or other drain system could be the answer.
• If you are not confident in your ability to create a dry creek bed or one of the drains you can watch a DIY video or hire an experienced landscaper to do the work properly.
• When the first heavy rain occurs inspect for any leaks , water dripping would be the most obvious sign of a leaky roof but also keep your eye out for wet spots in your ceiling and if not caught in time the wet spots will turn brown. Do not hesitate in calling in a roofing professional, these problems do not go away on their own and will only get worse.

If water has saturated the interior of your home call us at SERVPRO of White Plains our trained and certified technicians will extract any standing water and set up proper drying equipment to help get your home back to “Like it never even happened." We are available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Call us at 914-684-1560 or toll free at 800-967-6663.