Where your home sits makes a big difference in its structural integrity, especially when it comes to water damage from flooding. Any home in a flood zone or close to water needs to be strategically designed and maintained to minimize water infiltration. How do you do that? One way is with house lifts!
Lifting a House
To flood-proof houses, you can add a lot of protective exterior systems, interior barriers, and drainage solutions. However, the best way to minimize flooding is by building or lifting your house to higher ground. That may not sound like a realistic situation, but a hydraulic house lift helps to reposition the home enough to minimize the risk of flood water getting into the structure.
No amount of waterproofing can keep a raging hurricane or coastal storm from penetrating a home that’s at a low level. Even a rapid melt in the springtime after a significant snowfall increases the risk of flooding. Entirely flood-proof homes are those that are designed higher, where there’s less risk of water not just striking the house’s foundation but penetrating it.
Lifting a house in a flood zone above the flood level provides added protection from storms. It minimizes the amount of water trying to penetrate the structure, and that ultimately can make the home safer, less at risk for significant damage, and less expensive to insure.
How Does a Hydraulic House Lift Work?
Raising the house above the flood level is a process that entails actually elevating the entire structure. There are various ways to do this, including placing the home on stilt-like structures as well as positioning the home on elevated, concrete foundations.
When elevated like this, the water surging from a storm passes under the home, allowing it to move quickly along its path and leaving the main living area safe and dry.
But how is this possible when you have steel beams, foundations, and other structures within the home that seemingly could shatter? A team of specialists handles the raising of a home. This typically involves the use of a hydraulic jack and steel beans.
The process can be done at any time, and some homes may need some updating and structural changes to make it possible. However, lifting a house in a flood zone is often worth the investment it takes to reach this point. The entire process keeps the house stable during the lift, minimizing any real risk of damage.
House Lifts During Home Construction to Prevent Flooding
Home construction is a process in and of itself. But, if you’re beginning the process of building a home on the shoreline or in a flood zone, you should consider lifting your house from the get-go. While a house lift can be executed at any time, building your home on an elevated foundation will save you the hassle of having to do this later. During this process, appliances, heating and cooling systems, and all other components must be lifted to ensure safety and minimize any damage involved in the process. Doing this during construction is simply easier to do.
The Value of Preventing Flooding
The investment in raising a home can seem like a big one, taking a significant amount of time, effort, and cost. Is it worth it? Preventing home water damage is nearly always worthwhile. There are several reasons for this:
- When it comes to the goal of preventing flooding, home construction elevations and hydraulic house lifts are the gold standard. There’s no more effective method to prevent water from entering a home.
- There is less risk of mold and mildew growth. One of the most worrisome impacts of flooding is mold development, which can cause numerous health complications. A house lift eliminates flooding damage, which is typically to blame for this type of damage.
- It protects and builds the value of a home. That’s specifically beneficial when it comes to selling in a flood zone. Having a floodproof home makes your property more desirable.
Let Our Team Help You to Get Your Home Lifted
A hydraulic house lift could be one of the most important investments you make. Let us talk to you about how we floodproof houses with house lifts and the expectations you should have throughout this process. By lifting a house in a flood zone, we can help protect the structural integrity of your property. Contact K.E. Braza for a quote.