Flooded

[Pford75]

Just got back from a couple of weeks away with family over Christmas and New Year.....our cellar is currently under 1-2ft of water.

You may recall that I posted sometime last year regarding a well in our cellar (don't believe that to be the cause), but it does appear that the water in the cellar is ground water (no plumbing anywhere close)...not sure why it isn't draining away (unless the actual water table is up by more than 1.5 feet.

Anyway - the point of the post was not just to moan :lol:

I've contacted our insurers, who in turn have arranged for loss adjusters to visit. Looking for advice on what to avoid/ensure.....the floor supports are all timber (but with stone 'shoes') and unfortunately the water has risen above the 'shoes' and the supports are all sitting in water.

Similarly, the cellar walls are mostly just brick, but with some lime plastered....will this survive, or will it need to be replaced? Should I be worried about damage to the pointing? Obviously, I need to wait until it's drained, but I'm also aware that some loss adjusters may try to cut corners.

 

[biffvernon]

unless the actual water table is up by more than 1.5 feet.

Quite possible. Some parts of Britain have had more than twice the usual rainfall over the last few weeks.

 

[Zac]

Sorry to hear your news. Re the rising water table, we have a natural pond in our garden, summer months this year a small pool of mud, now a full blown pond with the occasional duck approx 1.5 - 2ft deep so very possible.

 

[Lime]

My commiserations to you.
About 50 years ago I lost my entire Hornby Dublo trainset (14 engines ) in a flooded cellar.
At the time the solution used by a plumber asked to investigate the problem was a pickaxe straight through the cellar floor. :shock:
In a couple of weeks the water subsided and the cellar never trusted again. (upto that time it had been bone dry)

My solution in your case is relatively simple I'd install an automatic pump in your well.
For the time being I'd pump the water out as soon as possible.

Let the cellar dry out and see what you need to do then.

 

[worms]

In early November the water table at the back of my house was 18 inches from the surface, between Christmas and New Year it was at least 3 metres down. So, at least around here, huge fluctuations are possible!

 

[Pford75]

Thanks for the posts - at least confirms that it could well be the rising water table (which is less scary than some other unexplained reason).

Pumped the cellar clear this morning, but it has already refilled to the same level (can I assume that I have to wait for the general water levels to subisde?) - I can't pump the whole of the surrounding countryside!

Also - any thoughts on the original question re: the loss adjuster? Specifically thinking about the need to repoint/replaster

 

[skier-hughes]

Our moat is at it's highest level I've seen it in 20 months living here. We even had about 50cm of waste dug out of it this year!!

 

[Gervase]

Your plaster should be fine after immersion - just be careful not to bang or scrape it while it's wet.
Similarly the wood - if you can get the cellar dry sooner rather than later (within a few weeks) then you should be fine.

 

[Nemesis]

You might find it all simply dries out OK - but if not then insist on things being replaced with appropriate materials and by appropriate people.

Be very insistent that this is a listed building, and anything which is a change (and not a like for like repair in lime etc) would need LBC, and unlikely to get it.

 

[Lime]

Getting pointing wet is something I wouldn't worry about.
The plaster will have to dry out to see if it comes away or bursts from the wall.
The loss adjuster will be looking for inadequate insurance on your part and any payout reduced accordingly.

A rising water table is perhaps the most worrying of problems because you are in the lap of the Gods as to when and what happens to the water level. At least drains and pipes can be repaired.
Anyway I recall that the well had some pipework running to and from it and that suggests that trouble has occurred before. Either that or the pipework could be the cause of the flood!

 

[CHRIS]

Sorry to hear about your flood, we had the same happen last sept due to burst water main and we had 3-4 ft of water in our flint and brick cellar with limewash finish, we also have timber supports on brick plinths and the water was way above these. This is what I did,

1 Pumped out all water into garden using submersible pump
2 cleared out all debris and sludge being carefull not to bash the damp plaster and pointing
3 Used drying firm from insurance company to install 1 blower and dehumidifier for 4 weeks (after 1 day all surface traces were gone)

the problem was that such a large volume of water had soaked away into a sump (it had burst whilst away on holiday and had been leaking for over 3 days at mains presure) and it got trapped under the 1960s conc slab - so the water just kept getting sucked up into the walls, I then used a breaker to bash a 100mm gap at various points around the slab next to wall and ran the fan etc solid for the 4 weeks and this did a great job of sorting this out.

just dont use heat just use the dehumidifier etc and it will be fine you will be amazed at how bad it looks now but if it is all original it will dry just fine - even the timber.

You could try running a pump in a dug out sump at the lowest point until it stops filling up - just remember to take pictures for claims etc.

 

[Pford75]

Fantastic response - really helpful everyone.....what a joy PPUK is :lol:

 

[Nemesis]

I'm sure I don't need to say this really, but in the urgency of the siuation it's easy to forget...

Keep a record of all calls to the insurance company, make notes of any conversations... follow up with a letter asking for agreement of what was discussed etc etc...

 

[Penners]

Good advice from Nemesis - after gabble gabble, scribble scribble.

Hope you dry out soon.

 

[NT]

An alarm as well as a sump & pump might be a good idea for the future.

NT