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| Adding Space |
| Changing Space |
| Improving Energy Efficiency |
| Preventing Flood Damage |
| Preventing Wind Damage |
| Special Issues with Older Homes |
If you protect a building with a floodwall, sealant, plastic wrap or any other barrier, you will need to pump water during floods.
You can keep shallow flood water out of a slab-on-grade home using plastic sheeting supported by the wall of the building or on special stands away from the wall. This is an emergency protection measure that is more effective than using sandbags, but does require advance preparation.
Most floodproofing systems have openings that need to be closed and watertight during a flood.
Sump pumps sit in the sump. "Trash" or "utility" pumps usually sit above water level and draw through an inlet hose.
Elevation provides the best protection for flood damage, short of relocating the house to an area that is less prone to flooding. Raising a structure does not remove it from the special flood hazard area (SFHA); therefore, it does not exempt the owner or the mortgage company from flood insurance mandates.
Describes several techniques for repairing walls so they are more resistant to flood damage.
Repetitive flooding affects thousands of Louisiana homes and businesses. In this publication and its companion videotape, a procedure to demonstrate a non-invasive method to flood proofing is explained as it was demonstrated by a Michigan contractor. Special attention is given to adapting the technology for use in Louisiana’s floodplains. (PDF format only). This is the 2005 archived version of the original 1996 publication.
Many homes lost their historic designations in the efforts to clean up and rebuild after the devasting damages caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This article gives an overview historic preservation regulations, who the regulating agencies might be, what you need to preserve or restore, and where you can obtain information and guidance in the preservation, restoration, and repair of your home.
Lead is a naturally occurring blueish-gray metal. It is very abundant and mined in numerous counties around the world including the United States. The problem with lead is it is toxic. The human body has no use for lead, so even small amounts can be toxic. The most notable health effect of lead is in the mental development of young children.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of older homes damaged in Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Ike, are waiting to be rebuilt. Rising energy costs, the focus on reducing carbon emissions, and the green movement are driving energy-efficient building practices. This has put insulation, air sealing and weatherization high on the safer, stronger, smarter rebuilding list of desirable features.
Improving the energy efficiency of your home is an important and responsible step. Being energy-efficient can save you up to one-third on your annual energy bills. In addition to the personal and monetary benefits, improved energy efficiency has a positive and lasting affect on the environment.
If you protect a building with a floodwall, sealant, plastic wrap or any other barrier, you will need to pump water during floods.
As foam insulation becomes more popular, more an more products are making their way to the market. Often, the proper use of a foam insulation product is very specific, and spelled out in the building code. This page provides links to ICC-ES Evaluation Reports for several foam insulation products.
Energy efficiency can be improved by upgrading several systems on the home. There are a variety of incentive programs. This page provides links to building information and incentives for each of the home systems.
Air sealing can be one of the most cost effective ways to reduce energy costs and increase comfort in your home. This fact sheet provides information on the most common places where air leaks in homes and how to fix these leaks.
Wet floodproofing segment of the LSU AgCenter "Ready for Rain" video describing techniques for reducing damage to the home without attempting to keep water out of the building.
Introductory segment from the LSU AgCenter "Ready for Rain" video with overview of flood damage reduction techniques.
Wind is the most common and most costly cause of damage to light frame structures in the United States. There are things you can do, however, to reduce the potential damage from high winds.
Preserving and maintaining the great benefits of having an older home will take time, commitment, and money.
Restoration of a home may afford a good opportunity to change the way you use existing space in the home.
In inland areas, experience has shown that floods damage areas of buildings not elevated above the flood level and destroy contents of those areas. In coastal areas, wave action causes even more damage, often destroying enclosed building areas below the flood level (and any building areas above the flood level that depend on the lower area for structural support). Source: Home Builder's Guide to Coastal Construction Technical Fact Sheet Series: Fact Sheet 4.
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has requirements for repairs, remodeling and additions. This fact sheet provides recommendations for exceeding those minimum requirements and it lists opportunities for retrofitting in coastal flood hazard areas. SOURCE: Home Builder's Guide to Coastal Construction FEMA 499: Technical Fact Sheet 30.
Increased Cost of Compliance (ICC) coverage provides up to $30,000 toward the cost of elevating, relocating or demolishing a building that is being required to come into compliance with the community’s flood damage prevention ordinances because it has been substantially damaged by a flood.
As you restore your home, you may want to take the opportunity to add space - either with an addition on the back or side of the home, or by adding a second story.
Installation of any of these back-flow valves below in an existing sewer line is dirty work, but not technically challenging. View a photographic sequence of installing a simple flap valve.
Our predecessors in Louisiana, the Indians and the early Europeans, avoided floods by vacating the floodplains during the flood season or by building their homes on higher ground and, even then, on piers. Determining flood risk is important before buying property, building a home or office, or planning a flood protection system.
Our predecessors in Louisiana avoided floods by vacating the floodplains during flood season or by building their homes on higher ground and, even then, on piers.
Floodwalls and levees are self-supporting barriers to floodwater. They keep the building dry and protect it from, unequal water pressure on building walls, erosion at the foundation and damage by floating debris.
Sealing a building so water will not enter is called dry floodproofing. The interior spaces, equipment and contents of the building stay dry.
Most floodproofing systems have openings that need to be closed and watertight during a flood.
There is an alternative to blocking the common sewer line. The alternative is to block each drain line where it enters your home - also known as the points of entry - using plugs and caps.
Elevating a building to prevent flood damage doesn't always mean picking up the entire structure. Explore these three ways to get the floor up.
Repetitive flooding affects thousands of Louisiana homes and businesses. In this publication and its companion videotape, a procedure to demonstrate a non-invasive method to flood proofing is explained as it was demonstrated by a Michigan contractor. Special attention is given to adapting the technology for use in Louisiana’s floodplains.
This section of the web provides information about restoring a damaged home, adding new space, changing the use of existing space, elevating, improving energy efficiency and addressing the special issues associated with older homes.
You probably think of an air conditioner as something that puts cool air in your homes, but what it really does is remove heat from your home. So an understanding of how heat gets in your home is the key to choosing the most cost-effective ways to cut summer utility bills while staying cool and comfortable.
