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Expert: - 12/4/2005


Question
What are the best building materials to use to floodproof your home?  

Answer
D. Muyshondt:

Thanks for your question!

The answer is: high ground!  Seriously, to my knowledge, there's no practical way to flood "proof" your home with building materials.  If you're looking for a way to thoroughly seal the exterior of your house against water infiltration you're not going to have much luck, for a number of reasons.

First, no building material - other than say, rubber, is completely impervious to water.
Second, most exterior building materials are installed in small pieces with some type of gap or overlap between.  Siding and shingles, for example, are designed to shed rain, not rising water.  Masonry actually absorbs water.
Third, if rising water reaches windows and doors, it will get in that way - there's no way to completely seal operable windows and doors.
Fourth, even if you did manage to "seal" the house, the walls would be unable to "breathe" (as building materials must do!) and you'd soon find yourself with a moisture, mildew, and mold problem.
Fifth, water pressure is an amazing thing; water will get into the house through the tiniest opening - and if the house is surrounded by floodwaters for an extended period that may be enough to ruin it.
Finally, no matter how well you "seal" the above-ground part of your house, the below-ground part will leak heavily when submerged in saturated soil - even if the foundation is "waterproofed".  The footing drainage system will also back up - no way to prevent it.

I could go on, but you get the idea!  If someone is trying to sell you a way to floodproof your home, they're really just looking for a leak in your pocketbook - seal them out!

The only way to prevent flood damage to a home is to keep the water away from it.  An earthen dike or some other type of structure would do the trick if you have a way to build it.

Hope this helps!

Richard Taylor, AIA
Richard Taylor Architects, LLC
www.rtastudio.com
www.betterhomedesign.blogspot.com

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Richard Taylor, AIA

Expertise

Ask me about all aspects of house, remodeling. , and room addition design and construction. Ask me about historic homes, renovation, and restoration. Ask me about materials and techniques, and about how you can get the best value for your design and construction dollar. Ask me how you can make your home a very special place. I can't, however, answer specific structural engineering questions in this forum - that's something you'll need on-site observation for.

Experience

I own a full-service residential architectural firm, and have been designing custom homes, remodelings, and room additions across the country since 1983. Check us out at Richard Taylor Architects and RTA Plans. I have written and been published extensively on the subject of residential architecture.

Organizations
American Institute of Architects, City of Dublin Architectural Review Board, Vice Chair of City of Dublin Planning and Zoning Commission, American Planning Association, Board Member Historic Dublin Business Association, Past Editor of SPLASH (a software forum), Past Editor of Open Directory Project, Assistant Scoutmaster, Boy Scouts of America

Publications
Business First of Columbus, Suburban New Publications, About.com, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Columbus Dispatch Residential Architect Custom Home Architect Remodeling Architect

Education/Credentials
Bachelor of Environmental Design (Architecture) Miami University 1983
For more about home design, check out my blog at Sense Of Place and join the conversation on our Facebook Page.

Awards and Honors
2010 Dublin Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year

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