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Panic still hasn’t set in at Number 10 but the Governments ‘lapsidaisyical’ approach to dealing with this countrys worst bout of Weather ever has already caught them out and their too little too late assistance for those who’s property is flooded will be their downfall ultimately.
For decades we have built on flood plains but the old adage of ‘It wont happen to us’ has recently been blown out the window.Its not just flood plains though its water tables and again we have been building on areas of land that surveyors know should the worse case scenario occur,so will flood and its happening now.Anyone who knows about Building houses knows we protect the structure of the property from its worst ‘natural’ enemy and thats Water.Water as in Rain.A damp proof membrane stops the Brickwork above that ‘Damp course’ generally 3 bricks above ground from drawing moisture from the ground.The courses coming out of the ground are Engineering bricks and can withstand excessive water what they cant withstand is being immersed in water as the mortar used for bonding brickwork will become saturated and allow ingress to occur,once water has penetrated the outer course of brickwork it will flood through the cavity and the internal Breeze block will act like a sponge and draw the water through to the inside of the property via the internal Plasterboard.Of course once a property is flooded its not only the structure of the building thats compromised its the Timber joists and floorboards and also the electrics.Once the flooding subsides Timber joists and floorboards will twist as they dry,irrelevant as to whether they have been pressure treated or not as being submersed in water for days/weeks causes rotting to occur.The main problem though is mortar just cant be submerged for a period of time,it weakens it and houses that are being flooded are being ‘Dryed’ out and re-furbished but nothing is being done about the damage to the very substance that keeps our propertys from falling down.Mortar is porous and after heavy rain you see it darken,it may well get saturated from external to internal of the outer brickwork but it dries out quickly through natural evaporation so the whole structure can breathe again.Flood water contains chemicals and acids that can cause decay in bricks and Mortar so bearing in mind the modern brick is a 100mm deep,re-pointing the outer skin by 25mm wont remove all the affected area.The only cure will be to build houses of the future with a sillicone/rubber/glass fibre mortar bond that wont react badly to this natural nightmare,not that it will stop the problem those suffering now are contending with.Sadly David Cameron and his Cobra team wont be scratching their heads looking for a remedy they will be banging their heads against a weakened brick wall.I wont go into the politics of flood protection or lack of it as the government have as much idea of how to do that as they do spending money appropriately.
"My Wife Children and I have been sitting upstairs in our Somerset home,totally cut off from the outside world with the downstairs flooded for the past 5 weeks.
Today the Red cross pulled up outside in a boat.
Thank God I shouted! Have you come to save us?
"No" they replied,we’re collecting for Syria".Well, no problems here in York, though it’s been as dismally grey and mild a winter as down south though obviously not as wet. For the first time I can recall the River Ouse hasn’t burst its banks sometime during the winter, though have a feeling it might shortly, and there’s been little standing water on the Knavesmire
Putting as aside the misery these floods are causing thousands, possibly millions, this winter has been from a scientific/meteorological point of view very interesting: the South atrociously wet, the Midlands and North below average to average, the Highlands of Scotland unusually dry
Weather patterns A-over-T infact
Do you think new style air bricks that close when water hits them will help Gord?
Will it stop water from coming up through the floor?
Value Is EverythingDo you think new style air bricks that close when water hits them will help Gord?
Will it stop water from coming up through the floor?
Do you think Scotchguarding your carpets would help when water still comes through your walls even with the new style air bricks Ginge.
Scotchguarding is imo a waste of time even without flooding.
Being half way up a hill between Andover and Marlborough, village is well above water levels. Can curse being snowed in for weeks but right now feel lucky. Hamlet almost surrounded by either floods or flood alerts. Bourne Valley in particular struggling.
Value Is EverythingYou couldn’t throw your cap over a ditch here without it landing on a fallen tree, crazy winds.
The Hurricane must have done some piece of work.
This winter weather’s been crazy all over the world. We’re getting over a foot of snow dumped on us right now, which for south-central Virginia is pretty unusual. The rural parts just don’t have the ability to handle that kind of snow.
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