Commercial buildings, like any property, are subject to costly weather-related damage. Depending on the season and location, losses can be caused by tornadoes, blizzards, earthquakes, and hurricanes. But maybe one of the more common weather disasters is storms. In addition to hail, heavy winds, and lightning strikes, when the rain starts to fall, often times flooding is of biggest concern.

There are very few areas in the world where flooding is not a potential risk. In the United States alone, floods account annually for nearly $6 billion in damage and 140 deaths, according to National Geographic. If you’re in a location where rain falls, with little to no warning a flood can take place, leaving a wake of destruction in its path. While some floods happen over hours or days, flash floods can happen quite quickly, becoming dangerous in no time.

Commercial Property Flood Prevention Tips

Flooding may affect your commercial property by way of rising river beds, tropical storms, heavy surface rainfall, or excessive rainfall in a short period of time. As a property owner or manager, your disaster preparedness plan should address flood concerns. While you may not be able to stop the rain from falling, you can take efforts to keep your commercial buildings safe from impending damage.

• Assess your property: Inspect your property for areas where flooding could pose a problem. Make any necessary repairs or amendments as needed.

• Pay special attention to basements: Does your commercial property have a basement? Keep your building dry by caulking cracks, patching foundation walls, and installing a sump pump.

• Add flood-proofing: If incoming water has been a problem in the past, consider flood-proofing your property. Just as it sounds, flood-proofing provides protection to your building from water-related damage. This includes applying a waterproof coating or covering to you property’s exterior walls to keep flood water from seeping in.

• Improve landscaping: Elevation is your friend when the rain starts to fall. You can’t change the location of your building but ensure landscaping allows water to run down and away from the foundation. Also be sure to relocate downspouts so that water from the roof flows away from the property.

• Clean up: Before a storm, prevent water from backing up into your building by cleaning out gutters, downspouts. Don’t forget about the roof and perimeter drains too.

• Be proactive: The best kind of water damage is no water damage. Don’t wait for a storm to hit before finding out the vulnerabilities of your commercial property. Unsure of what risks to look for? Consider hiring a professional to help review and make recommendations for safeguarding your property.

After the Storm

Regardless of the measures you do or do not take, flood-related water damage happens. Recovery may be harrowing, but it’s not impossible. If you’ve been affected by a flood, we’re here to help. Contact us to discuss our flood cleanup services to restore your commercial property back to its pre- water damaged condition.

McMahon Services and Construction crews are available 24/7 to dispatch to your or business location. We offer FREE estimates in our Chicago, Arlington Heights, Berwyn, Des Plaines, Evanston, Mount Prospect, Grayslake, Mundelein, Libertyville, Oak Park, Palatine, Wheaton, Naperville, Waukegan, Schaumburg, Skokie, and surrounding IL service areas.