After a flood, you can do this to help save a home. But you could also minimize this sort of work by using insulation and finish materials that can tolerate wetting and allow the assembly to dry without extensive demolition. (Photo by Michael Springer)
After a flood, you can do this to help save a home. But you could also minimize this sort of work by using insulation and finish materials that can tolerate wetting and allow the assembly to dry without extensive demolition.
(Photo by Michael Springer)

In his January 15th edition of Building Science Insights, Joe Lstiburek has gathered his recommendations for making buildings that can ride out floods with minimal damage. This work builds on previous guidance he published following Hurricane Harvey, which deluged Houston in 2017, and Hurricane Katrina, which submerged New Orleans in 2005. In this new article, he provides a comprehensive discussion on strategies that address a wide range of flood types, including river floods, inland flash floods and coastal storm surge.

In what is sure to become a definitive resource, Lstiburek walks us through the four essentials of building flood-resistant homes:

  • Elevating structures
  • Protecting service equipment
  • Ensuring that flood waters enter and exit the house without collapsing the structure
  • Providing assemblies that are able to get wet, can readily be cleaned and subsequently can be dried

Read more.