After this week’s winter storm, Winnipeggers are making preparations for a burst of warm weather right around the corner.
On Tuesday, temperatures in the city are expected to hit the high teens. Homeowners around the city are making preparations for the coming spring melt.
“If the water starts to sit in the yard, I have a small portable pump, and I can move it to higher ground,” said Deborah, a River Heights resident.
A sudden spring means some homes are at risk of basement flooding. Plumber Jeff Toews says it’s important to make sure your sump pump is working properly, or it could cause heaving in your foundation as well as water damage to your carpet and drywall.
“All the water from around your house is conveyed into that sump pit through weeping tiles – these are underground pipes that run around the perimeter of your house, and then go to a common area,” said Toews. “There’s a pump inside that pit that then discharges the water to the outside.
“So, without that pump functioning properly, that hydraulic pressure builds up inside and underneath the house, and it will actually rise up and start pushing through cracks in the foundation, even if they’re small ones.”
Toews advises testing your sump pump, and run it through at least two cycles a year, so you know it works when you need it. He says you should make sure your discharge pipe is far enough away from the house, so the same water doesn’t leak back in.
Toews also urges people to check in on it sooner than later, rather than waiting until something goes wrong. Ignoring a problem could cost a homeowner thousands of dollars going into the summer.
“In wintertime, a lot of people – because it’s not something that you’re seeing every day – a lot of people forget about it, and forget it’s even there until something happens,” he said.
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