It must be all of the showers we're seeing this summer, with a total of 4" above normal as of August. Even with this lovely cool down in southern Westchester County, NY, the water table levels are still up. So in some flood prone areas the lower Hud, in parts of Bronxville 10708, we're seeing flooded basements.
Most are due to appliance malfunctions or power issues, so that the home or business owner's sump pump is not working, or their hot water heater just gives up. Add in a hard rain from our summer thunderstorms and it can be a recipe for basement disaster. For homes that are on the market, be sure to check those lower levels, before taking your clients / buyers on their final walk-through. Cancel the date/reschedule, call restoration pros like us, we'll dry it out quickly and get the space ready for sale, before your closing!
During our recent heat wave from hell, all I could think about was finding a lake to jump in, or getting home to a luke warm rinse in a shower before bedtime. Either way, your hot water heater may be getting the same workout as ours near Bronxville, NY 10708. In fact, many conventional hot water heaters fail after 10 years for gas models or about 14 years for the electric heater models.
Be sure to keep a record of your appliances and their age. With our digital and phone calendars now, it may be worth noting a check date. Also, If your gas hot water heater needs to have maintenance once a year, or more often, be sure to get your plumber in. A maintenance visit is a lot less expensive than cleaning up water and replacing your heater before it's time.
Maintaining your water heater's efficiency and lifespan can be easy and inexpensive if you, or your spouse are handy. These include setting a uniform temperature on the appliance, insulating it well for Winter use aswell as flushing the tank and checking it's "Anode Rod" each year.
The insulation alone reduces heat loss by about 45% and will cut your oil use on that boiler, plus nearly 10% of your property's hot water costs. Flushing the tank annually gets rid of sediment and improves operation and probably prolongs it's life in your home. Ask you plumber or resident handy man/woman about the anode rod -- that should be hanging on the tank and will prevent rust build up over time. Replacing these rods is cheaper than replacing a new heater, or cleaning up the water when your heater fails.
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