I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on or
the house had seen flooding in over 35 years. Some of the older homes had
"wet" basements because they were built before sump pumps were invented. The
water would enter through a drain in the basement. But even when it rained
really hard - I never saw a drop in my basement. I have a sump pump and the
crock has always been relatively dry. Being a single mom, I still purchased
flood insurance "just in case". I dry locked the walls and floors and
stuccoed the inside walls. This past October, we finished the basement with
drywall and added bedrooms for my kids. Carpet, entertainment center,
exercise equipment - the whole deal. This year.....we flooded.

The water table in our town is so high rght now, the water has no where to go.
Everyone on my street has been pumping out water for over 5 days - it is
going nowhere. My walls on my first floor are cracking. My doors won't shut
and worst, we just noticed that the basement flooring is buckling. The water
is now coming through the floor in the basement and we see no relief.

My flood insurance gave me a cap of $5,000.00. Not sure if my Homeowners will
cover any more of it, but the adjuster said it is doubtful. I still have a
Lake in my front yard and a pond in my back yard. Four sump pumps in my
basement are keeping the water down low enough to run the furnace and the
water heater. All of my neighbors are in similar shape and we are just
entering the rainy season.

Has anyone out there ever dealt with this? What do we do? Will our floors and
walls crack more? Is it fixable? Should our homeowners insurance cover more
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a31a1fd4fb1@uwe...
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on
or
the house had seen flooding in over 35 years. Some of the older homes had
"wet" basements because they were built before sump pumps were invented.
The
water would enter through a drain in the basement. But even when it rained
really hard - I never saw a drop in my basement. I have a sump pump and
the
crock has always been relatively dry. Being a single mom, I still
purchased
flood insurance "just in case". I dry locked the walls and floors and
stuccoed the inside walls. This past October, we finished the basement
with
drywall and added bedrooms for my kids. Carpet, entertainment center,
exercise equipment - the whole deal. This year.....we flooded.

The water table in our town is so high rght now, the water has no where to
go.
Everyone on my street has been pumping out water for over 5 days - it is
going nowhere. My walls on my first floor are cracking. My doors won't
shut
and worst, we just noticed that the basement flooring is buckling. The
water
is now coming through the floor in the basement and we see no relief.

My flood insurance gave me a cap of $5,000.00. Not sure if my Homeowners
will
cover any more of it, but the adjuster said it is doubtful. I still have a
Lake in my front yard and a pond in my back yard. Four sump pumps in my
basement are keeping the water down low enough to run the furnace and the
water heater. All of my neighbors are in similar shape and we are just
entering the rainy season.

Has anyone out there ever dealt with this? What do we do? Will our floors
and
walls crack more? Is it fixable? Should our homeowners insurance cover
more
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.



Where do you live?

To answer your point, though, not really.

You may have some recourse with whomever sold you flood insurance that caps
at $5000.

Although that plan likely covers only the dwelling and not the contents, but
you try and hire a contractor to build you a new home for 5k. Not bloody
likely. So - you are UNDER insured.

The rule of thumb in insurance is rising water is not covered, falling water
IS. The opposite for flood.

HTH

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a31a1fd4fb1@uwe...
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on
or
the house had seen flooding in over 35 years. Some of the older homes had
"wet" basements because they were built before sump pumps were invented.
The
water would enter through a drain in the basement. But even when it
rained
really hard - I never saw a drop in my basement. I have a sump pump and
the
crock has always been relatively dry. Being a single mom, I still
purchased
flood insurance "just in case". I dry locked the walls and floors and
stuccoed the inside walls. This past October, we finished the basement
with
drywall and added bedrooms for my kids. Carpet, entertainment center,
exercise equipment - the whole deal. This year.....we flooded.

The water table in our town is so high rght now, the water has no where
to go.
Everyone on my street has been pumping out water for over 5 days - it is
going nowhere. My walls on my first floor are cracking. My doors won't
shut
and worst, we just noticed that the basement flooring is buckling. The
water
is now coming through the floor in the basement and we see no relief.

My flood insurance gave me a cap of $5,000.00. Not sure if my Homeowners
will
cover any more of it, but the adjuster said it is doubtful. I still have
a
Lake in my front yard and a pond in my back yard. Four sump pumps in my
basement are keeping the water down low enough to run the furnace and the
water heater. All of my neighbors are in similar shape and we are just
entering the rainy season.

Has anyone out there ever dealt with this? What do we do? Will our floors
and
walls crack more? Is it fixable? Should our homeowners insurance cover
more
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't
even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.



Where do you live?

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

Where do you live?
I live in Bellevue, OH.

I spoke with my insurance company and my flood insurance only covers back up
or overflow of sewer and/or sump. Damage from water sitting outside and
causing pressure on the walls is NOT covered on any part of my Homeowners
Insurance. There is not even a policy on it that I can purchase.

ng_reader wrote:
To answer your point, though, not really.

You may have some recourse with whomever sold you flood insurance that caps
at $5000.

Although that plan likely covers only the dwelling and not the contents, but
you try and hire a contractor to build you a new home for 5k. Not bloody
likely. So - you are UNDER insured.

The rule of thumb in insurance is rising water is not covered, falling water
IS. The opposite for flood.

HTH

I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on
[quoted text clipped - 41 lines]

Where do you live?

"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a3e5dd5bf38@uwe...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live
on
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't
even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

Where do you live?
I live in Bellevue, OH.


Sorry to hear about the mess you're in. This probably looks familiar:
http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook...s/bellevue.htm

http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook...s/floodsSC.htm

http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/cac/acgal0212.html


Apparently, it *is* a flood zone, although the definition may depend on how
often it happens. Doesn't really matter, though. What does your homeowner's
insurance contract say about coverage?

Did you buy this policy from a local agent who was familiar with the history
of the area?


"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a3eb9a9f824@uwe...
I spoke with my insurance company and my flood insurance only covers back
up
or overflow of sewer and/or sump. Damage from water sitting outside and
causing pressure on the walls is NOT covered on any part of my Homeowners
Insurance. There is not even a policy on it that I can purchase.

ng_reader wrote:
To answer your point, though, not really.

You may have some recourse with whomever sold you flood insurance that
caps
at $5000.

Although that plan likely covers only the dwelling and not the contents,
but
you try and hire a contractor to build you a new home for 5k. Not bloody
likely. So - you are UNDER insured.

The rule of thumb in insurance is rising water is not covered, falling
water
IS. The opposite for flood.

HTH

I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live
on
[quoted text clipped - 41 lines]

Where do you live?

"chbelfiore" wrote

I spoke with my insurance company and my flood insurance only covers back
up
or overflow of sewer and/or sump. Damage from water sitting outside and
causing pressure on the walls is NOT covered on any part of my Homeowners
Insurance. There is not even a policy on it that I can purchase.

I just called mine back after reading this. I have better coverage as i
stipulated anything a hurricane or flooding can do. I probably pay more too
(about 400$ a year, more like 2,000$ deductable). My 'cap' is 145,000$

Good thing I asked for the extra. Could be in your area, it's just not
available? I am not in a 'flood zone'. They checked first.

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...

"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a3e5dd5bf38@uwe...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live
on
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't
even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

Where do you live?
I live in Bellevue, OH.


Sorry to hear about the mess you're in. This probably looks familiar:
http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook...s/bellevue.htm

http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook...s/floodsSC.htm

http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/cac/acgal0212.html


Apparently, it *is* a flood zone, although the definition may depend on
how often it happens. Doesn't really matter, though. What does your
homeowner's insurance contract say about coverage?
Does it matter?? -- Homeowners' insurance does not provide flood coverage --
only the federal flood insurance program does. Absent that, there's little
you can do with your homeowner's policy.

Flood insurance is so inexpensive in a non-flood zone that it's hard to
understand why someone would not buy the insurance under the federal
program. Those that don't have the federal program have essentially decided
to provide for their own expenses after a flood, although they may not have
realized it at the time.

"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a31a1fd4fb1@uwe...
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on
or
the house had seen flooding in over 35 years. Some of the older homes had
"wet" basements because they were built before sump pumps were invented.
The
water would enter through a drain in the basement. But even when it rained
really hard - I never saw a drop in my basement. I have a sump pump and
the
crock has always been relatively dry. Being a single mom, I still
purchased
flood insurance "just in case". I dry locked the walls and floors and
stuccoed the inside walls. This past October, we finished the basement
with
drywall and added bedrooms for my kids. Carpet, entertainment center,
exercise equipment - the whole deal. This year.....we flooded.

The water table in our town is so high rght now, the water has no where to
go.
Everyone on my street has been pumping out water for over 5 days - it is
going nowhere. My walls on my first floor are cracking. My doors won't
shut
and worst, we just noticed that the basement flooring is buckling. The
water
is now coming through the floor in the basement and we see no relief.

My flood insurance gave me a cap of $5,000.00. Not sure if my Homeowners
will
cover any more of it, but the adjuster said it is doubtful. I still have a
Lake in my front yard and a pond in my back yard. Four sump pumps in my
basement are keeping the water down low enough to run the furnace and the
water heater. All of my neighbors are in similar shape and we are just
entering the rainy season.

Has anyone out there ever dealt with this? What do we do? Will our floors
and
walls crack more? Is it fixable? Should our homeowners insurance cover
more
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.



If a good portion of your area has the same damage as you perhaps it will be
declared a disaster area which may allow FEMA to come in and help out. It
is also possible that your state or county may provide financial assistance
in the form of grants or low interest loans. Forget about getting anything
from your insurance company. Real flood insurance comes from the federal
government. I suggest that you try contacting the governor's office to see
if any assistance will be available and encourage your neighbors to do the
same thing. You could also contact your congressman's office.

"JimR" wrote in message
...

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...

"chbelfiore" u42365@uwe wrote in message news:81a3e5dd5bf38@uwe...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live
on
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't
even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

Where do you live?
I live in Bellevue, OH.


Sorry to hear about the mess you're in. This probably looks familiar:
http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook...s/bellevue.htm

http://www.sandusky-county-scrapbook...s/floodsSC.htm

http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/cac/acgal0212.html


Apparently, it *is* a flood zone, although the definition may depend on
how often it happens. Doesn't really matter, though. What does your
homeowner's insurance contract say about coverage?


Does it matter?? -- Homeowners' insurance does not provide flood
coverage -- only the federal flood insurance program does. Absent that,
there's little you can do with your homeowner's policy.


My homeowner's policy covered some serious water damage. But, the
neighborhood wasn't flooded. It involved 5 days of outrageous rain, but no
flooding of the surrounding neighborhood. It depends on the insurer's
definition of "flood", which ***MIGHT*** include a time frame.

"John Grabowski"

If a good portion of your area has the same damage as you perhaps it will
be declared a disaster area which may allow FEMA to come in and help out.
It is also possible that your state or county may provide financial
assistance in the form of grants or low interest loans. Forget about
getting anything from your insurance company. Real flood insurance comes
from the federal government. I suggest that you try contacting the
governor's office to see if any assistance will be available and encourage
your neighbors to do the same thing. You could also contact your
congressman's office.

I wonder if mine is 'underwritten' that way? Maybe so?

In article 81a3eb9a9f824@uwe, u42365@uwe says...
I spoke with my insurance company and my flood insurance only covers back up
or overflow of sewer and/or sump.

That's not flood insurance, it's a backup of sewer and drain rider on
homeowners. Unfortunately, that's an important distinction.

Flood insurance is specifically for surface water problems, it's a
separate policy from your homeowners insurance. Home flood insurance is
essentially a government monopoly for ordinary houses (up to 250,000
home value).

Damage from water sitting outside and
causing pressure on the walls is NOT covered on any part of my Homeowners
Insurance. There is not even a policy on it that I can purchase.

There is -- flood insurance. If you aren't in a high-risk flood zone,
it's not even a very expensive policy, maybe a few hundred a year.
(Unless you're in a community that told the federal government to stick
it where the sun doesn't shine -- there are still some communities that
refuse to comply with federal flood insurance standards.)

I don't suppose you have it in writing that you requested flood
insurance when you insured your house? Backup of sewer & drain is not
flood insurance, there's a remote chance you'd have an Errors &
Omissions claim against your insurance agent if you could show you
specifically asked for flood insurance and the agent didn't either quote
real flood insurance.

Disclaimer: I am not your insurance agent, I don't know where you live,
and I don't know what policies you have. So this can't possibly be
specific advice, it's just general discussion.

--
is Joshua Putnam
http://www.phred.org/~josh/
Braze your own bicycle frames. See
http://www.phred.org/~josh/build/build.html

In article 81a31a1fd4fb1@uwe, u42365@uwe says...
We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance.

This is a common misperception. For practical purposes, if you are
within the United States, you are within a flood zone. You may not be
in a high-risk flood zone, or Special Flood Hazard Area, such as a known
hunderd-year flood plain, but that does not mean you are not in a flood
zone.

More likely, you're in a relatively safe flood zone, where flood
insurance is very inexpensive. A significant share of flood damage
every year is outside the high-risk flood zones -- from the description
of your neighborhood's basements, it sounds like a place flood insurance
would be a good idea.

The bad news is you can't buy it retroactively for this flood. The good
news is you can buy it after this flood is over and have it the next
time the waters rise.


--
is Joshua Putnam
http://www.phred.org/~josh/
Braze your own bicycle frames. See
http://www.phred.org/~josh/build/build.html

In article ,
says...

Flood insurance is so inexpensive in a non-flood zone that it's hard to
understand why someone would not buy the insurance under the federal
program. Those that don't have the federal program have essentially decided
to provide for their own expenses after a flood, although they may not have
realized it at the time.

It's fair to say they've retained the risk, but saying they've decided
to retain the risk may be going too far -- unfortunately, there really
are insurance agents out there who will simply brush off inquiries about
flood insurance outside of Special Flood Hazard Areas, rather than
helping the customer evaluate the risk and at least quoting the policy.

If a homeowner asked about flood insurance and was told it wasn't
available or wasn't needed, I'd say they'd been misled into retaining
the flood risk, rather than having decided to retain it.

(When I was an agent, I sold more flood insurance outside SFHA's than in
them, because I made sure customers understood their flood exclusions.
Being two feet above the theoretical flood plain isn't the same as being
on a mountain top.)

--
is Joshua Putnam
http://www.phred.org/~josh/
Braze your own bicycle frames. See
http://www.phred.org/~josh/build/build.html

Thank you for the information. My parent's home flooded too. They didn't have
flood insurance because they have no sump. My mom called to get insurance and
they told her that her basement had to be dry for (3) years before they would
cover her...

I will check into the government program.

wrote:
We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance.

This is a common misperception. For practical purposes, if you are
within the United States, you are within a flood zone. You may not be
in a high-risk flood zone, or Special Flood Hazard Area, such as a known
hunderd-year flood plain, but that does not mean you are not in a flood
zone.

More likely, you're in a relatively safe flood zone, where flood
insurance is very inexpensive. A significant share of flood damage
every year is outside the high-risk flood zones -- from the description
of your neighborhood's basements, it sounds like a place flood insurance
would be a good idea.

The bad news is you can't buy it retroactively for this flood. The good
news is you can buy it after this flood is over and have it the next
time the waters rise.


--
Message posted via http://www.homekb.com

Thank you for the information. My parent's home flooded too. They didn't have
flood insurance because they have no sump. My mom called to get insurance and
they told her that her basement had to be dry for (3) years before they would
cover her...

I will check into the government program.

wrote:
We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance.

This is a common misperception. For practical purposes, if you are
within the United States, you are within a flood zone. You may not be
in a high-risk flood zone, or Special Flood Hazard Area, such as a known
hunderd-year flood plain, but that does not mean you are not in a flood
zone.

More likely, you're in a relatively safe flood zone, where flood
insurance is very inexpensive. A significant share of flood damage
every year is outside the high-risk flood zones -- from the description
of your neighborhood's basements, it sounds like a place flood insurance
would be a good idea.

The bad news is you can't buy it retroactively for this flood. The good
news is you can buy it after this flood is over and have it the next
time the waters rise.


--
Message posted via http://www.homekb.com

Thank you for the information. My parent's home flooded too. They didn't have
flood insurance because they have no sump. My mom called to get insurance and
they told her that her basement had to be dry for (3) years before they would
cover her...

I will check into the government program.

wrote:
We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance.

This is a common misperception. For practical purposes, if you are
within the United States, you are within a flood zone. You may not be
in a high-risk flood zone, or Special Flood Hazard Area, such as a known
hunderd-year flood plain, but that does not mean you are not in a flood
zone.

More likely, you're in a relatively safe flood zone, where flood
insurance is very inexpensive. A significant share of flood damage
every year is outside the high-risk flood zones -- from the description
of your neighborhood's basements, it sounds like a place flood insurance
would be a good idea.

The bad news is you can't buy it retroactively for this flood. The good
news is you can buy it after this flood is over and have it the next
time the waters rise.


--
Message posted via HomeKB.com
http://www.homekb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/repair/200803/1

Details on my home include this...

My home is a block house. The basement has a concrete floor. No cracks in it
prior to this happening. So far I see no cracks in the exterior foundation.
It is all in the floor and the interior walls. I understand now from all fo
the comments that the pressure from the water outside is causing the inside
cracks and buckling. But...if we don't pump out the water...then we cannot
live in our homes as we will have no heat or hot water, not to mention the
rising water in the basement could eventually reach the first floor - where
the floors are all wooden floors (in my home at least) So..what do we do?

We had a city council meeting last night. Many of us attended to state our
concerns. The Mayor declared a state of emergency and proposed to the county
we be declared a disaster area. This goes to our County Commissioners for a
vote and then on to the State. They are not sure how long that will take.
This would bring in FEMA and from what I understand would offer us low
interest loans to help fix up our homes. I really don't need another loan at
this point...I have a home loan, a student loan and a car loan. Plus a loan I
had to take out the last 2 years when the city shut off my gas for leaks. So
I had to replace all of my gas lines running to my house, inside my house,
replace my meter, my stove and my furnace. I am still paying on THAT loan.
They shut me off in the middle of winter until I had it fixed. No help. Just
a fee for shutting off and turning back on once I had it finished.

When I purchased my home, (a single mother of two small boys) I do not
remember being explained the difference between flood insurance and the rider
which I bought. But I cannot prove that. I was just happy and proud to be
purchasing a home with a dry basement that we could use for additional living
space. Maybe I got taken. Maybe I should have dug deeper. We have been
through many rain storms int he past 6 years and I have never had a drop in
the basement until this past week.

Now that you all have informed me of what flood insurance is really all about
and how and where to purchase it, I will be better educated for the future. I
am not sure that I will be able to purchase anything at this point - but will
try. Our town is built over sub-terrainean streams. So you would think actual
flood insurance would be encouraged. But it isn't.

Part of the problem is that our town still relies on sink holes for getting
rid of water - from what I understand, the water table is so high - there is
nowhere left for the water to go. We need a new system for getting rid of the
water or this will happen over and over again. For some reason, the areas of
town that normally flood - did not flood this time and the areas of town that
usually don't flood - flooded. That points to a problem in the water removal
system. They are looking for a blocked drain and adding additional drain
pipes to extend the water disposal area. Not sure how long this will take or
if it will work.

In the meantime...our water has not moved on our street. We all continue to
pump. But wonder if we should stop due to the collapsing of our walls
(drywall and/or plaster) and our foundations. But...we all have children in
school - and jobs that we just can't sit back and ignore. So we pump out the
water to keep our furnaces dry and our pilots lit on our water tanks. None of
us can afford to go live in a hotel whie they figure out this problem.

Thank you all for your information and help. It has really been very
informative and has helped me more than what information I received from my
insurance company and/or the city.

By the way, we don't live in a "hole" as one gentleman put it. Bellevue is a
very nice town. I came to this site looking for guidance and help. Not
criticism. Thank you to those who offered that rather than simply criticize
our location and tell us to move. That would be the easy way out..but it is
not that simple to just pick up and go. Home loans don't just go away and
problems don't fix themselves. We want to be part of finding a solution. We
don't want to see our town die - we want to figure out ways to make it more
liveable. God knows the economy is not helping. Jobs are scarce everywhere. A
nice, safe community is really hard to find these days. We have that here. We
would like to stay.

Thank you all for being part of the solution. It really was helpful.


wrote:
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on or
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

I dealt with a flood once. You're probably doing all you can.
Sandbagging may help. More pumps might help more, but cracking walls,
buckling floors, etc.... What can you really do?
Anything is fixable, but at what cost....

What kind of walls are cracking? You left out the details?????
What is the basement floor made of?

IF you mean concrete block walls in the basement and a concrete floor,
I'd highly recommend getting the furnace, water heater, personal
stuff, etc out of there ASAP and let the basement partially fill with
water. Too much pressure against the walls could cause a collapse.
Letting the water inside will equalize the pressure.

If you're talking sheet rock walls and wooden floor, there isn't much
you can do, but it still could be a pressure issue.

Post more details so we all know whats going on. DO NOT hesitate if
concrete walls and floors are cracking, You're better off letting the
water in if this is the case. You could probably rig some steel beams
between the walls, but that's a big job in bad conditions.

I'd just remove the mechanical parts of the furnace, not the ductwork.
Remove water heater, plug the ends of pipes, shut off electric and
gas. If breaker panel is going to go under the water, see if you can
raise it on the wall, or keep pumps on top of weighted objects and
keep the water below that level.

Good Luck - you need it.

--
Message posted via HomeKB.com
http://www.homekb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/repair/200803/1

Yes - it is a hometown insurance agency that my dad actually worked for when
I was a kid. That is how long this guy has been around. I think he might have
even gone to school with my parents....

I am going to call them to see if they broker the federal program. My guess
is that they don't.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
Did you buy this policy from a local agent who was familiar with the history
of the area?

I spoke with my insurance company and my flood insurance only covers back
up
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]

Where do you live?

--
Message posted via http://www.homekb.com

If it's any consolation, I assume the ground's still frozen where you live.
That has to improve over the next week or two. Here (Rochester NY), we had
similar problems, but on a much smaller scale. Certain lawns in my
neighborhood are now ice skating rinks. The worst ones are those where the
owners are stupid and cut their grass too short. Lousy root systems, lousy
drainage.


"chbelfiore via HomeKB.com" u42365@uwe wrote in message
news:81b05a8170f63@uwe...
Yes - it is a hometown insurance agency that my dad actually worked for
when
I was a kid. That is how long this guy has been around. I think he might
have
even gone to school with my parents....

I am going to call them to see if they broker the federal program. My
guess
is that they don't.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
Did you buy this policy from a local agent who was familiar with the
history
of the area?

I spoke with my insurance company and my flood insurance only covers back
up
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]

Where do you live?

--
Message posted via http://www.homekb.com

"chbelfiore via HomeKB.com" wrote:

Details on my home include this...

My home is a block house. The basement has a concrete floor. No cracks in it
prior to this happening. So far I see no cracks in the exterior foundation.
It is all in the floor and the interior walls. I understand now from all fo
the comments that the pressure from the water outside is causing the inside
cracks and buckling. But...if we don't pump out the water...then we cannot
live in our homes as we will have no heat or hot water, not to mention the
rising water in the basement could eventually reach the first floor - where
the floors are all wooden floors (in my home at least) So..what do we do?

We had a city council meeting last night. Many of us attended to state our
concerns. The Mayor declared a state of emergency and proposed to the county
we be declared a disaster area. This goes to our County Commissioners for a
vote and then on to the State. They are not sure how long that will take.
This would bring in FEMA and from what I understand would offer us low
interest loans to help fix up our homes. I really don't need another loan at
this point...I have a home loan, a student loan and a car loan. Plus a loan I
had to take out the last 2 years when the city shut off my gas for leaks. So
I had to replace all of my gas lines running to my house, inside my house,
replace my meter, my stove and my furnace. I am still paying on THAT loan.
They shut me off in the middle of winter until I had it fixed. No help. Just
a fee for shutting off and turning back on once I had it finished.

When I purchased my home, (a single mother of two small boys) I do not
remember being explained the difference between flood insurance and the rider
which I bought. But I cannot prove that. I was just happy and proud to be
purchasing a home with a dry basement that we could use for additional living
space. Maybe I got taken. Maybe I should have dug deeper. We have been
through many rain storms int he past 6 years and I have never had a drop in
the basement until this past week.

Now that you all have informed me of what flood insurance is really all about
and how and where to purchase it, I will be better educated for the future. I
am not sure that I will be able to purchase anything at this point - but will
try. Our town is built over sub-terrainean streams. So you would think actual
flood insurance would be encouraged. But it isn't.

Part of the problem is that our town still relies on sink holes for getting
rid of water - from what I understand, the water table is so high - there is
nowhere left for the water to go. We need a new system for getting rid of the
water or this will happen over and over again. For some reason, the areas of
town that normally flood - did not flood this time and the areas of town that
usually don't flood - flooded. That points to a problem in the water removal
system. They are looking for a blocked drain and adding additional drain
pipes to extend the water disposal area. Not sure how long this will take or
if it will work.

In the meantime...our water has not moved on our street. We all continue to
pump. But wonder if we should stop due to the collapsing of our walls
(drywall and/or plaster) and our foundations. But...we all have children in
school - and jobs that we just can't sit back and ignore. So we pump out the
water to keep our furnaces dry and our pilots lit on our water tanks. None of
us can afford to go live in a hotel whie they figure out this problem.

Thank you all for your information and help. It has really been very
informative and has helped me more than what information I received from my
insurance company and/or the city.

By the way, we don't live in a "hole" as one gentleman put it. Bellevue is a
very nice town. I came to this site looking for guidance and help. Not
criticism. Thank you to those who offered that rather than simply criticize
our location and tell us to move. That would be the easy way out..but it is
not that simple to just pick up and go. Home loans don't just go away and
problems don't fix themselves. We want to be part of finding a solution. We
don't want to see our town die - we want to figure out ways to make it more
liveable. God knows the economy is not helping. Jobs are scarce everywhere. A
nice, safe community is really hard to find these days. We have that here. We
would like to stay.

Thank you all for being part of the solution. It really was helpful.

wrote:
I have lived in my home for 6 years. When I bought the home, one of the
biggest selling points was the dry basement. Neither the street I live on or
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]
than the flood insurance. We are not in a flood zone - so most didn't even
have flood insurance. We are all at a loss. Please help.

I dealt with a flood once. You're probably doing all you can.
Sandbagging may help. More pumps might help more, but cracking walls,
buckling floors, etc.... What can you really do?
Anything is fixable, but at what cost....

What kind of walls are cracking? You left out the details?????
What is the basement floor made of?

IF you mean concrete block walls in the basement and a concrete floor,
I'd highly recommend getting the furnace, water heater, personal
stuff, etc out of there ASAP and let the basement partially fill with
water. Too much pressure against the walls could cause a collapse.
Letting the water inside will equalize the pressure.

If you're talking sheet rock walls and wooden floor, there isn't much
you can do, but it still could be a pressure issue.

Post more details so we all know whats going on. DO NOT hesitate if
concrete walls and floors are cracking, You're better off letting the
water in if this is the case. You could probably rig some steel beams
between the walls, but that's a big job in bad conditions.

I'd just remove the mechanical parts of the furnace, not the ductwork.
Remove water heater, plug the ends of pipes, shut off electric and
gas. If breaker panel is going to go under the water, see if you can
raise it on the wall, or keep pumps on top of weighted objects and
keep the water below that level.

Good Luck - you need it.

--
Message posted via HomeKB.com
http://www.homekb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/repair/200803/1

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has a very useful website:

http://www.floodsmart.gov

You can get estimates of premiums and also local agents that broker the
federal insurance.

By the way, there are a lot of links on that website which allow you to
get quite detailed info. One of those links shows the communities in
your state which participate in the NFIP (a requirement for you to get
federal flood insurance). From what I saw, you're lucky; Bellevue, OH is
a participant in NFIP.

Best wishes to you.