David:

D I have a 1920s home in the rainy northwest I've recently purchased,
D and from the water staining on the drywall in the basement, we
D obviously have a history of flooding. We had about 1/2 inch last
D winter after about a week of good rain and one day of really heavy
D rain. I put in a sump pump which I think will handle any future
D flooding, but of course, you never know until it happens.

Does the sump pump have some sort of backup power? (What happens if
the power goes out?) There are models which run from built-in
batteries, and of course generators.


D Anyway, I'm wanting to finish out the rest of the basement with new
D drywall and put in some flooring instead of the old mostly unlevel and
D cracked but still solid concrete floor.

Cut the drywall 'short' to keep it above "flood level" and use those
vinyl mopboard strips to finish to the floor. (If the sheetrock
contacts the water on the floor there will be wicking action, drawing
up the water ont he floor, causing waterstains.)


D I of course don't want to use carpet, but what would be the most
D "flooding friendly" flooring product I could use? I just don't want to
D have to tear whatever I put in back out if its damaged from some
D future flood. How about ceramic tile or linoleum? Would these stand up
D to up to 1 inch of water.

It should but may become unglued after a while (years). One problem
with tile or linoleum is it will be slippery when wet. Perhaps throw
rugs? (Roll up when the basement starts to leak.)

We also have a flooding problem here. A previous owner finished part
of the basement with -- carpet! Not sure what it is but it has held
up (and AFAICT) no mold problems. It is short-napped, sort of like
what is usually put in kitchens. I don't think it has a pad
underneath but someone told me it has a woven jute pad.


D I'm also going to leave a 1 inch gap between the floor and my new
D drywall, maybe with a rubber baseboard to keep water from wicking up
D into the new drywall if it does in fact flood again.

I should have read the whole message!


D Any suggestions on the wall or flooring?

You might want to have a wainscot or chair rail to separate the top
half of the wall from the bottom so in case you do need to repaint you
only have to do the lower portion. Vinyl wallpaper should also be
somewhat water-resistant.

-
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"barry martin" wrote in message
news:1267682850.520.257.5431029.1666045989.RIMEGat ...
David:

D I have a 1920s home in the rainy northwest I've recently purchased,
D and from the water staining on the drywall in the basement, we
D obviously have a history of flooding. We had about 1/2 inch last
D winter after about a week of good rain and one day of really heavy
D rain. I put in a sump pump which I think will handle any future
D flooding, but of course, you never know until it happens.

Does the sump pump have some sort of backup power? (What happens if
the power goes out?) There are models which run from built-in
batteries, and of course generators.

The people who inspected my recently purchased house mentioned that there's
a sump pump which uses running water to move the pump, like the mechanism in
a hydroelectric dam.