The hot dry summer in greater Cincinnati may lead to wet basements in the fall!

In greater Cincinnati we’ve focused on staying cool and keeping the grass and landscaping alive this summer. Given the heat and humidity the average home owner really isn’t concerned about what’s happening around the foundation of their home.  And ignoring parched foundations now may lead to wet basements in the coming months.

The scorching weather and lack of consistent rainfall leads to the soil drying up and pulling away from the foundation leaving a nice gap for water to drain down.  In addition the dry soil can also lead to shifting and cracking foundations.

The best way to combat the problem is to move your sprinkler a few feet closer to your house or condo and make sure the soil around the foundation is watered too.  Many in-ground sprinkler systems don’t  water the foundation areas because nobody wants a sprinklers aimed at the exterior walls (or windows).

Newly constructed homes are not immune to the problem.  The first summer everything looks great then the soil around the foundation seasons and settles which can lead to problems.

Take a few minutes now to walk around and inspect around your property.  Look for gaps between landscaping and foundation and/or sunken grading- where the ground slants toward the foundation.  Filling in gaps and grading grass and/or soil to drain away from property should be done before fall.

Tim Carter from Askthebuilder.com has some tips:

Just a little bit attention to details now may save you a lot of problems in the future.

Stay cool and dry Cincinnati!