It’s the last day of January today, and we are getting hit by the infamous Pineapple Express. With 2-3 inches of rain forecast for this round, and another system in the pipeline, people are taking these rains seriously. My volunteer tech tutor appointments this afternoon at Vivalon, the healthy aging campus, had to be rescheduled because they shut down by noon. I could make a joke about old people driving in the rain, but it’s really no joke and that was the responsible thing to do.
Speaking of being responsible, to protect my property, I’ve had to take moisture and storms seriously. Over the years, I’ve installed drainage on three sides of my house, I put a moisture barrier underneath, and I’ve got a large sump pump in my backyard. When I first moved in, I put in a smaller pump and an above ground PVC pipe that emptied in our driveway as a temporary fix. The first pump couldn't quite keep the pace with these atmospheric rivers and pineapple expresses, so I’ve now got a bigger pump in a large, separate catch chamber, and we for aesthetic reasons buried a bigger PVC pipe.
Most mid-century homes were not built with property drainage, and my house only had minimal, non-functioning drainage when I bought it. Drainage is challenging, vital and not inexpensive. When I buried the pipe for the sump pump, I used a larger pipe and tied the backyard roof runoff into it. Even with everything we’ve done, there’s still a spot at the back of the backyard where water pools and I may eventually install another sump pump. At that point the property will be fully dialed in, but where I am now, I feel like I’ve taken care of the most serious water threats to the house.
Another thing I had to do, which is moisture related, was replace our roof. When I purchased the house, the inspector told me we had ‘about four years left’ on it. After four years I had it replaced, and the roofer showed me several areas where the plywood was damaged by water intrusion. I would not have made it through the next winter without water damage inside the house. Fortunately, I was able to get to the roof in the nick of time.
If I had the money at the time, I probably would have tackled everything in the first year. Few people have the resources to do everything at once when they buy a property, and I certainly didn’t. Like most people I was stretching just to make the down payment, and I'm not going to lie, I was frightened by the mortgage and property tax payments. As most people do, somehow, I managed. Over time I’ve done a lot to the house, and that’s also typical of most homeowners.
I remember making an extensive list of everything the house needed before I bought it. There were more than 20 big ticket items, and all of them had large scary numbers beside them. Prioritizing the list and anticipating the costs I’d be taking on in the course of time, I realized I could make it happen. I knew my limits, and didn’t take on more than I could handle.
You are probably reading this while it’s raining outside. If you don’t have your drainage where you want it yet, I hope that you’ve at least got it under control. We’ve got no choice but to take these rains seriously. Stay safe.