Flood Barriers Can Save Your Family
Monday, May 18th, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
Floods are an all too common occurrence these days and many people aren’t aware of the various types of Flood Barriers available for avoiding flood waters. Here, we’ll discuss some of these options and hopefully provide some useful information for the next time you’re facing a flooding situation.
Sandbags. Sandbags are probably the image we first picture in our minds when it comes to flood protection. When large areas are affected and the water is not too deep, sandbags can keep the water out of a home or business and are relatively easy to access, although labor-intensive if many are needed. In case of emergencies, city or local authorities will publish where to find and fill sandbags. Once obtained, to get optimum results, you shouldn’t fill them more than half full and they should be stacked carefully, no more than three layers high. If the flood waters are expected to be more than two feet, sandbags will not provide good protection. Although there are kits available to allow a single individual to fill sandbags, it’s often more efficient to have several people working in a production line to fill and stack the bags where protection is needed.
Glass Storefront Barriers. Glass Storefront Barriers are a method that can be used for businesses, but can be used for the home. The purpose of these glass panels is to keep the flood waters out. Typical barriers must be put up each time a flood threat appears, and installation could be bothersome, and sometimes costly. Glass storefront barriers are permanent, reducing the stress of constantly putting up barriers. They appear as normal windows and look very nice. Glass barriers are typically quoted depending on the area that you need protected, so for an accurate price, call a contractor.
Automatic Gates. Automatic Gates are especially useful as they don’t require human intervention. These gates can react to rising water and deploy automatically using the force of the water for power. These are helpful when unexpected flooding occurs and there is no advanced preparation time; they’re extremely useful for underground parking structures at hospitals, apartment high-rises and office buildings. Automatic gates allow emergency personnel to focus on other life-saving measures also as they are not spending their time putting gates or other barriers in place.
Levees. Levees are used to protect low-lying areas. A levee is essentially a wall of dirt and other earth matter that is built up along a low lying area to act as a barrier to a body of water such as a river or the ocean. Levees are good at protecting wide swaths of land and can be built with highly available materials. Levees do require a lot of work and money though as it takes a lot of hours and use of heavy machinery to build a large levee. Levees must also be maintained and this also costs quite a bit in terms of surveying and repair. If a levee falls into disrepair a false sense of security may be fostered and so people living behind the levee may not take proper precautions.
Hinged Flood Gates. Hinged floodgates are similar to door but they provide tight seals and heavy-duty materials. These devices can either be installed in front of an ordinary door or in place of one. They can be left open most of the time and closed upon risk of floods.
Being prepared for a flood is incredibly important if you live in a flood area. This article discussed the many options you have for protecting against floods. If you live in a flood zone you should look at these options for protection.
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