High Street Unitarian
Universalist
Church
Macon, GA
- Flooding Issues
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Sun, 29 Mar 2009 Subject: Water Problems persist in Basement at HSUUC - Flooding Notes from 2004 Dear All, Here are notes from a previous flood of the HSUUC basement in Sept 2004: The difference today is the (Free) cool DRY air outside today can be used - as long as someone can police the facility - with both front and back doors open. I will be there from approx 3-4pm today in the sanctuary - watching for visitors. Then I will lockup. - Lindsay -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In a message dated 9/9/2004 8:19:07 AM Eastern Standard Time, teeth@mindspring.com writes: 1- Heat on in basement as high as it will go. 2- Box fans are needed to push air in one circular direction - up one stairwell and down the other. 3- AC in Sanctuary turned on as low as needed to keep air dry - without getting it "cold". -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks, Lindsay, for the wisdom of experience. Randy Reed suggests that we set basement heat just a little higher than ambient air temp. Can anyone bring box fans to blow down the back stairs and up the front stairs? We'll need to set the front lobby A/C on cooler than ambient temp -- say 75 -- so it will wick moisture out of the air that comes up from the basement. And, we'll need to prop open the doors at the foot of both stairs. Plus, we need to examine all closets, etc, and remove all wet items. Dick Sat, 11 Sep 2004 20:5 Subject: Re: A/C + Water at High Street - needs Heat to Dry. Lnz, Thanks for this prescription -- it worked like a charm (except for our upstairs A/C drainpipe clogging up). Even so, the basement is good to go! Thanks! Dick |
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Additional notes from 2004: We misused the A/C after the great flood of 1994. Air conditioner made the moisture worse. The only way to dry the basement is to turn Up the Heat. Like a giant hair dryer. We placed a few fans to blow the hot wet air out. Circulating in one direction thru the hall - Air must go down one stairway then up the other to circulate. We also turned on the upstairs AC - effectively pumping the water out thru the upstairs AC condensers. 10 years ago we ran the basement AC until it was almost an ice cave. Ice is wet. The mold thrived. The moisture multiplied... The basement will dry quickly - only when its walls and contents are hotter than the ambient air. When the basement is cooler, it collects water - "sweats" like a cold glass of sweet iced tea. Another technique we used was - to bring in a couple of heavy duty dehumidifiers. |
Ideas below follow a report of flooding with an injury (slipping at
bottom of dark, wet stairs today 12-20-09)
Proposed fix: - place a sump pump under the stairs where there seems to
be the source of water.
- Make the [new] utility access hole with a door 3x4' in the wall
behind this [left] wall pictured below. Water can be pumped in 1/2" PVC
thru window well (right side is not visible here) up and out of well
onto sidewalk.
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