How To Seal Doors From Flooding With Things You Already Own

Flooding can strike at any time there's inclement weather, and without proper preparation, it can cause significant damage to your home. In a perfect world, you'd have enough time to run to the store and stock up on things to help you seal your doors, but what do you do in a last-minute situation? Fortunately, you don't always need specialized equipment to seal your doors and keep those floodwaters at bay. With a little resourcefulness and a calm approach, you can use common household items to create barriers against the water. For example, you can use a tarp and duct tape to temporarily seal doors and windows or materials like plastic and plywood to DIY a flood barrier. 

Even with DIY flooding solutions, there's always a risk of some water reaching the interior of your space. These scenarios typically require professional attention to remedy, though there are some DIY tips for cleaning a garage with water damage. First and foremost, always turn off all electricity in the house if it's safe to do so. Then, you'll be able to use a tool like a wet-dry vacuum to remove minor amounts of water before letting the space dry with the help of fans.

It doesn't take long to seal your doors from flooding if you already have a standard tarp and some form of heavy-duty tape like duct tape. You can use these two methods separately if you don't have both items, or you can use them together for even more short-term protection. All you need to do is apply the tape to the base and seal around doors or windows in an effort to minimize gaps where water can get in. You can then set the tarp up around the bottom of the door, being sure to bring it higher than you anticipate the water to reach. Use tape or heavy items to help weigh the tarp down and keep it secure. 

Similar to this, some people opt for plastic and plywood as a way to create a DIY flood barrier for their doors. This method involves using pieces of plywood to completely cover the door or window before using heavy-duty tape or nails to secure the plastic sheeting over it as well. Another popular DIY solution for flooding is using sandbags, but this is an item that's not too common for some homeowners to have on hand. Instead, a trash bag hack can also be used during flooding.

For those who live in flood-prone areas, investing in commercial, store-bought items may offer greater peace of mind than DIY methods. There are numerous protection products, like flood tape, which are designed to create waterproof seals around doors and windows. You can try Flex Seal Flood Protection Tape or look for a similar variety at your local hardware store. Tape is relatively simple to apply compared to some other methods, though it's meant to be used as a first line of protection with other elements rather than for solo use.

For more advanced protection, there are products like water-activated flood bags or door dams. These products expand on contact with water to form a strong barrier and are an excellent way to prevent your basement or home from flooding. They tend to have a higher price tag than some flood prevention items, but provide the added bonus of being able to protect your home even if you have to evacuate. Investing in these types of commercial products can make the process of sealing your doors from flooding much easier and provide more reliable protection when you need it most.