We know that weather has been unpredictable the last few years. From a warm winter in the Northeast to hotter summers than ever in the Pacific Northwest, it’s hard to know what to expect each day in any season. One resident invested in protecting his home before the floodwater got to him.
Texas resident Randy was ready for the floods in his home state. The Texas man spent time and money on an Aquadam that surrounded the perimeter of his house. It wasn’t the most obvious solution – but it worked. Randy decided to look into construction of a DIY Aquadam despite a mostly dry season. After hearing that the BRA was warning of a massive incoming flood, he drove to Louisiana to pick up his Aquadam.
Randy faced some criticism from neighbors for choice, but his decision only helped him. Thousands of homes were evacuated at this time after a flood hit the area, and sadly many homes were even lost. Randy’s home, however, was left without any damage. “To not know what that level was going to stop at, I needed to prepare for something that no one has seen,” he explained. “I was the crazy guy. Everybody was kinda going by, laughing at me. But today they are really impressed with this Aquadam.” The set-up of the device took 3 men, including Randy, and consisted of roughly 400 feet of tubing that stood 30 inches high.
The damn consisted of plastic and fabric and was filled with water. If not for this simple tubing, Randy and his family would have seen some of the almost 3-foot water in their home. Instead, they watched it gather outside as they stayed home during the flooding. ”$8,300 is to me a small investment on a house that could have two feet of water in it,” Randy said. Aquadams may not be the most traditional method of preventing flood damage, but they do save homeowners and insurance companies alike thousands of dollars in damages. Quieter and lighter than many similar contraptions, Aquadams have been used in a few different areas in place of other preventative measures to fairly consistent success.
