Storm Water Intrusion Cleanup in Renton, WA

Storm Water Intrusion Cleanup for Renton Homes

Storm water intrusion is surface water that gets inside at ground level. During an atmospheric river, rain can fall on Renton for days, the soil stops absorbing it, and every hard surface starts shedding water toward the lowest point it can find. On many lots that point is a garage door, a walk-out basement door, a sliding door on a lower level or the joint where the slab meets the foundation. Once runoff starts moving across a floor, it travels under walls and flooring quickly.

Runoff is not clean water. On its way to the house it picks up soil, bark, lawn fertilizer, pet waste, oil and brake dust from the driveway, and anything else lying on the surface. That puts it in the contaminated category, so porous materials it soaks, including carpet pad, drywall bottoms, insulation and cardboard boxes, are normally removed instead of dried in place. The silt it leaves behind also holds moisture against the slab and sill plates long after the visible water is gone.

A local restoration crew treats storm water as a cleaning job and a drying job at the same time. They extract the water, shovel or vacuum out mud, cut out the contaminated porous materials, then wash and apply an antimicrobial to the slab, framing and remaining surfaces. Only after the space is clean do the air movers and dehumidifiers go in, and readings are tracked until concrete and wood are dry.

The shape of Renton makes runoff a recurring problem. Hillside lots above the valley, the ravines near May Creek and the slopes of Renton Hill and the Highlands send water downhill toward the homes below, while flatter valley-floor lots near downtown and Talbot Hill can pond when heavy rain overwhelms yard drains, gutters and low driveways. What happens on your own lot depends on its grading and drainage.