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The fall season in the Pacific Northwest brings substantial amounts of rain that can cause flooding on industrial properties. Floods can interrupt business operations, lead to costly damages of buildings and equipment, and create stress.
Preparing your stormwater system before the rainy season arrives can help prevent expensive flood damages and system repairs. Preventative maintenance is more effective than addressing the problem after a stormwater system has failed.
We want to help you avoid costly repairs on your industrial property with our five fall flood prevention tips.
1. Have Your System Inspected Before the Rainy Season
An inspection is one of the most effective ways to prevent fall floods on industrial properties.
Having an inspection of your stormwater system structures before the rainy season can identify any issues that could potentially cause flooding. This will give you time to address the sources of potential failure, perform any necessary repairs, and prevent costly damages and operational downtime.
After having your system inspected, you can schedule routine inspections on a yearly basis before each rainy season. Local municipalities in the Pacific Northwest require yearly inspections and keeping a current maintenance certificate on file.
Maintaining a consistent schedule of routine inspections will ensure that your stormwater systems are performing properly, catch any issues before they cause flooding, and help prevent floods on industrial properties.
Do you know the last time your system was inspected? Schedule your inspection today.
2. Know Your Stormwater System
The best time to understand your stormwater system is before a flood occurs.
Flooding at a logistics center can create an operational nightmare: Business operations are interrupted, trucks and heavy machinery are unable to access loading docks, and backups create delays for expectant customers.
This disruption in traffic creates pressure to quickly address the flooding and locate key components of your stormwater system like drains, pumps, and filter vaults. Understanding your stormwater system before a flood occurs can help reduce operational downtime and make a stressful situation more manageable.
Start by familiarizing yourself with your site and stormwater system. This includes having an updated map of your system that you can easily locate and reference when problems arise.
It also includes reading through past inspection reports and property records to check for reports of flooding and damages. Knowing where previous water infiltration occurred can be helpful for understanding where future failures might happen.
Another key component of understanding your stormwater system to prevent fall flooding is monitoring the condition of your control structure, pump stations, and pump vaults.
A control structure is typically located toward the end of a system and is designed to slow down the flow of stormwater. Control structures have a gate that can be opened during flood events to allow the excess stormwater to bypass the control manifold. This gate can rust over time, which can cause the system to fail and lead to flooding.
Pump stations and vaults are vital parts of stormwater systems on many industrial properties. If a pump fails, it can lead to major flooding–immediately. A broken pump can flood thousands of gallons of water into loading docks, interrupting operations and resulting in costly repairs of buildings and equipment.
Components of a stormwater system to become familiar with may include:
- Control structures
- Pump stations and vaults
- Catch basins
- Filter vaults
- Bioswales
- Storm Ponds
- And more
CatchAll Tip: Make sure you have an up to date map of your stormwater system! These maps are incredibly helpful when diagnosing floods or other stormwater emergencies.
3. Check for Debris
Allowing water to flow freely away from buildings and into catch basins and other stormwater structures is a crucial part of how stormwater systems prevent flooding. Over time, blockages can lead to standing water, flooding, soil erosion, and more.
One of the easiest ways to prevent floods in industrial properties is to visually check for obvious signs of debris and blockages.
Specifically check your catch basins for trash, storm debris like fallen branches, and sediment buildup. Additionally, check your stormwater ponds for invasive vegetation, trash, and sediment around inlets and outlets.
This simple action can help you identify issues early, ensure your stormwater system functions efficiently, and prevent flood damage and operational downtime.
4. Remove Leaves Once They Start Falling
As the rainy season progresses, falling leaves can accumulate and create blockages in stormwater systems that are otherwise functioning properly. Routinely clearing leaves once they start falling is a simple way to help prevent flooding on industrial properties.
Our team frequently responds to emergency calls and floods that involve leaves sitting on top of catch basin grates that can easily be removed.
Once leaves start falling, routinely monitor catch basin grates and remove fallen leaves before they pile up. Prevent panic, operational downtime, and costly expenses by keeping your drainage basins clear of leaves. Sometimes stormwater problems have simple solutions!
5. Visually Inspect Your System After the First Rainfall
After the first heavy rains of the fall season, visually check your system for early signs of failure. These initial rainfalls can spotlight issues that could create problems and cause flooding later in the season.
When visually checking for stormwater problems, look for standing water and soggy ground.
These early signs of failure are symptoms of other issues within your stormwater system.
Note: Only personnel with confined space certifications should enter filter vaults and other confined spaces. Additionally, these visual checks do not replace yearly inspections by a professional.
If issues arise after a visual inspection, our team is here to conduct a thorough inspection of your stormwater system and address any issues.
Rely on the Experts in Fall Flood Prevention
Rely on CatchAll Environmental, your partner for comprehensive stormwater management solutions.
Our team provides cost-effective and environmentally-responsible stormwater management solutions to businesses across the Pacific Northwest. We support commercial, industrial, and residential properties with inspecting, mapping, and maintaining stormwater systems.
