What Is The Best Flood Protection For The Home?

[kurnell]

I live in a moobaan in Bangkapi and the flood water has not reached us yet, but yesterday some of the drains started to overflow and the local klong is now only centimeters from the top. We have sandbags at our gate and our moobaan and each individual house is surrounded by a wall, with gaps for bars etc, so it seems that we are protected up to about 40cm.

I went for a cycle around the mooban and people have taken extra protection of up to a metre, some with sandbags, but most have bricked up their doors. This option seems the most logical as long as it is checked to confirm it is waterproof. Another popular one is to glue perspex to the wall surrounding the door, but I don't know how effective this is. The missuz says that she has talked to friends whose house is already in the flood zone, and this has worked. Other people have taped clear plastic to their house or loosely covered their doorway with tarpaulin so I am sure that will not work.

Can anyone recommend the most effective way to keep water out of the house, if there is one at all?

[petedk]

I think there are ways to protect the house but it seems people always forget one little detail and their house ends up being flooded anyway.

For some it may be the fact that the neighbours haven't protected so well so that water flows in from them. Others forget a small drain somewhere in the house.

We have a wall around our house but the wall has small holes (decoration) in it. We have covered these with heavy plastic tied at the top (one and half meters high) and weighted with sandbags.

We have prepared a large sheet of polycarbonate which will be sealed with silicon around our gate. this will be the last thing we will do as it will effectively stop us from leaving or entering the property.

The outside doors have been blocked with Viva Board. (Not sure about spelling).

I have prepared pipes of about 150 cms to seal over all drains. Rice bags and sand bags for the toilets.

Built up large "containers around external drains. I figured that it's better to let the water in and find it's own height than to try and block with sandbags.

Will all this work? I don't know. The water hasn't reached us yet although I am pretty sure it will within the next week.

I can't think of more that I can do right now.

If others have experience (bad or good) please share here.

[kurnell]

I have pretty much done all the above. There is a crack in the wall between the 2 properties, but that is not really an issue as we are sealing the doors.

[petedk]

but most have bricked up their doors.

This is a solution but think of the mess in removing the bricks afterwards. We have put Viva Boards up and sealed with silicon. They are easy to remove and can be stored for next years floods.

Another popular one is to glue perspex to the wall surrounding the door

Don't use glue but use silicon. It's waterproof and reasonably easy to remove.

Other people have taped clear plastic to their house or loosely covered their doorway with tarpaulin so I am sure that will not work.

It will only work if all edges are sealed perfectly. The plastic around our house is about 150 cms high and I have used Duck Tape (added after photo was taken) to hold the top edge in place. I doubt if the water will reach that level. The bottom of the plastic is held in place with two or three layers of sandbags.

Sorry it seems that I can't attach the photos. No idea why..

[robblok]

All people in the village who have used those contrete and sandbag method have been flooded. It wont work if you dont have a second line of defense. You need a pump too and a second line to catch the water (pumps wont work in low water situations)

Most flooding will occur through the drains. I am pretty sure with containers around it and pumps you can get through it. If you have no pumps and the water is there to stay for a longer period your <Snip> it will get in.

[travelmann]

Im sure you cannot stop it entering your house slow it down maybe but it WILL get in one way or another, all this sandbagging stuff is nonsense. The only good way is to seal up as much as you can then PUMP out what does come in , but come in it will

[petedk]

All people in the village who have used those contrete and sandbag method have been flooded. It wont work if you dont have a second line of defense. You need a pump too and a second line to catch the water (pumps wont work in low water situations)

Most flooding will occur through the drains. I am pretty sure with containers around it and pumps you can get through it. If you have no pumps and the water is there to stay for a longer period your <Snip> it will get in.

Yes you are right.

That's why we have firstly tried to seal off the water around the wall and built walls around the drains in the garden and pipes in the drains in the house.

The house is then sealed off with Viva boards. We have three pumps on stand by.

[ignis]

You can only do so much, yes I boarded the doors sealed with silicon then used large plastic before closing the doors, blocked all showers sink toilet and used a big thick black bag filled with sand bags to block the drain just inside my property, will this be OK ? No idea will see hope will be able to get home in 12 days, that will be 1 month away.... at moment water is well down about 30cm only now today, but roads to Village only by boat, to deeps even for the Army trucks...

So when the water came, I walked up the Village, the water was coming bubbling up through the tarmac, arriving home walked around the house and the water was coming up from underground and this is some 50cm higher then the tarmac road outside... Partners Sister kitchen floor cracked up, and water flooded in very fast.. so say the whole house was water tight.

Best protection take what you can higher, big stuff get up on blocks, I ran electric from upstairs wired to the downstairs ceiling, so only electric on is upstairs running down to 2 x double door fridges, freezer and air pumps for the fish.. so far 2 weeks on understand electric is still on in the Village.

You can only do so much, just do what you can and hope for the best, or big clean up later.

[travelmann]

What Id really like an answer to is will Sukhumvit road flood, it seems inevitable to me but yet another "it wont flood here" story from the press on TV today.

[petedk]

Im sure you cannot stop it entering your house slow it down maybe but it WILL get in one way or another, all this sandbagging stuff is nonsense. The only good way is to seal up as much as you can then PUMP out what does come in , but come in it will

I guess the toilets are the biggest problem. The is also the problem of cracks in the floor. I know water can get through almost anywhere.

[petedk]

What Id really like an answer to is will Sukhumvit road flood, it seems inevitable to me but yet another "it wont flood here" story from the press on TV today.

I don't believe the "it won't flood here" stories. They have cried "wolf" too many times now.

I am on Sukhumvit but fairly close to Klong San Saeb. It seems everyone in this neighborhood has boarded up their houses as a precaution.

[robblok]

Just get your stuff to higher ground, it wont be too bad. Make sure the damage is minimal, don't put your faith in your defenses. Shutting down all electricity and wiring it down from floor 2 is great. I did the same. I put the heavy stuff up. I sacrificed a few things. But i forgot about the doors. I wish i had not forgotten that and took them out. They will swell up and get damaged once the water gets in.

[ignis]

Just get your stuff to higher ground, it wont be too bad. Make sure the damage is minimal, don't put your faith in your defenses. Shutting down all electricity and wiring it down from floor 2 is great. I did the same. I put the heavy stuff up. I sacrificed a few things. But i forgot about the doors. I wish i had not forgotten that and took them out. They will swell up and get damaged once the water gets in.

in the back of the pickup I put 2x hammers, 3 chisels and screwdrivers in case the doors are very swollen, but was hoping that closing the doors in plastic sheeting would help get them open ?

[petedk]

Just get your stuff to higher ground, it wont be too bad. Make sure the damage is minimal, don't put your faith in your defenses. Shutting down all electricity and wiring it down from floor 2 is great. I did the same. I put the heavy stuff up. I sacrificed a few things. But i forgot about the doors. I wish i had not forgotten that and took them out. They will swell up and get damaged once the water gets in.

Thanks for the advice. If water comes I'll take the doors off.

What about kitchen cabinets? They will surely be destroyed. We've just had a brand new kitchen with built in electric oven. I don't think I can remove all that by myself.

We have the compressors for the aircon standing on the ground and asked the technician to come and disconnect them so we could place them on higher ground. We made an appointment but on the day he cancelled as he was flooded in.

Do you guys sleep at nights?

[robblok]

Just get your stuff to higher ground, it wont be too bad. Make sure the damage is minimal, don't put your faith in your defenses. Shutting down all electricity and wiring it down from floor 2 is great. I did the same. I put the heavy stuff up. I sacrificed a few things. But i forgot about the doors. I wish i had not forgotten that and took them out. They will swell up and get damaged once the water gets in.

Thanks for the advice. If water comes I'll take the doors off.

What about kitchen cabinets? They will surely be destroyed. We've just had a brand new kitchen with built in electric oven. I don't think I can remove all that by myself.

We have the compressors for the aircon standing on the ground and asked the technician to come and disconnect them so we could place them on higher ground. We made an appointment but on the day he cancelled as he was flooded in.

Do you guys sleep at nights?

I had kitchino kitchen cabinets. Thanks to typical thai craftsmanship i could pull them out. Later i will put them in again. Saved me a lot of money. I did this only at the last moment when i knew they were going to be ruined. I was supprised how easy it was to remove them without even damaging them that much.

If the water comes id cut of the compressor myself and put it up because it would be more expensive to fix a flooded one then a few pipes. Our compressors were always up high and dry so we still have aircon upstairs. Sleeping is not a problem.

It gets boring living on 2nd floor and not being able to leave the village. Water is dropping tomorrow the house will be dry and part of the cleaning will begin. The roads and streets are still flooded so cant dump my sofa and some cabinets or buy new stuff.

[DP25]

Seems almost impossible to keep water out. If I were to build a house I'd want one that floats, and attached to guideposts so that it stays in place as it rises with the water.

[petedk]

Just get your stuff to higher ground, it wont be too bad. Make sure the damage is minimal, don't put your faith in your defenses. Shutting down all electricity and wiring it down from floor 2 is great. I did the same. I put the heavy stuff up. I sacrificed a few things. But i forgot about the doors. I wish i had not forgotten that and took them out. They will swell up and get damaged once the water gets in.

Thanks for the advice. If water comes I'll take the doors off.

What about kitchen cabinets? They will surely be destroyed. We've just had a brand new kitchen with built in electric oven. I don't think I can remove all that by myself.

We have the compressors for the aircon standing on the ground and asked the technician to come and disconnect them so we could place them on higher ground. We made an appointment but on the day he cancelled as he was flooded in.

Do you guys sleep at nights?

I had kitchino kitchen cabinets. Thanks to typical thai craftsmanship i could pull them out. Later i will put them in again. Saved me a lot of money. I did this only at the last moment when i knew they were going to be ruined. I was supprised how easy it was to remove them without even damaging them that much.

If the water comes id cut of the compressor myself and put it up because it would be more expensive to fix a flooded one then a few pipes. Our compressors were always up high and dry so we still have aircon upstairs. Sleeping is not a problem.

It gets boring living on 2nd floor and not being able to leave the village. Water is dropping tomorrow the house will be dry and part of the cleaning will begin. The roads and streets are still flooded so cant dump my sofa and some cabinets or buy new stuff.

Our kitchen is from Modern Form and has some kind of moulded table top. I think this would be impossible to remove without breaking it.

How long have you been living on the 2nd floor? My sympathies to you. Hope your house is dry soon.

[robblok]

Just get your stuff to higher ground, it wont be too bad. Make sure the damage is minimal, don't put your faith in your defenses. Shutting down all electricity and wiring it down from floor 2 is great. I did the same. I put the heavy stuff up. I sacrificed a few things. But i forgot about the doors. I wish i had not forgotten that and took them out. They will swell up and get damaged once the water gets in.

Thanks for the advice. If water comes I'll take the doors off.

What about kitchen cabinets? They will surely be destroyed. We've just had a brand new kitchen with built in electric oven. I don't think I can remove all that by myself.

We have the compressors for the aircon standing on the ground and asked the technician to come and disconnect them so we could place them on higher ground. We made an appointment but on the day he cancelled as he was flooded in.

Do you guys sleep at nights?

I had kitchino kitchen cabinets. Thanks to typical thai craftsmanship i could pull them out. Later i will put them in again. Saved me a lot of money. I did this only at the last moment when i knew they were going to be ruined. I was supprised how easy it was to remove them without even damaging them that much.

If the water comes id cut of the compressor myself and put it up because it would be more expensive to fix a flooded one then a few pipes. Our compressors were always up high and dry so we still have aircon upstairs. Sleeping is not a problem.

It gets boring living on 2nd floor and not being able to leave the village. Water is dropping tomorrow the house will be dry and part of the cleaning will begin. The roads and streets are still flooded so cant dump my sofa and some cabinets or buy new stuff.

Our kitchen is from Modern Form and has some kind of moulded table top. I think this would be impossible to remove without breaking it.

How long have you been living on the 2nd floor? My sympathies to you. Hope your house is dry soon.

2 weeks now i guess. We had a granite kitchen sheet and under that there was concrete and in the concrete frame the cabinets were made. They were just fronts (most of them) so they were easily pulled out.

The water almost left our house tomorrow we are dry, not that it helps much when the roads and streets are still flooded. So i cant get the damaged stuff to the trash. Also cant buy new stuff to replace it. I will just have to wait longer for water to subside.

[jimbeam1]

As others have said, good strong boarding, fixed with plenty of Silicone. An other precaution if possible reinforce the boarding as extra strenthing against water pressure. Don't worry about how much silicone you use as you can buy a silicone remover or I think thinners works just as well?

jb1

[Litlos]

There was some info send around by my employer. It was all in Thai so binned and cannot post. Asking for a translation from the guys at work and looking at some of the pictures the brief is. Seal any openings as best you can, block all drains and WC connections, move everything to high ground as the water will probably come up through the floor anyway.

There was some information on removing power points, but I have read elswhere that this has been done after the fact reasonably effectively. If it was me I if I could not remove them before the flood. I would be replacing them after.

Latest brief is to be very careful after the flood and doing the cleanup as that water that found its way inside may have been contaminated by human waste or contact with dead/decaying animals. The local factory may also have not secured any poisons before the flood. So good idea to use some waterproof gloves for a while maybe, and a good wash with soap before eating etc. Best of luck to all affected.

Cheers

[Crossy]

The water almost left our house tomorrow we are dry, not that it helps much when the roads and streets are still flooded. So i cant get the damaged stuff to the trash. Also cant buy new stuff to replace it. I will just have to wait longer for water to subside.

That's good the hear Rob, we're not far away in Bangkadi and still have 3m of wet in the condo ground floor.

Luckily we're up on the 10th floor, or at least Wifey is, I just happened to be out of the country when the water arrived, so she's dry. Power has been off for 3 weeks, so the baby genset has been working overtime.

[robblok]

The water almost left our house tomorrow we are dry, not that it helps much when the roads and streets are still flooded. So i cant get the damaged stuff to the trash. Also cant buy new stuff to replace it. I will just have to wait longer for water to subside.

That's good the hear Rob, we're not far away in Bangkadi and still have 3m of wet in the condo ground floor.

Luckily we're up on the 10th floor, or at least Wifey is, I just happened to be out of the country when the water arrived, so she's dry. Power has been off for 3 weeks, so the baby genset has been working overtime.

Yea its good.. now that i see you online i got a question. The power sockets once they dry out are useable again ?

Anyway water is slowly receding, but it will be good once the house is dry because then we can start cleaing.

[Crossy]

Yea its good.. now that i see you online i got a question. The power sockets once they dry out are useable again ?

Anyway water is slowly receding, but it will be good once the house is dry because then we can start cleaing.

Yes, but give them plenty of time to dry out, you can speed things up by unscrewing them from the wall but leave them for at least a day or two after they look dry.

[geronimo]

I boarded up my front and back doors 6 days ago, future board with duct tape, then a canvas sheet with 50cm on the floor and then sandbags up to a metre. The first two days we were dry and then water started to seep in. I have now put up a second barrier (board and silicone) at the back. The front door is also leaking (we have to sponge up the water every two hours) but we have been living in this situation for nearly a week now, using a bedroom window as access (its a single storey house)and we'll stay as long as we have electricity and water. I think you should forget trying to stop the water getting into the surrounding area (your garden) and concentrate on bathroom and front and back doors.

Once the doors are sealed up, you should silicone inside the door as well.

[PattayaParent]

Im sure you cannot stop it entering your house slow it down maybe but it WILL get in one way or another, all this sandbagging stuff is nonsense. The only good way is to seal up as much as you can then PUMP out what does come in , but come in it will

I guess the toilets are the biggest problem. The is also the problem of cracks in the floor. I know water can get through almost anywhere.

The biggest problem with the toilets is that when you've barricaded yourself in, you've still got to shi_t, and where's it going to go?

[PattayaParent]

Seems almost impossible to keep water out. If I were to build a house I'd want one that floats, and attached to guideposts so that it stays in place as it rises with the water.

Now you konw why traditional Thai houses are built on stilts.

[Familyonthemove]

As several posters have mentioned - you need a pump.

Bricked up doorways and sandbags alone will not work for long. Eventually the water will either seep under the walls or come up through drains and toilets.

If you can - try to set up a 'sump' ... the lowest point inside your sandbagged/bricked up perimeter and have a pump working in the sump to get the water back out faster than it comes in,

Irrigation pumps with samll petrol motors are ideal, in case the power fails. They were available last week in some areas for 5000 THB, but they will be tough to buy now and much more expensive.

If you have no pump, then move everything valuable as high as possible.

[kurnell]

What have people been using to block toilets and drains? I have been reading that sand or rice bags work for toilets and that sticking a 1.5 metre PVC pipe into the drain and sealing it with silicone will work as water finds it's own level and there is not enough pressure for it to spill over the top.

[petedk]

What have people been using to block toilets and drains? I have been reading that sand or rice bags work for toilets and that sticking a 1.5 metre PVC pipe into the drain and sealing it with silicone will work as water finds it's own level and there is not enough pressure for it to spill over the top.

That's supposed to be the best solution.

The biggest problem with the toilets is that when you've barricaded yourself in, you've still got to shi_t, and where's it going to go?

Plastic bags. We've bought several hundred of them (then again we are eleven people in the house.) Disposing of them (if we get that far) won't be fun.

[Heng]

Sometimes you can't win if there are too many weak points in your house, elevation, convergence of city drain pipes, etc. The news has been full of stories of the well to do pouring pretty much unlimited funds into the defense of their homes and not succeeding. At the same time some have managed to protect their homes, but again, probably just a few more factors in their favor that kept them dry, not necessarily because of superior methodology. Sometimes the water just comes straight up through the tiles and yard.

.... the owner of Chokchai farms was one that came to mind. He had the whole plastic wrapped sandbag thing, 30 workers to man the defenses, diesel generators to run the water pumps (it looked like he had 5-6), and still ended up walking away from a flooded home.