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From YouTube: The Ins and Outs of Moisture - Around Your Home
Description
Water, in one form or another, causes 95% of the maintenance problems around the home. Join Nancy Ostergaard with Cooperative Extension as she explains what causes these problems and how to solve them.
A
Hi
Nancy
ostergaard
and
I'd
like
to
welcome
you
to
another
episode
of
on
the
home
front,
this
segment
I'm
going
to
review
some
areas
of
your
home
where
water
may
be
a
problem
and
show
you
how
you
can
solve
the
problem.
Did
you
know
that
water
in
one
form
or
another,
causes
ninety-five
percent
of
the
maintenance
problems
in
and
around
your
home?
Let's
start
with
the
exterior
of
your
home.
A
Gutters
are
often
out
of
sight
and
out
of
mind,
but
if
they
are
clogged
with
leaves
are
not
slow
properly,
it
will
cause
water
to
back
up
and
not
flow
properly.
When
this
happens,
water
will
overflow
and
the
following
can
occur.
Water
will
run
towards
the
house
into
the
ground
and
then
into
the
basement
or
crawlspace.
Water
will
pull
on
the
ground
and
be
a
breeding
space
for
mosquitoes
or
the
excess
water
will
erode
the
soil
and
damage
your
yard.
A
The
solution
is
simple:
just
clean
your
gutters
and
estella
screen
over
the
gutters
to
keep
out
the
debris.
There
are
several
different
types
of
screening
materials
on
the
market
such
as
these
two
one
is
the
rolling
screen
which
all
you
do
is
have
to
unroll
it
and
then
place
it
onto
the
gutter.
The
other
is
the
snappy
and
gutter
guards
such
as
this,
where
you
just
snap
it
in
place,
and
it
comes
in
different
sections.
A
The
other
thing
is
detect
your
gutters
for
the
proper
pitch
and
remount
the
gutters,
if
necessary,
the
proper
slope
for
the
gutter
is
a
half-inch
for
every
ten
foot
of
length.
Don't
forget
your
downspouts,
because
they
should
carry
water
at
least
six
feet
away
from
the
house
if
you
are
using
the
flexible
pipe
at
the
end
of
your
downspout
and
move
it
each
time,
your
mole
don't
forget
to
replace
it.
So
the
rainwater
is
carried
away
from
your
foundation.
A
Flowerbeds
such
as
this
axe
does
the
catch
basin
for
rainwater
and
should
be
kept
at
least
three
feet
from
the
foundation
in
an
ideal
situation.
This
would
be
grass
up
against
the
foundation
instead
of
a
flower
bed.
There
places
where
the
siding
and
the
doorframe
come
together,
or
here
where
the
window
frame
and
the
siding
come
together
are
not
sealed
properly.
Water
could
enter
these
areas
and
lead
to
wood
rodding
and
the
paint
appeal.
This
is
a
simple
solution.
A
By
doing
some
caulking
in
this
area,
also,
where
you
have
breaks
and
cracks
in
siding,
can
also
lead
to
water
getting
in
another.
The
other
solution
for
this
would
be
also
the
and
to
have
some
repair
to
the
siding.
If
necessary,
weathered
window
seals,
absorb
water,
causing
more
paint,
peeling
and
wood
rot.
If
you
need
to
scrape
and
paint
the
seals
as
often
as
needed,
the
sole
poor
grade
around
the
foundation
can
also
be
a
problem
for
water
coming
into
into
the
basement
or
crawlspace.
A
After
years
of
adding
mulcher
soil
to
flower
beds
around
the
home,
the
greater
slope
may
not
be
going
away
from
the
house
as
it
once
was,
if
not
grated
properly
away
from
the
house,
water
will
flow
toward
the
basement
or
crawlspace
will
will
enter
the
foundation
to
check
the
slope
around
the
house.
Take
a
carpenter's
level
to
a
straight
8
foot
long
to
buy
for
such
as
I
have
done
here
for
the
proper
grade.
A
The
outside
of
the
two-by-four
should
be
a
minimum
of
six
inches
off
the
ground
when
you
place
it
against
the
house,
if
not
add
soil
around
the
foundation,
to
increase
the
grade
away
from
the
foundation
break
the
soil,
smooth
and
recheck.
Also,
while
you're
doing
this,
if
you
have
concrete,
slabs
or
patios
and
sidewalks
remember,
they
should
also
slope
away
from
the
foundation
to
carry
the
water
away
from
the
house.
A
In
order
to
fix
a
moisture
problem
in
a
basement,
you
need
to
know
the
source
of
the
moisture,
a
low-tech,
yet
effective
method
to
find
out
where
the
moisture
is
coming
from
is
to
cut
a
few
pieces
of
12
by
12
squares
of
aluminum,
foil
or
thick
plastic
such
as
I
have
done
here
and
tape
them
to
various
locations
on
your
basement.
Wall,
wait
for
several
hours
and
then
check
for
condensation.
A
If
the
condensation
is
on
the
room
side
of
the
plastic
or
the
aluminum
foil,
it
means
that
the
moisture
is
coming
from
within
the
room
itself
to
remedy
that
problem.
A
dehumidifier
or
your
whole
house.
Air
conditioner,
if
it's
properly
sized,
should
take
care
of
the
problem.
If
the
underside
of
the
foil
or
the
plastic
is
where
the
moisture
is
occurring,
it
means
that
the
moisture
is
moving
in
through
the
wall
or
the
floor
from
the
soil.
You
need
to
start
checking
the
outside
to
see
where
the
moisture
could
be
coming
from
some
areas.
A
To
begin
with
would
be
to
check
your
gutters
for
debris,
make
sure
the
downspouts
are
carrying
water,
the
minimum
of
six
feet
from
the
foundation
and
checking
the
foundation
grade.
It's
also
important
to
avoid
heavy
watering
of
foundation
plans.
Additional
waterproofing
may
also
be
necessary.
There
are
numerous
steps
you
can
take
to
reduce
moisture
accumulation
in
your
basement.
Try
these
simple
steps:
seal
the
outside
basement
door,
gaps
around
plumbing,
pipe
entrances,
venture
dryer
exhaust
outside
keep
the
upstairs
basement
door
closed,
close
and
seal.