Water damage is the second-most-common cause of homeowner's insurance claims. Photo courtesy of asim chowdhury.

It’s every homeowner’s nightmare.

Ryan S. was relaxing in his favorite chair one evening with a bag of chips and his favorite TV show, waiting to put a load of laundry on the dryer. He suddenly heard water splashing and ran into the bathroom to find filthy water flowing out of the bathtub drain and pouring out of the toilet, rushing towards the lovingly-refinished hardwood floor in the hallway. A clog in a drain pipe buried in Ryan’s yard had caused a disgusting and costly backup into his beloved home when his washing machine started to drain.

According to the Insurance Information Institute, water damage is the second-most-common culprit behind homeowner’s insurance claims. And water damage isn’t cheap–even a problem as basic as a malfunctioning toilet costs an average of $2,000 to $10,000 per incident when it leads to a water overflow. Practicing good home maintenance can keep your home from becoming a water damage statistic.

Prevent costly water damage from happening to you by using these five key strategies for maintaining your home both inside and out.

Inside your home:

Keep your plumbing in good working order. For most of us, our homes’ pipes are something we never think about until they fail. Plumbing can and does fail, though, and the damage caused by overflowing drains or burst pipes can cost thousands of dollars.

The best way to deal with plumbing problems is to prevent them or repair them before a catastrophe happens. The Institute for Business and Home Safety recommends checking your pipes at least once a year for condensation or damage, and calling a plumber if you see signs of leakage such as warped flooring. They also recommend calling a plumber if you notice your toilets and drains starting to back up, before a complete blockage can cause overflow into your house. You should also pay close attention to your water bill if you use city water, since a big increase can be a sign of a plumbing leak or a problem with the toilet or water heater. If you have a well, check for leaks if you notice your water pump running when no one is using any water.

If you live in a climate of winter freezes, insulate any pipes in your basement, attic or crawlspace to prevent bursting. Leave the cabinet doors under your sinks open when the temperature drops well below freezing to keep the pipes warm.

Maintain your appliances. The Institute for Business and Home Safety found in a study that faulty toilets, sinks, washing machines, sump pumps and water heaters are responsible for many insurance claims due to water damage. They recommend checking your toilet’s flushing mechanism and your washing machine’s water supply hoses every six months, and they warn against leaving the house while your washer is running. Flush sediment from your water heater every six months, and have a professional inspect the anode rod every two years to prevent leaking or bursting. Inspect your sinks’ plumbing and shutoff valve every six months, as well as the water supply hose to your icemaker. Test your shower stall pan once a year, and follow the manufacturer’s instructions for caring for your sump pump.

Outside your home:

Maintain proper surface drainage around your home. Water pooling around your home can cause your basement to leak, and can even do serious damage to your home’s foundation. According to the Foundation Repair Association, pooling water is usually the culprit when expanding soil causes a home’s foundation to crack. Water flows downhill, so proper land grading around your home will cause water to flow away from your home and prevent pooling around the foundation.

The contractors who built your home would have (hopefully) made sure the land around the foundation had the proper grade, but soil moves over time and can change its slope and cause a problem. Landscaping expert David Beaulieu recommends a drop of six inches in the first ten feet of soil around your home, and he describes an easy way to check the grading around your home using string, two stakes, a tape measure and a string level.

Make sure your gutters and downspouts are doing their jobs. Your home’s gutters and downspouts route rain water away from your home’s foundation. If a gutter does not have the right slope or a downspout becomes clogged, you can end up with water damage.

The Foundation Repair Association recommends checking all gutters and downspouts each spring and fall, and more often if you have trees near the house. They recommend a fall of at least one inch for every eight feet of gutter to prevent water pooling in the gutter. If a single gutter is more than 35 feet long, slope it downwards in both directions from the center. Pour water into the gutters and watch to make sure there is no pooling, and check for clogs at the joint between the gutter and downspout. Make sure the downspout discharges water at least 5 feet from your home’s foundation.

Check your roof. According to a study by the Institute for Business and Home Safety, leaky roofs are the most frequent cause of water damage to homes. They recommend hiring a professional to inspect your roof once a year to make sure the roof covering, flashing, parapets and drainage system are all in good shape. They also recommend insulating to keep heat from your home out of your attic if you live in an area prone to freezes and thaws.

Has your home suffered costly water damage? Tell us your story.

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Wet & Forget partners with Mother Nature to clean up exterior moss, mold, mildew and algae. But what if Mother Nature isn’t cooperating?

If you find unwanted growths lurking around the exterior of your home but you’re going through a dry spell with no rain, no worries! Wet & Forget can still effectively clean-up the exterior of your home. You just need to make your own rain.

Simply apply Wet & Forget to the contaminated area and forget about it for 2 weeks. After the 2 week period, you can then start to spray the treated surface with water every couple weeks. Keep doing this until Mother Nature decides to cooperate or until the growth completely disappears. You can use the same pump up garden sprayer used to apply Wet & Forget or your garden hose if it has a good trigger sprayer. No pressure washing equipment is required for the waterings, as your goal is just to make sure the surface comes in contact with water. If you live in a coastal area where you wake to morning dew, this moisture will be sufficient, and you can skip the waterings.

What if you’ve applied Wet & Forget to a surface but you realize every time it rains the surfaces doesn’t come in contact with the rain?

This is common with covered porches, eaves and the underside of awnings. Again the solution is simple. Just follow the same steps provided above until the mold and mildew completely disappear.

If you’re looking for a way to easily clean-up moss, mold, mildew and algae pick-up some Wet & Forget today! Click here to find a Wet & Forget retailer near you.

Photo Courtesy of ShuttrKing|KT

Outdoor spring cleaning sets the stage for your summer fun.

2. Clean outdoor surfaces without scrubbing – Over time, wood and composite decking, concrete, railings, awnings and outdoor furniture can accumulate mold, moss, mildew and algae. An environmentally-sensitive mold and mildew cleaner like Wet & Forget works over time to gently remove outdoor stains on virtually any exterior surface without scrubbing. Perfect for mildew and mold removal, the non-caustic, non-acidic and bleach-free, biodegradable formula can easily be applied with a pump garden sprayer instead of a more labor-intense power washer. The multi-surface outdoor cleaner reduces water usage and designed for use around landscaping plants.
 
3. Spruce up your view – Clean windows not only brighten the interior of your home, they can make the exterior look fresher, too. Spring is a great time to remove screens (if you haven’t stored them for the winter) and give them a good cleaning. Hosing them off should do the trick, but if they’re very dirty try cleaning with a little soapy water and a soft scrub brush. Before you replace the screens, give the windows a good cleaning. Arm yourself with lots of paper towels and a good glass cleaner. One that contains vinegar will be effective and eco-friendly if you’re concerned about exposing your landscaping to harsh chemicals. Be sure to clean the outside of your windows first. It will make another popular spring cleaning chore – washing the inside of windows – a bit easier.
 
4. Take care of your tools – Yard work and gardening are realities of warm weather. All your landscape maintenance chores will be easier if your tools are clean and in good repair. Unload the tool shed or garage of all the equipment you’ll use this summer – from rakes and hoes to lawn mowers and trimmers. While you probably cleaned your garden tools before you stored them for winter, they’ll still have accumulated dust – and possibly rust – from sitting idle for so many months. Clean rust spots and dirt from metal tools, and use a coating of mineral oil to ensure the rust doesn’t return. Clean lawn mower and trimmer blades, and replace the line on string trimmers. Get blades sharpened if necessary, and run through all the maintenance tasks recommended in the manufacturer’s handbook for your power equipment.

If you’re looking for an easy to use and effective patio cleaner, look no further. Wet & Forget will clean any type of patio surface from limestone, brick pavers to composite decks. Wet & Forget will also clean up mold and mildew from your patio furniture, awnings, umbrellas, outdoor rugs, planters and anything else situated on your patio that might be prone to algae, moss, mold and mildew. Wet & Forget contains no bleach or caustic chemicals making it safe for even your most delicate outdoor fabrics.

If you’re planning for that spring graduation or summer party now is the time to get outside and apply Wet & Forget. You just need a dry day when temperatures are at least 32 degrees with no expected rain for at least 4-5 hours. Simply dilute Wet & Forget and apply to the surface with your pump up garden spray. That’s it! There’s no rinsing, no scrubbing and no powerwashing. You just spray and walk away!

Then you can get back to planning your spring and summer events and Wet & Forget will go to work with the wind and rain to gently clean all your patio surfaces. You’ll notice over the next several weeks and months the surface getting cleaner and cleaner.

So if you want a gentle and effective patio cleaner that doesn’t require alot of time and elbow grease then pick-up your bottle of Wet & Forget today! Click here to find a Wet & Forget retailer near you!

Photo courtesy of Gregs Landscaping Flickr account.

Bluebells (Mertensia virginica) bloom in the spring and thrive in hardiness zones 4a to 9a. Image © Melissa Sandoval

If you’ve searched the internet for shrubs, perennials or shade plants, no doubt you’ve run across the term “hardiness zones.” Not every website tells you what these are or how to use them, though. Knowing which zone you live in and understanding how hardiness zones work is essential for gardening and landscaping your property.

For example, Melissa wanted to buy her mom a flower for Mother’s Day that she could enjoy for years to come. Melissa bought her mom a beautiful “Hershey Red” azalea, which Mom happily planted in her yard. Melissa’s mom lived in western Ohio, however, which is in hardiness zone 6a, while “Hershey Red” azaleas thrive in hardiness zones 6b through 8b. The “Hershey Red” died the first winter. Melissa did her homework the next time and bought her mom a gorgeous “Rosy Lights” azalea (zones 4a through 8a) which still blooms in Mom’s yard every year.

How to Find Your Zone

The USDA divides the US into 13 hardiness zones, which they further divide into “a” and “b” areas. The different growing zone numbers represent the average annual extreme minimum temperature (AAEMT) for the area, which is the lowest you could expect the temperature to drop on the coldest winter day. Each zone number covers a ten-degree range. For example, zone 1 in Alaska has an AAEMT of -60 to -50, while zone 13 in Puerto Rico has an AAEMT of 60 to 70. The USDA uses temperature data from 1976 to 2005 to determine hardiness zones. They post an interactive map of the zones on their website, where you can click on your state to see the map of its hardiness zones, or enter your zip code to find out which zone you live in.

What the Zones Mean

The USDA zones are a guideline for choosing any type of perennial plant for your property, from flowers to shade trees. Most nurseries include the hardiness zone number on the information sheet for the plants they sell, along with the plants’ needs for soil type, sunlight and water. A local nursery probably won’t sell you a tree or shrub that wouldn’t survive in your climate, but not knowing your zone could be a costly and frustrating mistake if you order online or through a catalog.

The National Gardening Association says that the USDA hardiness zone map is a good tool for the eastern US. They point out that the map has limitations, though, such as not accounting for the effects of insulating snow cover, freeze-thaw cycles or water drainage patterns during winter months. They also warn that the hardiness zone map isn’t as effective for the western US, where differences in ocean currents and elevation can have large impacts on plant hardiness.

What will you be planting this year?

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Your house is your most valuable possession, so choosing the right contractor is essential.

As spring approaches, many of us are thinking about updating the kitchen or re-designing the bathroom. If you’re not afraid to get a little dirty, you can do quite a bit of the work yourself. It’s important to know when to draw the line, though, and sometimes it’s worth it to plunk down the dough and call in a professional.

You can’t trust your home to just anybody, and we’ve all seen the home improvement nightmares that end up on TV judge shows. In order to have a painless, not-too-expensive process and end up happy with the results, there are some things you should look out for when you hire a professional to work on your house.

1. Who to Call
   Instead of just opening the yellow pages and picking out which name you like best, ask around. If a friend, relative, neighbor or co-worker has had work done, ask if he got a good price and liked the results. Make sure, though, that your friend is recommending the contractor based on work performance, and not because the contractor is his brother-in-law. Otherwise, you could end up with a less-than-stellar contractor whom it would be very awkward to fire. Ratings websites like Angie’s List are another option for researching contractors. Also, make sure to get estimates from more than one contractor so you can find the right fit and the right price.

 

2. Check Them Out
   Before you make an agreement with a contractor, be sure to do your research. It is illegal for a contractor to operate without a license, and licensing agencies register complaints against contractors. Every state has its own licensing agency for contractors, so real estate blogger Vera Gibbons recommends using a website such as contractors-license.org. Also verify that the contractor has both liability and worker’s comp insurance in case something goes wrong, and that he uses bonded employees. Make sure the contractor is also in good standing with the Better Business Bureau.

 

3. Are You Compatible?
   It may sound a little touchy-feely for a home improvement project, but good communication is key to making sure you get the results you want. As you show him the job, make sure he listens to you and is on the same page about your goals for your house. Make sure your personalities and attitudes about the work are a good match.
   
   Don’t forget that your prospective contractor is sizing you up, as well. Homeowner Gilbert S. has noticed that every contractor he has dealt with has asked him two questions: How long he has lived in the house, and what he does for a living. “They act like they’re just being sociable, but what they really want to know is, how much equity you have in the house and how much money you make,” Gilbert says. Keep the focus on the job and what the contractor can do for you, and don’t seem too eager to pay “whatever it takes.”

 

4. Get it in Writing
   Vera Gibbons recommends signing a contract, no matter how small the job is. Make sure the contract lists in detail all of the aspects of the project, so both you and the contractor are clear on what you expect. Also make sure the contract includes an itemization of the price, and a promise to check with you if price needs to be increased for any reason.

 

What is most important to you in a contractor?

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Worm composting is a natural way to nourish your plants.

You may not have a lot going on in your garden this time of year, but you can create nutrient-rich compost in the warm indoors using worm composting. Worms make compost for your garden the natural way, by processing the nutrients in your table scraps into a form your plants can absorb. The result nourishes your plants, costs less than the stuff you buy at the store and saves your garbage disposal some work. It’s also a fun biology lesson for the kids!

Starting worm composting is surprisingly easy–no agriculture degree required. All you need are shallow boxes, leaves or wet strips of newspaper for bedding, food scraps, and “red wiggler” worms. Jen Fong and Paula Hewitt at Cornell University recommend boxes that measure approximately 24″ X 18″ X 8″, since red wigglers like to live close to the surface of the soil. You can buy special worm boxes, make your own wooden boxes and line them with plastic or use any plastic container that is the right size. The box needs to have a rodent-proof lid and air holes. Red wiggler worms (scientific name Eisenia foetida or Lumbricus rubellus) are readily available at gardening shops and online.

After you fill your boxes with moist bedding, place them in a warm, dark environment and put the worms on top. Once the worms have crawled into the bedding, you can add food scraps to one corner of the box and cover them with bedding. Good food scraps for worm composting include tea bags, egg shells, coffee grounds, raw fruits and raw vegetables. Fong and Hewitt warn not to add meat or other animal products, which will get smelly and attract pests. Use a straw of fork to mark where you added the scraps and use a different corner each week.

When the worms have been at work for three to five months, it is time to harvest your compost and add fresh, new bedding for the worms. One easy method is to move all the materials to one side of the box and add fresh bedding to the empty side. Add scraps only to the fresh bedding, and allow the compost side to dry out. After one to two weeks, the worms will move over to the fresh bedding, allowing you to remove the compost without disturbing them. Use the compost in your lawn or garden, or mix 1/3 compost with 1/3 soil and 1/3 vermiculite to make potting soil.

What type of compost do you use for your garden?

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Wet & Forget is a gentle solution for cleaning outdoor fabrics such as awnings, rugs, patio umbrellas and hammocks.

Outdoor fabrics can enhance the beauty of the exterior of your home and your outdoor living spaces. When you stop and think about it there are a variety of outside areas where fabric is present- awnings, rugs, patio furniture, hammocks and umbrellas. Unfortunately, fabrics are prone to be a breeding ground for mildew, moss and mold since they are exposed to the elements and many are situated in shaded areas. As you can imagine, we receive many inquiries about the use of Wet & Forget to help eliminate unsightly growths on fabrics. Some of the more popular inquires are cleaning moss from awnings and removing mildew from patio umbrellas. Many customers are on a quest to find a cleaning solution that won’t sacrifice the integrity of the fabric or cause fading.

We’re always excited to tell customers, Wet & Forget is the perfect solution for their outdoor fabrics. Since Wet & Forget is a very gentle product with no bleach and no caustic chemicals you don’t have to worry about damaging fabric threads or any type of fading that would usually occur with the variety of outdoor mold and mildew remover products on the market today. Applying Wet & Forget is a simple task, just spray it and forget it! Wet & Forget will work with the wind and rain to gently remove those pesky growths.

So, this spring when you start to put your outdoor living spaces back together, take a closer look at your outdoor fabrics -are they starting to show signs of growth? The earlier you catch them, the sooner Wet & Forget can bring them back to their original state of beauty. Click here to find a Wet & Forget retailer near you!

Winter is the perfect time to formulate your game plan for the year ahead.

Here at Wet & Forget, we believe that wintertime is the perfect time to formulate your game plan for the year ahead. While we’re gearing up for Super Bowl Sunday and preparing to eat our share of the 1.25 billion wings Americans are expected to put away on game night, we’re also thinking about what outdoor projects we are going to tackle once the weather warms up.

For example, Melissa is busy picking out which types of heirloom tomato seedlings she will plant in a few short weeks, and she plans to rehab her front porch with Wet & Forget outdoor mold and mildew remover for the concrete and a fresh coat of paint for the wrought-iron railings. Her “good as new” porch will be the perfect place to watch the sunset with her sweetheart on those warm summer evenings we’re all looking forward to.

Here are some other 2012 plans we’ve been hearing about:

Justin F.

“I’ll be planting lettuce arugula and peas in the spring, but I’ll be doing cover crops for the summer. Looking forward to playing in the yard with the kids and taking them hiking.”

Dean N.

“Mowing… as little as possible.”

Rachel S.

“To roll around in the green grass with my baby boy and get into everything; this will be the first summer he will be able to go outside and enjoy it.”

Amy S.

“I love lavender… planted some last year for the second time- the first year it got eaten. This year I’m putting more perennials in the flowerbeds along the side of the house and maybe digging a new bed out back.”

David E.

“It will be nice when the weather warms up in April and I can go walking in Sugar Creek Reserve. I love the smell of the honeysuckle.”

What outdoor projects do you plan to tackle in 2012?

Deb was looking for rain, and the weather certainly did not disappoint!

“Hi, I applied just like the directions told me to and got very good results. I let Wet & Forget dry for 6 hours (ed note: we advise a drying time of at least 4 to 5 hours) on an overcast day. We were expecting rain. We got it alright, nearly 12 inches!

A freak tropical storm hung over Central Florida and we received an abnormal amount, even more than a hurricane would bring. No one could remember us getting so much. So, I’m happy quite a bit of the mold has already disappeared off my double wide driveway that runs 50 yards back. We are on nearly an acre of land and the driveway runs halfway through. We bought another container and spread the word to my Mom, who bought and sprayed just days ago on her porch area.

Thanks so much. Wet & Forget is better for the environment and we are very cautious about the effects products have on our ecosystem.”

-Deb, FL

Thank you to Deb for such kind words, and we’re glad she stayed safe during the crazy storm!

Ready to try Wet & Forget for yourself? We have two steps for you:

1. Head to wetandforget.com and download your $5 rebate.
2. Visit our online store locator to find a retailer near you.