Weather is one of the most uncontrollable causes of the need for drain repair in Toronto, and nothing beats a good El Nino year for the inconvenience. No, we aren’t talking about the fruity Hispanic beverage—we’re referring to the periodic weather pattern that brings warming of parts of the Pacific Ocean every few years.
Why El Nino Affects Weather
The El Nino effect on global weather is a response to milder-than-normal trade winds along with equatorial parts of the Pacific. This stops the deep water of the sea from welling up and mixing with the surface water, leading to higher temperatures of the upper levels. The warmer water evaporates more quickly and in greater quantities, affecting thunderstorms, showers and tropical rainstorms over a much wider area. Wind currents push these weather characteristics further afield, affecting weather wherever they land. In a region like Canada, this results in much larger quantities of rain rather than snow, simply because it isn’t cold enough to freeze.
How This Affects Your Home
With October 2015 having been the warmest Fall on record, it’s predicted the effects will persist into 2016. More rain equals more flooding, and that is a primary driver of drain repair in Toronto. It’s also a prime suspect in the development of mold, which grows insidiously anywhere it finds moisture in your home. Not only could you find yourself ending winter with the results of basement flooding, but you might also have foundation damage caused by a higher groundwater table. And of course, there’s every chance we’ll still get a deep freeze before winter’s over, which could serve to further inconvenience you by expanding and freezing the floodwaters to the point they break free from their confines.
Mold
There are literally hundreds of different types of mold, all rapidly growing and all damaging to your health. Don’t wait for it to get a foothold; find and eliminate it as soon as possible, and you’ll avoid non-essential expenditure. Examine your yard; look for slopes where debris flows have happened in the past. Check to see that the ground around your foundation slopes away from your home, not towards it. Protect your property with measures such as planting ground cover on slopes, and building retaining walls.
Flooding and Roofs
Living in Toronto you’re no doubt aware of the dangers of flooded basements, but there’s another weak point where flooding can occur: your roof. With the uptick in severe weather, having a roof that can withstand the strain of wind-driven rain, freezing rain, and snow is essential. Keep it that way by:
- Doing regular inspections.
- Identifying the main problem.
- Considering the installation of underlayments.
Prevention Methods
Your best method of avoiding the need to have drain repair in Toronto is to maintain your drains as well as possible. Start with a drain camera inspection at the earliest opportunity, and if it’s too late for this winter then get one done ahead of spring, anyway. Conduct repairs to any problems the inspection identifies, well before Spring rains start to arrive. Don’t wait until the only recourse you have is to blame El Nino for the problems you encounter.
Just because El Nino is effectively happening halfway across the world and in an ocean far, far away, it doesn’t mean that you won’t feel the effects right here in Toronto.
