A river runs through it.

[Rockey]

Thats a sentence you never want to see on a garage forum yet its all to true for me. I should have been building an ark rather than a detached garage. After many rain delays getting the footer dug and poured, the skies really let loose on Shandon Ohio this morning causing bad localized flooding. A creek about 100 ft b My neighbors down the street weretotally underwater ehind my garage spilled into this flood plain - see pics. The good news is that the storms are supposed to let up by Thursday.

 

[Rockey]

More pics. the first is my backyard. The next are the neighbors down the street. They closed the road further down for a few hours.

 

[whelenfan]

man that really *****. i hope that no one got hurt.

 

[DaleK]

Ooof. That's the kind of flow that can undermine your footers and make life complicated. Gives you a chance to take a second look and wonder where that water would have gone if the building was finished though.

 

[biker]

You better build that thing up high and dry will you can

 

[kburns]

At least this happned very early in the construction. I'd definitely look about moving to higher ground.

 

[eborcim]

At least this happned very early in the construction. I'd definitely look about moving to higher ground.

I second that motion!

 

[Scout Driver]

Another vote for higher ground

Scott

 

[OccupantRJ]

I truly feel your pain, though others can only imagine.
See http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=50169



It changed my whole life. 10 years later, and I'm still recovering and trying to get set back up.

Build it high, build it high............

 

[jay50]

Man, tell me you're not building in the middle of a flood plain....

 

[Rockey]

The first thing I talked about with a builder was my concerns of this area flooding. He told me to check withe the county to see if this is a flood plain. They verified that it is not on a flood plain. I went online and checked the county website that has a map of the county floodplains and it is not on a floodplain, but it still flooded. Anyway, I will talk to the builder making the wall about building it higher. What does this concsist of? Is it a matter of adding some blocks and filling everything up with dirt? Thanks for the advice so far.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

The first thing I talked about with a builder was my concerns of this area flooding. He told me to check withe the county to see if this is a flood plain. They verified that it is not on a flood plain. I went online and checked the county website that has a map of the county floodplains and it is not on a floodplain, but it still flooded. Anyway, I will talk to the builder making the wall about building it higher. What does this concsist of? Is it a matter of adding some blocks and filling everything up with dirt? Thanks for the advice so far.

Might want to put some drainage pipe around the exterior of the concrete and also an in-the-flow drain with sump pump?
Just plan for this to happen again.

 

[PurdueSD]

Yikes, flood plain or not... Its pretty obvious now that the area has flood potential. And imo it was pretty crappy of your builder to play down your concerns. He of all people is well aware of the pitfalls of all local zoning boards. I would not even think about putting my shop there. If you are determined you will at least need to have fill brought in and professionally compacted, then start over with your build. Sorry about your misfortunes. Is flood insurance offered in your area?

 

[Half Baked]

I live near Shandon and my Rain gauge read 3.25 inches from 6:00 am to 10:00 am

 

[sam 8]

Best of luck to you...I can't look at this and not tell you that were I in your shoes I would be seriously looking to relocate the building. Imagine what the loss could be if it were full of tools, cars, etc.

 

[PassnThru]

It's definitely a wake up call. It may never flood again like that in your lifetime - but you know the potential is there. You can build the wall up all you want - it's still going to get in through the doors and flood the garage.

 

[Rockey]

I can't relocate. My backyard consist of two leach fields that combine for 950 ln feet. My only other options are move it further back by the creek or build it higher like some mentioned.

Half Baked - where are you located?

 

[ZRX61]

The first thing I talked about with a builder was my concerns of this area flooding. He told me to check withe the county to see if this is a flood plain. They verified that it is not on a flood plain. I went online and checked the county website that has a map of the county floodplains and it is not on a floodplain,

Guess what? They're both 100% wrong. There's no way in hell I'd build there.

 

[GarageEnvy]

Guess what? They're both 100% wrong. There's no way in hell I'd build there.

Can it flood outside of a flood zone? Yes. What I think he is referring to is a FEMA designated flood zone, like Zone A or AO. Designations vary by region but it is possible to obtain elevation certifications in some cases for properties that are within designated flood zones. But yes, flood zone insurance is expensive and I wouldn't build in an area prone to flooding.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

Man, I wouldn't be able to sleep at night during a rain storm; wondering if my shop is going to float away. Seems like a high risk game of rolling the dice on that location.

Wonder if you could build it on some type of boat/floation device that would lift the shop up in case of high water....j/k

 

[Shadowdog500]

You have a waterfall falling from the surrounding ground down to your floor level. If I had do build in that location. I would have numerous truckloads of fill brought in to make the floor higher than all of the surrounding ground. Even if you don't flood again, you are probably going to have humidity problems in that garage from rain water pooling near your foundation if you don't make it "High and Dry".

Chris

 

[bmwpower]

Your gonna need tons and tons of fill to make that work...or so it seems.

How far back is the edge of your property? If you can't avoid the water, maybe you can direct it where you want it to go. Can you make your own rocklined storm drainage to force the water to go where you want it to? - around your garage and not through it.

 

[jkeyser14]

Around here you can get fill dirt anywhere from free to $50 a load. I would definitely raise the ground where you are planning to put the garage and put in new footers. A little extra time and money right now will save you a lot down the road. Just be glad the slab wasn't poured yet.

 

[xsponge]

What kinda footer do you have under them block, what I mean is how deep? Is just a simple base footing, or is it deeper? I am quessing in Ohio you will need atleast a 48" footer to avoid freeze/thaw heave. All is not lost yet.

 

[Will S.]

Don't be fooled when the water drys up, and think that all is well. If you are going to build there, you will need to do what the others have said; bring in probably 50, or more large truck loads of fill,, and create a plattaeu for the building site and driveway leading up to it. The fill will need to be vibratory-tamp compacted, in 4" layers, to be tight enough for building.

I'd also follow the advice to do what can be done to create a swail, or some way to channel future water, around/away from the building, and of course, a bed of crushed stone, sand and poly on the pad site, before pouring the floor.

Spend the extra now; it will be cheaper in the long run.

 

[Lippyp]

You could build it on stilts, put a four post lift in front to get the car in and out!

 

[Shadowdog500]

Shame Frank Lloyd Wright isn't around to design your garage. That waterfall by your foundation got me thinking of his Fallingwater home.

Chris

 

[scheu]

I'm with the others. If you can't move the garage to higher ground I'd bring in fill, compacted, and get the area up as high as pratical (driveway included). Also look into directing any possible future water around/away from the site. When I was a kid in PA we watched the Susquehanna river flood. Bad news.

 

[banzaitoyota]

Do not build there at that elevation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[nate379]

I'd haul in some gravel and build that area up a few feet. The $1000 you spend on gravel now will be cheap compared to the damage caused by a future flood!

 

[Gary S]

I built my garage in 2004. I'm on a slope that has an underground aquifer and a high water table. Before I did anything else, I rented a Bobcat and moved a lot of dirt. I dug a trench on the uphill side that sloped 90 degrees away from the garage wall. Everybody watching me thought I was crazy. I built the garage and lined the trench with gravel to flow lots of water, and there was no water anywhere near me. It looked crazy to do all that work.
In the summer of 2009 we got that 100 year rain. We got 6 inches the first day and over 10 inches in less than a week. And, this was on top of a record snowfall that had just melted off a month or so earlier raising my water table.
My drainage trench worked. Water poured out of the trench like a river during the heavy rains, and continued for 24 hours after the heavy rains stopped in spite of the fact that there was no surface water flowing anywhere. The underground aquifer was flowing and my trench intercepted all that water and diverted it around my garage. The garage never got a drop of water in it.
Good planning can head off most of these problems, and don't rely on the "experts" to give you the right way to do it. They don't know your personal situation. It is up to you to use your common sense and observations of what happens on your property to figure out the solution.
You can get it right the first time, or you can redo it the rest of your life trying to get it right.

 

[Rockey]

Im definitley going to have some fill dirt and lots of gravel brought in to build it up. In addition I will try to divert as much of the runoff as possible. One question - How high can I build the block wall? Are there limitations?

 

[Po'Boy]

Don't feel bad, you're just beginning. I am in the process of rebuilding the whole interior of my house, and garage. I had around 4" inside my entire home, and about a foot inside the garage. Flood insurance is your friend, however, I'm pretty sure detatched garages are not covered period. I got lucky, as mine is attatched. Flooding *****, and there is nothing you can do about it except watch. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[GarageEnvy]

Shame Frank Lloyd Wright isn't around to design your garage. That waterfall by your foundation got me thinking of his Fallingwater home.

Chris

Actually I think you're looking for the contractor on this one rather than the architect. The documentary I watched on this home indicated there was a disagreement about how to build the home. Contractor insisted it wouldn't work and architect insisted it be built as drawn. As I understand it the contractor built it his way and it is standing because of it. As drawn it would have failed. If that's true it certainly is ironic that the crown jewel from the premier American architect would have failed as designed. Sorry to digress.

 

[Mr. D]

Do not build there at that elevation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

X2, you are asking for nothing but trouble. You need MUCH more elevation.

 

[Bruce4310TX]

Your going to have too raise it, i had a area about 70 x 80 i had about 4000 yrds hauled in this winter it was that or worry about flooding. Maybe come fall or spring time it will be ready for construction no hurry i raised it about 15' at the highest area. Good luck

 

[WVBrady]

Actually I think you're looking for the contractor on this one rather than the architect. The documentary I watched on this home indicated there was a disagreement about how to build the home. Contractor insisted it wouldn't work and architect insisted it be built as drawn. As I understand it the contractor built it his way and it is standing because of it. As drawn it would have failed. If that's true it certainly is ironic that the crown jewel from the premier American architect would have failed as designed. Sorry to digress.

Even at that, there were structural problems. I saw a program where they were correcting the problem areas a couple of years ago.

 

[nate379]

Holy cow, here that would be about $60,000 in fill! ($10/ton)

Your going to have too raise it, i had a area about 70 x 80 i had about 4000 yrds hauled in this winter it was that or worry about flooding. Maybe come fall or spring time it will be ready for construction no hurry i raised it about 15' at the highest area. Good luck

 

[Tman]

Actually I think you're looking for the contractor on this one rather than the architect. The documentary I watched on this home indicated there was a disagreement about how to build the home. Contractor insisted it wouldn't work and architect insisted it be built as drawn. As I understand it the contractor built it his way and it is standing because of it. As drawn it would have failed. If that's true it certainly is ironic that the crown jewel from the premier American architect would have failed as designed. Sorry to digress.

Both failed, the cantilevers were failing drastically adn they had to do a serious restoration years back.

 

[Bruce4310TX]

Holy cow, here that would be about $60,000 in fill! ($10/ton)

I worked a deal before X-mas When business was slow, i got loads delivered at at $55 a load 25-30 yard loads. So for about $6000 i got my dirt i bought direct from the dirt pit no markup about 1.55 yard. and payed the truck by the load.