Basement Flooding in Windsor: Two Record Storms, One Subsidy Program and the Fixes That Work

Three kinds of flooding on flat ground

Sewer backup arrives from below, at the floor drain, a basement toilet or the laundry standpipe, during or just after a heavy storm, and smells like sewage; Windsor’s older areas on combined sewers and its low east side were hit hardest in 2016 and 2017. Groundwater arrives at the wall-floor joint and through cracks after long rains and in the spring thaw; Windsor’s clay holds water against foundations. Surface water comes over window wells and under doors where the lot has settled toward the house, common on the flat subdivisions.

Photograph where the water first appeared and when. That answer decides whether you need a plumber, a waterproofer, a landscaper, or a call to the City at 311 about the connection.

The Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy Program

The City of Windsor’s program contributes toward the cost of protective work at eligible homes: installing a backwater valve on the sanitary lateral, installing a sump pump and pit and disconnecting the weeping tile from the sanitary sewer, and disconnecting downspouts from the sewer. The work must be done by a licensed plumber under a City plumbing permit and inspected, and the subsidy is claimed after completion. The eligible amounts and rules change; read the City’s current program page before signing a quote.

A backwater valve closes when the sewer surcharges so sewage cannot flow back into the house; while it is closed nothing in the house drains, so do not run water during a storm. A sump pump moves groundwater from the foundation drain outside instead of into the sewer; a battery backup is worth its cost because the storms that flood Windsor basements also cut the power. Downspout disconnection is the cheapest item and often the most effective.

• Eligibility confirmed on the City’s program page
• Licensed plumber and City plumbing permit number
• Camera inspection recording and locate
• Itemized invoice for valve, pump and downspout work
• Subsidy claim submitted after completion

Who owns which pipe

In Windsor the owner is responsible for the sewer lateral on private property up to the property line, and the City for the section in the road allowance to the main. A camera inspection with a locate tells you which side a break or root blockage is on; if it is the City’s side, call 311, and if it is yours, the repair is yours. Keep the recording, because an insurer will want it for a sewer backup claim.

After 2016 and 2017, insurers in Windsor tightened sewer backup terms and some raised deductibles or withdrew coverage in the worst-hit postal codes. Check what your policy covers, and ask whether a backwater valve and sump pump change the premium; often they do.

Clay, older houses and cheap fixes first

Windsor’s pre-war houses in Walkerville, Sandwich and the core often have clay weeping tile that silted up decades ago and brick foundations that clay-held water passes through; waterproofing there is excavation, a membrane and new drainage. Post-war houses across the east and south have weeping tile a sump system can serve. In every case, disconnect and extend the downspouts and correct the settled grading before spending on anything underground; on flat clay, the water you keep away from the wall is water that never gets in.