A few FloodSax alternative sandbags saved a Canadian couple tens of thousands of dollars in flood damage.
Water started to seep into their home in Alberta but Barbara McInerney simply dropped FloodSax onto the water which stopped it in its tracks by soaking it up.
It meant the water couldn’t spread and cause untold damage to floors, electrics, plasterboard and furniture along with fixtures and fittings.
In their dry state FloodSax are super-absorbent yet thin with a large surface area so are highly effective at soaking up drips, leaks, spills and floods inside homes and businesses, especially in hard-to-reach places such as beneath pipes, radiators, sinks and boilers. They also soak up floodwater dripping in through leaky roofs and windows.
When FloodSax are fully immersed in water they absorb around 20 litres and retain it, transforming them from being as light as a pillowcase to being more effective than traditional sandbags in around five minutes.
Barbara bought the FloodSax after her home in High River suffered a devastating flood in 2013.
She said: “Our 2,000 square feet basement was flooded with 5.5ft of water. We lost everything and the basement had to be torn out to the concrete walls and rebuilt which was a very expensive proposition.
“I have been storing four boxes of FloodSax in my basement ever since. After a very dry spring this year it started to rain on Friday, June 20, ironically, the day of the 12th anniversary of the 2013 flood.
“It rained steadily and, at times, torrentially for more than 36 hours. Although there was no real danger of widespread flooding, this time the rain was so heavy I started to get water seeping into my basement.
“I threw old towels down but they became overwhelmed after a while. Then I remembered the FloodSax, still in unopened boxes. I threw down about half a dozen on the basement floor in the utility room and was delighted to see them cope with the seepage with no seepage to other areas.
“Fortunately, this was only in our utility room. The basement is developed with a bedroom, bathroom and gym and big screen TV room so it would have been quite costly had the water travelled further.”
Barbara added: “I will be 80 in a couple of months and my husband has dementia so I had to cope with this alone. I was able to manage the FloodSax by myself and found them very, very easy to use and very effective.
“FloodSax are a great product.”