How Your Home’s Hidden Dangers Ruin Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a day many people look forward to that kicks off the winter holiday season by gathering with friends and loved ones to catch up, eat delicious food, cheer on their favorite football teams, and even play football in the backyard.
If you are hosting the get-together this year, is your house ready? Simply vacuuming and putting out a fresh set of towels isn’t enough; you have to look deeper. While typical mishaps that drain the holiday spirit include fires, political arguments, and guests who overindulge in adult beverages, something else could be happening under your floors and behind your walls. Your home itself could ruin Thanksgiving.
Let’s follow this fictional family to learn how home damage could kill this joyous holiday, and what can be done to fix it with the help of your local Groundworks company.
Make Sure Guests Arrive Safely. Don’t Let Them Trip on Uneven Concrete.
As sunlight streams in through open curtains and tempting scents of turkey and pumpkin pie fill the air, your home is awash in the simple pleasures of a beautiful Fall day. Even though you and your spouse are scrambling to wrap up the cooking and cleaning before guests arrive, you take a moment to count your blessings as you eagerly await celebrating the holiday with loved ones.
Outside you hear a car approach the house, and you peek at who it is. Grandpa Joe and Grandma Lillian! You hurry out to greet them, but shortly after, Grandpa Joe takes a tumble as his walker gets caught on uneven concrete along your driveway and walkway. Concerned for his well-being, you all agree that Grandma Lillian should take him to the hospital to get checked out.
After all, you heard once that one out of four people 65 and over falls each year, and broken bones, head injury, or other serious harm happens in one out of five falls. Maybe it’s time to get that concrete checked out for Grandpa Joe’s safety and your own. But you can worry about that after the holidays, right?
Unlike Dust Bunnies, Wall Cracks Can’t Always Be Hidden
As more family members begin to arrive, your spouse and children greet and entertain so you can finish prepping the meal. But you hear Aunt Pearl’s unmistakable voice and know you’ll be in trouble. No, you didn’t have time to dust everything, but she’s got her white gloves out to inspect your home, being the immaculate neat freak that she is.
You hear a huff of disapproval, but not from a few dust bunnies. She looks above your mantle to see a crack in the wall by the window. Not one to keep things to herself, she calls you over to make sure you know about it. Ok, Aunt Pearl, we’ll get to that later. Funny, you have noticed some cracks in the drywall before.
Don’t Let Uneven Floors, Nasty Smells, and Bugs Sour the Mood
As your loved ones tear themselves away from the football game on in the family room and make their way into the dining room, you can hear rattling coming from the hutch with the dishes and other stored items. That’s nothing new, but you also feel a slight dip in the floor. Never mind, let’s eat.
You begin placing food on the table, and the bowl with the rolls slides off and tumbles and spills all over the floor. You lay the turkey platter on the table, and it starts to slide off too! Quick, grab it before there’s no main course! That was a close one. Is one of these table legs shorter or is the floor uneven? Ok, let’s place an old book underneath to even things out for now.
Everything smells so delicious, and you can’t wait to get your hands on that pumpkin pie! Your mouth waters at the thought, but it doesn’t last long. Your nose upturns and you sniff the air again. Yuck! What is that? Where’s it coming from, from the basement below? You catch a whiff of something that smells nasty and musty. Now you don’t feel so hungry, as the overpowering scent permeates your nostrils.
As your face twists in disgust, you look across the table and see Grandma June has the same pained expression. You catch her eye, as well, and while she’ll finish the meal, she vows to never return to your filthy house. Confused and hurt, you look to where she is pointing, and there are bugs crawling up the wall! You reach for the bug spray, but you know where there’s one, there’s always more. You know pests are common in many homes, but you didn’t think yours was one of them. Great, what else can possibly happen today?
Basement Mold Is Not a Toy
Somehow after putting out those fires, everyone still manages to finish their meals, but there’s been a shift in the mood. Now it’s time to clean up, more than you realize. As the adults gather to finish watching the big game, the kids want something to do. You’ve got the space and games in the basement, so you suggest the kids go down there to play.
Once the leftovers are wrapped up and the dishes washed, your little niece Susie runs upstairs to show you a picture she drew of what she saw in the basement. It looks like some green and black in the shape of a monster. What does this mean? Upon investigating for yourself, your gut tells you it’s unhealthy mold on the walls. And is that water in the corner near the mold? You thought there could be some water trickling in your basement, but there’s nothing you can do about it today of all days. Let’s just get the kids out of the basement and outside to play.
The kids start to run around and shoot hoops, but a couple of them start tripping on the uneven concrete. You immediately remember Grandpa Joe’s bad fall and want to avoid any more mishaps for the day, so you gather them up and get them back inside.
The kids are bored and whining, and the adults aren’t too happy either with the outcome of the game and everything else that has transpired. Maybe it’s best for everyone to just go home. Your guests leave in a huff, feeling that you have effectively ruined Thanksgiving. But really, your house has.
Don’t Let These Problems Happen to You.
Your Local Groundworks Company Can Help!
All these scenarios could have been avoided with vigilance and professional assistance. You can salvage your home and protect your loved ones not just on the holidays, but all year long and for a lifetime.
Keeping an eye on your home’s condition by looking for any signs of damage is important, as is promptly reaching out to your local Groundworks company for a free, thorough, expert inspection. Otherwise, these issues will only worsen over time and become hazardous for your family and the rest of your home.
However, we provide trusted and fully warrantied permanent solutions to combat these issues and give your home the long-lasting protection it deserves. These include basement drainage and sump pumps, crawl space encapsulation, dehumidification, foundation pier systems, and an innovative concrete lifting and leveling solution.
Groundworks has offices in more than 30 states across the country, so you can take comfort knowing your home will be repaired and protected by a locally based company with national backing. Simply contact our friendly and knowledgeable team today to schedule your free inspection and repair estimate. We’ll make sure your house won’t ruin holiday celebrations or daily living ever again.
