What is Wind Driven Rain?
Wind driven rain is rain (or other wet weather such as snow or ice) that is forced into the exterior walls of your property by strong winds. It is not noticeable from the exterior and doesn't tend to cause external damage but it can have a significant impact on the internal environment, causing damage that is costly to repair.
What Impact Does Wind Driven Rain Have On Your Property?
Wind driven rain can be incredibly damaging to your property as the force in which it hits your wall means that it absorbs directly into the wall, creating moisture build up and long term damage to your property.
What's most worrying about wind driven rain is that the inlet of water into your walls doesn't create any exterior damage, leaving you none the wiser that it has happened until mould and mildew appear, creating an unhealthy environment for you to live in and reducing the durability of your property's structure over time.
If you have experienced wind driven rain, you may have contacted your insurance company to see if you can claim for the damage. However, most policies are savvy about this issue and refuse to pay out under the exclusion that wind driven rain would not have been able to enter the property unless there was a fault, gap or problem that allowed the water to enter.
Top Tips for the Prevention of Wind Driven Rain
If you are concerned about wind driven rain, there are a number of preventative measures that you can take, including the following:
- Landscape with Wind Driven Rain in Mind – if you have gardens around your property then you can use them to your advantage by adding plants and trees of different heights to protect your walls. This won't guarantee full coverage but it will help to reduce the impact of wind driven rain.
- Think About Your Roof Type – some roof types are more protective than others, making the impact of wind driven rain less in certain cases. While you cannot change your roof type, it is worth speaking to a roofing specialist to find out if anything can be done to update your roof to make it more protective.
- Cover your Windows with Shutters – one of the key areas that let in wind driven rain is the window areas. To avoid this, you can think about installing shutters that will protect your windows when they are shut. They also provide an attractive aesthetic that will enhance the look of your home.
- Clear Your Gutters and Drains – when wind driven rain arrives, the amount of water around your property can significantly increase so it's important to ensure that your drains and gutters can handle the increase. Check and clear them on a regular basis to avoid any build up that could further damage your walls.
- Coat Your Property – if you want a simple solution that provides full coverage to your external walls then you should consider an external coating like ProPERLA. This coating works by stopping the water from entering the walls, turning into droplets that run off the wall and away from your property.
Deciding which action to take first can be stressful, especially if you are working with a limited budget. We'd suggest that if you have already experienced the damage of wind driven rain or are worried that you are vulnerable to it then you should go for the option that provides a comprehensive solution – getting an appropriate and durable exterior coating applied.