I’ve seen this a time or two, and several times here in the last couple of days. A well-intentioned post about putting valuables (documents, photos, etc.) into your dishwasher to protect from flooding. This can, indeed, work, but…
Keep in mind that what makes even minor flooding nasty is that sewers and other drain lines back up — even with septic tanks. You may only get an inch or two of flooding above ground, but it can push sewage back and up inside your home. That’s one reason to pay the extra to have check-valves installed on your lines, as it can save you a biohazard experience.
Now, that’s not really going to help all that much in major flooding, as in feet of surge and flood. It will help a bit, but… Still well worth the cost, IMO.
Now, as to the dishwasher. Yes, they are designed to keep water in during operation. They seal up very nicely. They still have to have a drain line, and not all models have a check valve on said drain line. Which means that with the right pressure, it will not only get water through the drain line but a nasty biological soup given where the drain line goes.
Suggestion: the drain line in most cases these days is a flexible plastic affair. If it does not have a valve, and you can (in advance) install a cut-off valve for it. You can disconnect and plug. Or, you can simply clamp it shut. Might want to consider two of the three for some redundancy. If you do that, you are likely to keep it from filling with water or primordial soup almost no matter what.
Second suggestion is to put your valuables into sealed plastic or mylar long-term storage bags. You can even get some photo albums into a 2.5 gallon zipper bag. It may be from my time at NASA, but go for triple redundancy on what you put in the dishwasher. That way, you might lose part but should not lose the whole no matter what. If all goes really well, everything is safe and dry even in major surges/floods.
Just a quick thought to share this morning. Take care, be safe, and be prepared! Keep your friends and family close, and your things where you can find them in the dark, and/or wet.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, which include moving once we have medical issues cleared up, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.
Another option for storage: Home Depot, et al sell 5 gallon buckets, and some are available with snap-on lids. I dislike those lids, and prefer screwon lids, such as used for pet food containers.
The company (gamma) makes lids that can be snapped onto that 5 gallon bucket, and the insert is then an airtight screwon lid. We use some with food-safe buckets (they were hard to get during Covidiocy, haven’t looked in a year), but with bagging, you can use any decent bucket.
Obligatory Amazon link: (https://tinyurl.com/4fcpjnm8) There are other options, search for gamma lids for 5 gallon buckets.
I really like the gamma lids, talked about them a bit back in the section on long-term food storage, and storage of books and other essentials. They do make great repositories for important things, esp. when one uses bags and other things for redundancy. Good point, thanks for making it.
Heavy mylar food storage bags – they come in sizes all the way up to 5 gallon to fit inside 5 gallon buckets – are waterproof when properly sealed. A hair straightener is easiest, but a regular clothing iron works fine, too. Because it seals with heat, heating a piece of metal over a fire to about 125-140F will work for sealing and re-sealing. Not too hot because mylar is just metallized plastic and too much heat will melt the plastic.
Pro Tip – Do NOT cut the bag short “because it’s too long and I don’t need all that length to store just these “items.” Leave it long, that way you can trim off an inch to get a document out then re-seal it. (Same thing works for storing food).
Iggy
Good point and thanks for sharing!
Heads Up: laptop apparently had an accident that broke the screen. May not be on for a few days while I come up with the money to get it repaired/replaced. Major budget ouch. Hoping this posts as can only log on via the laptop. LW