Many people love the Beaver State for its beautiful coastline, majestic mountains, and lush green forests. However, living in this verdant paradise comes at a cost: water, or water damage to be precise.
You might associate water damage in Oregon with catastrophic river floods that typically make the nightly news. However, water damage isn’t always dramatic. Most often it is more of a constant, quiet threat. Think of the slow, hidden water that drips from clogged gutters, creeps through foundation cracks, and wicks into floorboards. This is often the real culprit behind most property damage in Oregon.
Water damage is any unintentional water exposure, the result of which is the deterioration of your home, buildings, or structure. Water damage can not only disrupt your use of your home and compromise the integrity of your property but it can also affect indoor air quality and, as a consequence, the health of the home’s occupants.
Some types of water damage you can see, while others are less visible. However, both need to be addressed promptly and measures need to be taken to prevent the same type of water damage from happening again in the future. To achieve this, you’ll need to understand where water damage stems from, i.e., what the common causes of water damage are in Oregon.
Saturated Soil & Hydrostatic Pressure
Oregon soil is clay heavy and acts like a giant sponge. That is, it absorbs water slowly and holds onto it for months.
Then once it has absorbed as much water as it can (i.e., the ground is fully saturated), two things happen. First, any additional water, for instance, in the form of rainfall, runs off immediately, as the soil cannot absorb more water. This causes rapid flash floods and rising water tables.
Second, it builds intense lateral water pressure or hydrostatic pressure. This is the force pushing groundwater right through basement walls and concrete foundations. As long as the soil holds enough water to create hydrostatic pressure, moisture continues to seep inward even during seasonal dry spells.
Frozen Pipes & Ice Dams
Frozen pipes are a huge problem in Oregon. According to data from insurance firm State Farm, the Beaver State ranks second among the states with the highest total claim costs paid for water damage caused by freezing with $54 million. The average claim payment was more than $30,000.
Top 10 States for Frozen Pipes/Water Loss
| State | Total Claim Costs Paid for Water Damage Caused by Freezing |
| Illinois | $79 million |
| Oregon | $54 million |
| Washington | $51 million |
| Texas | $48 million |
| Tennessee | $31 million |
| Colorado | $25 million |
| Missouri | $23.3 million |
| Michigan | $23.2 million |
| Oklahoma | $18 million |
| New York | $17 million |
Source: State Farm
Even a small crack in a pipe can cause so much damage. To be exact, a miniscule crack has the potential to release more than 250 gallons of water every day. This amount of water can damage drywall, foundations, floors, furniture, toilets, electrical systems, and other personal belongings inside your house.
When temperatures drop below 20°F (around -7°C), pipes in uninsulated areas are at most risk of getting damaged. This includes pipes in exterior walls, attics, and crawl spaces.
Meanwhile, ice dams, which are ridges of solid ice that form along the edge of a roof, prevent melting snow from draining off the roof. As a result, the trapped water pools behind the dam. This can seep under shingles, leak into your home, and damage ceilings, insulation, and walls. This moisture not only causes damage and wood rot but also encourages mold to grow.
Wicking & Aging Foundations
Between the years 1920 and 1970, roughly 500,000 homes were built in Oregon, and many of those houses are still standing today. A typical feature of the homes from this era are their porous, unreinforced concrete or brick foundations. These older homes also lack the modern foundation waterproofing or perimeter drains that we use today. These weren’t required and only became popular or common decades later.
This is problematic as concrete and brick are naturally porous materials. They act like sponges soaking up moisture from the wet Oregon soil. The problem with water and porous materials is what’s known in construction as rising damp, also known as capillary rise or wicking. Basically, water is attracted to the concrete or brick, flows through the narrow tube or pore space, and climbs higher through the material. The result: wood rot, structural damage, or mold.
Roof Moss
Many love having trees in their backyard. However, towering Douglas firs, cedars, and maples can block the sunlight, and this nearly continuous shade can keep your roof damp. Moisture and shade, along with the accumulation of leaves, twigs, and dust that provide a nutrient-rich base, provide the perfect environment for moss to grow on your roof.
While roof moss may look charming, they present three main problems. First, it acts like a sponge that traps moisture directly against roofing materials. This can lead to wood rot and decay. Second, as moss grows, its root-like fibers wedge under the shingle edges, lifting them and breaking their seals. Wind-driven rain then sweeps under the shingles and rot the plywood deck underneath. Third, as moss spreads, it can break apart and wash into gutters (more on this below).
This can cut the life of a standard 25- to 30-year shingle roof in half. Ultimately, it forces a costly replacement in just 12 to 15 years.
Clogged Gutters
Gutters provide essential drainage for your roof. However, in Oregon, gutters can easily get clogged. Remember those towering trees and roof moss? Well, dislodged moss, along with pine needles and leaves, can accumulate in gutters and affect the flow of water from the roof downward.
In other words, these debris clog the gutters so its capability to drain water from the roof is minimal or non-existent. Instead, what happens is water overflows and pours down siding, rots fascia boards, and pools directly at the foundation. Basically, clogged gutters can lead to severe, expensive damage to your home’s roof, siding, and foundation.