Demonstration test of “House Resistant to Water Damage” No damage in case of heavy rain and flooding 18:36 on October 2

In order to prevent the inundation damage of houses due to successive flood damages throughout the country, demonstration tests of “houses that are resistant to floods” with various measures were conducted at a research facility in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture.

The experiment was conducted by the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention, which is developing a flood-resistant house, and a housing maker in Tokyo.

Houses that are resistant to water damage are less likely to be submerged by increasing the water resistance, such as by installing a valve that prevents backflow at the drain and vents where water can easily enter.

In addition, electrical equipment such as an air conditioner outdoor unit is installed at a height of approximately 1 meter and 50 centimeters to protect it from flood damage.

In the experiment, the maximum rainfall of 10 mm observed in Japan was 50 mm, and when converted in 1 hour, 300 mm of heavy rain was reproduced, and more than 1000 tons of water was flushed from the hose in anticipation of flooding.

When the water level reaches near the floor, the inside of the building began to be inundated in ordinary houses, but the houses that are resistant to flooding are not inundated, and changes can be seen in the building even if the surrounding water level exceeds 1 meter. did not. Also, the outdoor electrical equipment was not flooded.

In the future, we will proceed with development based on the data obtained from experiments and start selling within the year.

Hiroshi Sugawara of Ichijo Engineering Co., Ltd., who is in charge of development, said, “We will proceed with development aiming at a house that can live immediately after the evacuation life, and a house that can survive for a long time after a disaster”.

The main purpose is life reconstruction

The main purpose of this experiment is to prevent the inundation of the interior of the house as much as possible, and to develop a house that can rebuild its life as soon as possible after a disaster.

▽ From past examples to highly watertight houses

The Ichijo Corporation, who conducted experiments with the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention, has been investigating where inundation tends to occur in areas affected by heavy rains in the Kanto and Tohoku areas four years ago and in western Japan.

Based on the results of this survey, the experiments show that the performance is highly watertight so that it can withstand the pressure of water when the window sash, vents, and entrance doors are submerged.

▽ Evacuation is necessary even if the flood is strong

Issues remain. Even if such measures prevent flooding, if solids such as driftwood flow due to river flooding, etc., there is a risk of breaking windows and flooding the interior.

It is important not to evacuate just because you are a flood-resistant house, but to evacuate early in advance.

▽ Easy to reconstruct flooded life

The main purpose of creating houses that are resistant to flooding is to minimize flooding damage, so that when you return to your home from an evacuation site, you are encouraged to get back to the original life as soon as possible.

Protect outdoor lifeline equipment from flooding

Another important point for developing a flood-resistant home is to protect the outdoor lifeline equipment from flooding.

In this experiment, in order to protect these facilities from flood damage, they are installed at a high place from the ground.

▽ Outdoor equipment breaks down due to flooding

According to Daikin Industries, a major air-conditioning equipment manufacturer, air conditioner outdoor units and water heaters outside the house have been affected by floods in recent years, such as last year's torrential rain in western Japan and record heavy rain mainly in Saga Prefecture in August. This means that there were a lot of inquiries and requests for repairs that the solar power generation equipment was in contact with water.

Since these facilities are often installed near the ground along the outer wall of a house, they are prone to flooding, and air conditioning, hot water, and electricity may become unusable.

▽ There is also a risk of disaster-related death due to equipment failure

Last year's heavy rains in West Japan were a major issue as people living on the second floor of a flooded house could not use an air conditioner, increasing the risk of heat stroke while the hot weather continued every day.

Even if you are able to return to your home after a disaster, it is important for residents to protect their outdoor lifeline equipment from inundation damage, as it can be physically and mentally burdensome and can lead to health problems and death related to disasters. It has become a point.