DO YOU LIVE IN FLORIDA - Question

[Grumpy's Gal]

does anyone have basements in FL? where do you store stuff like xmas ornaments and out of season stuff, etc?

 

[Poohbear123]

No Basement here, but I store the Xmas stuff in the hall Closet.

 

[Aimeedyan]

No basements in TX, either, that I've seen.

We store stuff in the attic and under the stairs.

 

[anewvance]

Most houses in Florida do not have basements... I keep stuff in the garage, of course our garage is a mess but out of site out of mind is what I always say!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

no basements. sandy sandy sandy swampy swampy swampy

We have a loft in our garage. We have a low pitch roof common in older homes. As long as you have a higher pitch roof---then you use a combo of the attic and the garage to store everything.

Closet space is really big here as well.

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

Most houses in Florida do not have basements...

WHY? Can someone explain? I don't know that I've ever been in a house without a basement?

 

[PrincessKitty1]

I always heard the water table in FL is too high for basements, but I have NO scientific knowledge of this . My house has 3 utility rooms, though (storage rooms on the 1st floor off the carport).

Florida is so humid that you don't want to store anything in unairconditioned space except for your car, lawnmower, and garden tools. Everything else (e.g. wrapping paper, books, furniture) will get mildewy and cobwebby.

I keep my wrapping paper in a plastic box (made for the purpose) under my bed.OK, I do keep my xmas ornaments in the utility rooms and they seem to be all right--they are all very well wrapped and in plastic boxes.

 

[ADisneygirl]

We don't have basements because the water table below us is pretty close. Never heard of a basement in all of Florida. We store Christmas stuff in the spare bedroom closet and some stuff in the attic and some stuff in the laundry room cabinets.

 

[makinorlando]

Most houses in Florida do not have basements... I keep stuff in the garage, of course our garage is a mess but out of site out of mind is what I always say!

Same here... I have an attic over the garage, but you won't ever catch me up there. Since I've lived here only the bug man has been up there.

Unfortunately I do keep my car in 1/2 of the garage, and the other 1/2 is a mess. Many many folks in our sub division do not use their garage for their car, but for storage!

My christmas tree is sitting in the garage - still assembled. I should have left the ornaments on it too, and saved myself some time in December!


You know what else I have not really seen in houses in FL (at least the one's I have been in or looked at when buying) - no closet in the entrance way of the house. In PA there is always a closet of some sort near the front door for coats, etc.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

When we dug our pool (6 feet into the ground)--we hit water.

I would guess a basement needs more clearance than that.

We have a closet in our entry way. However it looks like a displaced phone booth. But you are right--specially in new construction--no closet in the entryway.

Hubby's parents have a closet by the front door. But b/c of the position of the house in relation to the driveway and access--they do not use their door often.

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

You know what else I have not really seen in houses in FL (at least the one's I have been in or looked at when buying) - no closet in the entrance way of the house. In PA there is always a closet of some sort near the front door for coats, etc.

where do you keep umbrellas, raincoats, mittens, boots? Ok, As I'm typing this, I realize you may not have a need for boots and mittens in FL. I am still in "awe" about the no basement thing............ do you ever have tornadoes? Where do you go?

 

[makinorlando]

where do you keep umbrellas, raincoats, mittens, boots? Ok, As I'm typing this, I realize you may not have a need for boots and mittens in FL. I am still in "awe" about the no basement thing............ do you ever have tornadoes? Where do you go?

Fortunately the only time we were in need of a 'safe room' since we lived here was during Hurrican Charley in 2004. We stayed in the hallway bathroom. Worse than no basement, the way that my house is laid out that is the only room in the entire house that is totally interior, all others have windows or doors or both!

Umbrellas - well they are pretty much kept in the car. Raincoats, never wear them, unless it's a Disney poncho at a park. DD has hat, gloves and scarf - almost never worn, they are in her bedroom closet. I have one jacket (a denim one, and a couple Disney sweatshirts) and DD has two school jackets and that's it for "winter' wear!

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

oh - nevermind! I just read the thread about the lady finding a fried lizzard in her bbq grill. Kinda spoils the mood for wanting to move to FL.

 

[makinorlando]

oh - nevermind! I just read the thread about the lady finding a fried lizzard in her bbq grill. Kinda spoils the mood for wanting to move to FL.

You get used to the little lizards. They are little.

DD likes to catch them. They are like bugs here. I woke up early one morning to an awful noise, only to come out and find one of my cats trying to eat a frog they had brought in the house. They are "indoor" cats, but are able to get out to the screened in lanai, and the frog I guess found his way in! I have saved several from the pool!

On any given day, there is usually a lizard somewhere - compliments of the cats! They think they are toys. I'd rather have a lizard than a spider anyday!

 

[JuneChickie]

Do they have Black Widow spiders or Scorpions in Florida ? anyone ever found
one in your home or in your storage boxes when you unpack for the the holidays.

 

[ADisneygirl]

Do they have Black Widow spiders or Scorpions in Florida ? anyone ever found
one in your home or in your storage boxes when you unpack for the the holidays.

I haven't found any, thank God, but they are here in Florida. My friend got bit on the foot by a spider out in her garage and it swelled up and turned black! Thankfully after a Dr. visit and month of wearing slippers, she recovered.

No coat closet in my relatively new house either. In fact, closets seem to be in short supply in most houses here unless you are buying one over 3000 sq feet and get a few of the walk ins. We keep winter stuff in our bedroom closets and dressers. And the only room in our house that would be considered a safe interior room with no windows would be a linen closet! All other rooms have windows to the outside. Better to evacuate to a hotel or out of state if there is a hurricane headed your way.

Lots of things to dislike about Florida in my opinion, but then again I am still a New Yorker at heart!

 

[froglady]

I have a spare room upstairs (it used to be a sleeping porch decades ago)where I store anything that I don't want to mildew. Because it was a porch, it has doors into two different bedrooms, so could only be used as a nursery. I store my out of season clothes, evening wear, etc in the closet. I also have a desk where I store important papers. When a local shoe store went out of business, I was able to obtain some of their floor to ceiling wooden shelving; it's great for storing plastic shoeboxes full of things.

Previous owners also built a cedar closet in the garage, so I store long term items there. I finally broke down and rented a climate controlled storage unit for my oriental rugs, DH's patient records & journals, etc.

We have an attic, but it's filled with A/C equipment, plus it gets so hot that plastic could start to melt. We have two front hall closets. One contains our safe, coats, hats, gloves, etc. (We travel and ski) The other contains camping equipment, extra holiday doormats, puzzles and games, and one shelf is kept clear to thow gym bags, etc on.

Many houses in this neighborhood DO have basements (my next door neighbors have one) but they are very damp, so most people don't store anything that could be damaged in them. There is even a basement apartment a few blocks away, but on a walk a couple years ago, I saw them taking out soaked carpeting, cabinets, etc after a Nor'easter.

Our "safe" room is also a downstairs bathroom. I've only used it once, during a tornado. I have a radio, water, flashlight, and an emergency whistle in a cabinet there.

I have only found scorpions(dead) a few years ago when I moved all of DD's furniture out of her bedroom to paint it; I found a couple behind her bookshelves. No Black Widow or Brown Recluses...yet. I've had odd bites after cleaning the garage, so I assume there are spiders.

 

[Brianne]

There's a reason why pest control services are so popular out here. But it hasn't been as bad as I feared--I heard all the horror stories before we moved here too.

No basements. The water table is definitely too high for them although maybe there are some in the Panhandle. I've heard of people having problems with their swimming pools if they empty them because the pools will pop right out of the ground if you do leave it empty. I've never lived in a house with a basement anyway, so I'm not missing anything--basements aren't a real common thing on the west coast either.

Tornados. The most we seem to ever get are the 1s, usually during a hurricane. My closet in the master bedroom is large enough & is the only interior room without windows, so the kids were taught to run in there as soon as I say so. I've never had to do it & hopefully never will, but we do practice runs a couple times every year.

Umbrellas are kept in an umbrella stand next to the front door. Otherwise we keep coats in our closets--they may come out for a month in the winter but rarely get used other than that.

As for Christmas ornaments, etc? That's what storage units are for. I share rental space elsewhere with my parents for all that stuff. We'd have to because we have too much stuff, including a 9' artificial tree....as do my parents.

 

[Evil Queen]

We don't even have a garage, we have a carport, which I hate since Hurricane Wilma. I know if a stronger storm comes through that it may rip the whole dang thing off. I couldn't believe the crud that ended up there.

My house is old built in the mid 60's and there is NO closet space to speak of. My laundry room is small so not much storage there either. But there are plenty of rooms.

As for little creatures, my cats kill a lizard almost everyday, but the lizards don't bother me, they eat so many little bugs. They eat roaches too, and after a good rain those buggers are looking for a drier place to go to, yup, my house. So, I actually welcome the lizards.

Each year I have at least one snake who hangs in my yard, but I live near a big field (until the new condos/villas are finished being built) so the snakes take care of most rodents. So I am ok with the snakes as long as they don't get inside, which has happened.

I've never had to hide from a tornado here, but do have a small hallway for our "safe room".

I was bite by a black widow here when I was about 4-5, many days in the hospital, but I haven't seen one here since.

Out local cemetaries are build much above ground due to the water level, so I assume why no basements.

 

[Poohbear123]

ALIGATORS! And its mating Season, so they are coming up out of the canals and such, to find a Mate! Come ON down, its fun here.........