Big Bags USA

With the new year upon us, now's the time to start thinking about how to be better prepared in 2017! Each year we experience unexpected weather events across the country, many that lead to flooding. At Big Bags USA® , our main objective is to assist communities and individuals in time of need.  However, we want to do everything we can to minimize the effects of these unexpected flooding events by allowing your community to have easy-to-use flood protection on hand. Keep reading to learn how you and your community can be better prepared for flooding in 2017! 1. Know Your Risk  Within the past 5 years, all 50 states have experienced some type of flooding, some more devastating than others. You don't have to live near a body of water to be at risk of flooding. Although, those areas are more prone to major flooding. Factors such as changing weather patterns and land development can present new flooding risks for your and your community. 2. Review Your Insurance  ...

What do you know about lunar tides? Lunar tides are created because the Earth and the moon are attracted to each other. The moon tries to pull Earth towards it, however, the Earth is able to hold everything into place except the water. This movement of the water is what we call high tide and low tide. In today's blog, Big Bags USA® thought it would be fun to share with you some interesting facts about lunar tides! Lunar Tide Fun Facts Tides are the periodic rising and falling of large bodies of water. Keep reading to learn more about how tides work with these fun facts! 1. The theory that tides were caused by the moon was introduced in 150 B.C. by Seleucus of Seleucia. 2. Isaac Newton was the first to explain tides with gravity related to the sun, earth and moon.   3.  The gravitational force of the moon is one ten-millionth that of Earth, but when you combine forces such as the Earth's centrifugal force created by its spin, you get tides. 4. The sun's gravi...

The winter season is upon us and areas across the country are experiencing brutal weather. Snow and ice in conjunction with flooding can lead to major property damage. Big Bags USA® flood barriers is your solution. Our innovative barriers are field tested and proven to protect against ice jams and other floating debris. Keep reading to learn more about ice jams and how our large polypropylene sandbags can protect your property this winter! What is an Ice Jam?  Ice jams are pieces of floating ice that accumulate behind any obstruction to the water flow. The obstructions can include river bends, mouths of tributaries, and points where the river slope decreases, as well as dams and bridges. This accumulation of ice chunks can cause flooding upstream, and if the obstruction suddenly breaks, flash flooding can occur down stream. There are two main types of ice jams: Freeze-Up Jams - this type of ice jam occurs when extremely cold air temperatures occur over open water, result...

The winter season is upon us, and along with it comes snow. While several parts of the country have yet to experience winter weather this season, forecasts are showing it could be on its way. Many areas of the United States, particularly the Midwest, have been experiencing some varying temperatures. There's no telling what mother nature is going to throw at us this year, but it's important we're prepared for anything, including winter flooding. Winter Flooding While snow may not be one of the main causes you think of when it comes to flooding, it's something you should be mindful of. Flooding by snowmelt can cause serious damage, just like flooding associated with a hurricane or heavy rainstorm. Keep reading to learn more about snowmelt and how it relates to flooding: Snowmelt  The effects of snowmelt on potential flooding is something that causes concern for many people around the world. Snowmelt flooding occurs when the major sourse of water involved in a ...

Flooding is a phenomemnon that happens all across the country. No matter where you live, you have some type of flood risk. We all know that mitigation is less expensive than cleaning up after flood damage. How do you protect your property from flooding though? Sandbags may be the first thing that comes to mind, but Big Bags USA® is here to show you how our flood barrier systems are superior to traditional sandbags. By switching to Big Bags USA® flood barriers, you can save both time and money on your flood protection. Cost & Savings The Big Bags USA® systems were designed with simplicity in mind! More systems can be deployed by fewer workers using less training and resources than with traditional sandbags. While there are many protective flood barrier products on the market, none quite compare to Big Bags USA®. The benefits of our product are many and varied. The most notable, however, is price comparison. We offer high quality flood barriers at a great economic price, with ...

The term tides refers to the rising and falling of sea level with respect to land. Have you ever thought about what causes this movement of the ocean though? The answer is the gravitational pulls of the moon, sun and Earth. Due to the fact that the moon is much closer to the Earth than the sun, its gravitational pull is stronger. In today's blog, Big Bags USA® discusses how the moon affects the tides and what that means in terms of flood risk. Lunar Tides  While the moon's gravitational pull isn't strong enough to move anything on land, the same doesn't go for water. As the Earth rotates, the distance between the Earth and the moon in any particular given spot changes. That change in distance affects the amount of gravitational pull the moon has on that particular area. The moon's pull is strongest at whichever spot of Earth is closest to it, and this causes the water to bulge toward the moon. These areas where bulging occurs experience high tide, while the ...

All year long, flooding poses a threat throughout the entire United States. No matter where you live, whether it's on the coast or inland, you could be affected by flooding. The most common cause of flooding is due to water that accumulates faster than soils can absorb it or rivers can carry it away. In today's blog, Big Bags USA® briefly addresses the most common flood related hazards that impact the United States. 1. Flash Flooding Flash floods are pretty self explanatory - they're floods that happen in a flash. They generally develop within 6 hours of the immediate cause. Flash floods exhibit a rapid rise of water over low-lying areas. Flash floods are especially common in the West, and also Urban areas, where large amounts of concrete and asphalt surfaces that do not allow water to penetrate into the soil easily.    2. River Flooding  River flooding occurs when river levels rise and overflow their banks or the edges of their main channel and inundate area...

California's rainy season is upon us and that means the possibility for mudslides and mudflows. In California, the rainy season runs from late October through March. During this season, California residents face the risk of flooding and mudflows that can damage homes and businesses. Keep reading to learn more about mudflows and how to prepare for them with the help of Big Bags USA® .  What is a Mudflow?  A mudflow is a flooding condition where a river of liquid and flowing mud moves on the surface of normally dry land areas. Mudflows are different from mudslides. With a mudslide, you have a dry or wet mass of earth or rock moving downhill. While a flood may trigger a landslide, damage is caused by the falling mass of rock or earth, not the water. California Levees The state of California has thousands of miles of levee embankments along waterways, usually made of earth. These levees are designed to protect the lives and properties behind them from floods. However, ...

Flood mitigation is the effort to reduce loss of life and property by lessening the impact of flooding. In order for it to be effective, we have to take action now, before a flooding disaster occurs. Flooding can happen any place, at any time, so it's important for everyone across the country to be prepared. In today's blog, we take a look at some key points about flood mitigation from flood economics research : 1. Communities benefit from flood mitigation. Aside from the amount of money saved by taking action to prevent or reduce the effects of flooding, flood mitigation offers a variety of other benefits. Local authorities are driven to take action in order to revitalize neighborhoods, improve public spaces, enhance public safety and more! Research and analysis indicates that the economic benefits of flood mitigation significantly outweigh the costs by as much as 5:1. When broader benefits are considered, it could be even higher than that. Here is a list of common ben...

Hurricane Season is well underway, and if you haven't already started preparing for storms, now is the time to do so! Many people tend to put off hurricane preparation until the skies get dark and weather warnings hit. In today's blog, Big Bags USA® offers a few reasons to not postpone those hurricane preparations. 1. Avoid the Risk of Not Having Emergency Supplies. If you wait until the last minute to prepare for a hurricane, you run the risk of not having the necessary emergency supplies. You may have to wait in long lines at the store to purchase emergency provisions; that is, if you can find them at all. In areas subject to tropical storms, emergency supplies can easily sell out quickly when a hurricane is approaching. Now is the time to buy emergency essentials, before a hurricane is even spotted on the radar. Some basic items you'll want to make sure you have on hand include: bottled water, 3-day food supply, flashlights with extra batteries, battery-powered r...

When flooding is imminent, you want fast protection! Big Bags USA® offers a rapid deployment that's much faster than a traditional sandbag deployment. In fact, it's 200 times faster to deploy than a traditional sandbag wall. One, five bag system can be placed and filled by two men in less than 10 minutes. That's equal to 15 lineal foot every ten minutes. Keep reading to learn more about the Big Bags USA® rapid deployment flood protection . Rapid Deployment The deployment of our Big Bags USA® flood barrier systems is easy! No other system on the market is as fast, versatile or user friendly. When you use the Big Bags USA® systems, training and organization of labor is greatly reduced compared to conventional sandbags. Effectively utilizing a smaller unskilled labor force creates a larger margin in budgeting and mitigation. Our systems are ground conforming and therefore have the ability to be deployed on any terrain without the need for leveling. The barriers a...