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166 Dundas St W, Mississauga, ON L5B 2N6, Canada
Applewood, Mississauga · L4X · L4Y
Former orchard land turned 1950s subdivision, with finished basements, rental towers along Bloor St and Little Etobicoke Creek winding through.
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Know the neighbourhood
Solid 1950s and 1960s bungalows and side-splits east of Cawthra, much of it sitting near the Etobicoke Creek watershed. Original infrastructure paired with finished basements is the combination we get called for most often in this pocket.
Applewood sits in east Mississauga, east of Cawthra Rd out to the Etobicoke Creek, from the QEW north toward Burnhamthorpe Rd. Dundas St E and Bloor St run across it.
1950s–1970s
Bungalows, side-splits and 1960s–70s rental high-rises
The area was apple orchards before the post-war subdivisions went in, and the streets still have big mature trees. Most houses are single-storey or side-split with a full basement, built before backwater valves were standard. The rental towers along Bloor St add a second kind of call: one unit leaking into several floors below.
Little Etobicoke Creek runs through Applewood in a narrow valley before joining Etobicoke Creek further south. Streets near the creek and in the low spots between Dundas and Bloor collect water in heavy rain. Many homes have their original weeping tile tied into the sanitary sewer, which was common at the time. In a big storm, that connection lets sewer water push back into the basement.
Local conditions
These three conditions decide where we look first on a Applewood call, what can be saved and where the drying equipment goes.
Surface runoff and sewer surcharge both follow this watershed. Low-lying streets take water first and take it again in the next storm.
Many basements here have been finished as secondary suites. That adds occupancy, contents, a second kitchen and a second bathroom to any loss.
Original cast-iron drain stacks corrode from the inside out. A failure inside a wall runs a long time before it shows on the finish.
Storms on record
Two storms in four weeks showed where Applewood is exposed: the creek edge and any home with its weeping tile still tied into the sanitary sewer. Disconnecting that drain and adding a backwater valve does more for an Applewood basement than any amount of waterproofing on the walls.
The City closed Dixie Road at Dundas Street and posted photos of flooding at Dundas and Queen Frederica, right on the edge of Applewood. Little Etobicoke Creek was on the City's list of creeks at capacity or spilling into the parks. Homes backing onto the creek valley and in the low spots between Dundas and Bloor took water in their basements.
More than 106 mm fell across the city in a few hours. Owners whose homes back onto Little Etobicoke Creek described fully furnished basements flooded in a single afternoon. Some were still rebuilding when the August storm arrived four weeks later.
The City is designing the Dixie Dundas Drainage Improvements beside Little Etobicoke Creek, with construction planned in stages from 2025 through 2033. It has also scheduled erosion control and rehabilitation on Etobicoke Creek between Ponytrail Drive and Bloor Street.
A call we get often in Applewood
A call we get often here: a heavy rain, and water coming up through the floor drain in a finished basement that is rented as a separate suite. The tenant's belongings, flooring and drywall are all wet, and the owner upstairs may not know until the tenant calls. We start extraction, sort out what can be saved and keep a separate list of the tenant's contents for their own insurance. Then we look at whether the weeping tile is tied into the sewer.
Through the year
Side-split homes have a lower level built partly into the ground, and pipes running along that outside wall freeze in a deep cold snap.
Thawing ground and spring rain raise water around older block foundations. Cracks in the wall-floor joint start to seep.
Summer storms push the local sewers past capacity. Basements with a floor drain and no backwater valve are hit first.
Roots from mature trees go after old clay laterals as they look for water. A slow drain in October is often the warning before a winter backup.
Most requested here
Weeping tile tied into the sewer and no backwater valve make storm backups the most common loss here.
Sewage & Category 3 CleanupFinished lower levels and second suites mean more flooring, drywall and contents below grade.
Basement Flood CleanupLosses in rented basements involve two policies, the owner's and the tenant's, and need separate records.
Insurance Claim SupportBefore it happens
Install a backwater valve, especially if the basement is a rented suite with its own kitchen and bathroom.
Have the lateral cleared of tree roots every couple of years if your street has large old maples or willows.
Check whether your weeping tile drains to the sewer and ask a plumber about disconnecting it to a sump.
Give basement tenants the location of the main water shut-off and a number to call.
Local questions
Not covered here? Call and ask a restoration manager directly.
(877) 738-2893Yes. The building is the owner's claim, but the tenant's furniture and belongings fall under their own tenant insurance. We keep separate inventories and photos so each claim is clear. We also check that the suite is safe and dry before anyone moves back in.
Homes right next to the valley can take overland water in a very heavy storm. More often, the problem is the sewer filling up in the same rain. Where the water came in tells us which one it was.
In many side-splits, the lowest finished level sits close to outside grade, with a slab and a short wall below a window. Water from a blocked window well or a downspout near that wall comes in there first. We check the outside grading as well as the inside damage.
Our average arrival in Applewood is 35 min from the Dundas Street West base in Cooksville. A restoration manager answers live, 24 hours a day, and sends the nearest equipped truck while you are still on the line.
Next door
Every hour counts
Drywall wicks moisture upward at roughly 1 inch (2.5 cm) an hour, and mould takes hold inside 24 to 48 hours. Call now and a certified crew reaches your street tonight.
