Flooding causes more damage to buildings throughout the United States — particularly residential buildings than any other single natural event. Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have found through tests that damage to homes from future flooding can be minimized through repair or renovation using flood damage-resistant materials and methods. For example, some currently available but nonstandard building materials, such as closed-cell foam insulation, were tested and were found to have desirable flood-damage resistant properties. Other, more conventional materials were found to perform better than expected. The studies suggest that the complete replacement of water-damaged building materials may not always be necessary. ORNL conducted the research in collaboration with Tuskegee University in Alabama, a state that recently experienced its own high water problems associated with Hurricane Ivan.