More than 100 vendors at Mahoning Valley Home Show in Niles

NILES

Most Mahoning Valley residents likely are thrilled that Mother Nature has provided them with an earlier-than-usual taste of spring, but this time of year also can mean heavy, prolonged rains.

And that can set the stage for mold, structural damage and other basement problems.

Nevertheless, this also is the time to take preventive measures before today’s minor leaks and mildew become tomorrow’s expensive repairs, Julie Cross says.

“We educate them on what’s going on and how to prevent those things from happening,” said Cross, a showroom manager with Akron-based Basement Care Inc., who explained today that a musty smell, a small amount of water in the walls and a powdery residue can be precursors for larger issues. “They should get it while it’s little.”

Cross is among the more than 100 local and regional vendors who are part of the 26th annual Mahoning Valley Home Show which continues Sunday at McMenamy’s Restaurant and Banquet Center, 325 Youngstown-Warren Road (U.S. Route 422).

For more about the show, read Sunday's Vindicator or Vindy.com.