When it
comes to water damage, many crucial steps must be taken to restore your home to
its previous condition. From stopping the water from pouring in, extracting the
water, drying out the home, and cleaning and disinfecting the mess to
preventing mold, repairing plumbing, and replacing waterlogged building
materials and ruined contents, the task of restoring your home is monumental.
There are literally hundreds of steps that the water damage restoration team
must perform. In addition, you’ll have your own set of steps to take care of
such as filling out insurance claims forms and finding temporary housing. While
water damage restoration is complex, it can be summed up by remember the
following ABCs of water damage restoration.
·
Assess the Damage –
Before a water damage company can get to work, it must first assess the damage.
This may be as simple as identifying the source of the water and the extent of
its reach to more difficult assessments and site surveys. Properly assessing
the nature of the water event allows the water damage company to use the right
type of equipment and techniques for the job at hand.
·
Banish the Water – One of
the first steps is to stop the water from its onslaught and then banish the
water from the building. Temporary plumbing, roofing, or other structural
repairs may be needed, water valves may need to be shut off, and water
extraction processes applied.
·
Clean Up – Once the water
has been banished, a residual mess is left behind – even if the water came from
a relatively clean source. All affected contents, furnishings, and building
materials must be cleaned and disinfected.
·
Dry Out and Decontaminate
– Removing the water and cleaning affected areas doesn’t end the job. The
building must be completely dried out and decontaminated. Water damage
restoration companies use industrial strength blowers and other drying
equipment to quickly dry the building as well as strong disinfectants and mold
inhibitors to ensure that your water damaged building doesn’t harbor harmful
organisms.
·
Exercise Caution –
Throughout the water damage restoration process, extreme caution is required.
Not only is there a risk of electrocution due to water and electricity, the
flood waters are likely contaminated with bacteria, chemicals, and other
harmful contaminants. After the building has been dried, mold becomes a
concern. The water damage restoration team is well aware of these risks and
dons appropriate protective gear while also following a strict set of safety
precautions.
·
Fast Forward to the three
R’s: Restore, Repair, and Recover – While an entire book can be written on the
various steps involved in water damage restoration, let’s fast forward to the
three R’s: Restore, Repair, and Recover. The primary goal of the water damage
restoration company is to restore your home to its previous condition. This
involves each of the preceding steps and many others. Carpets may need to be
replaced, drapes cleaned, new wallpaper installed, and so on. In addition,
structural and plumbing repairs may be needed such as tearing out water damaged
drywall and floorboards, installing new insulation, repairing broken plumbing,
and so on. Once all of the drying, cleaning, repairing, and restoring tasks are
done, you can finally focus on recovering. Floods and water damage events cause
huge messes and take their toll.
When you
hire a professional water damage restoration company, you’ve taken your first
step toward recovering and getting your life back.
By: Mr.
Mark Decherd
For more information and other articles by Mark Decherd go to:
Dryout® Inc.
http://dryout.typepad.com/water-damage-answers/
239-437-7100
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Dryout Inc
Emergency water damage restoration, drying,
deodorization, decontamination, disinfection, mold removal, water damage repair,
restoration and reconstruction of commercial and residential properties damaged
by fire, water and other disasters by a network of trained specialists,
technicians and restoration professionals across the USA and Canada.