When your home suffers water damage, acting quickly is crucial to minimize the impact and restore your living space.
However, in the confusion and devastation that water damage brings, it’s hard to know where to start. We’ve compiled this guide to give you a headstart as you look to engage remediation professionals who can help you effectively deal with water damage.
Key Takeaways:
- Dealing with water damage requires a comprehensive approach to remediate effectively and restore your home to a safe, livable state.
- While homeowners may handle some of the aspects of remediation, significant damage scenarios should always be handled by professionals to ensure thorough cleanup and restoration.
Table of Contents
Get Professional Water Damage Remediation Services
What is Water Remediation?
Water remediation involves removing excess water from your home, sanitizing the affected areas, and ensuring the environment is completely dry to prevent further damage and mold growth. This process is essential for preserving the structural integrity of your home and maintaining a healthy living environment.
Remediation Vs. Restoration
While both remediation and restoration address the aftermath of water damage, their focuses are very distinct.
Remediation involves removing water and moisture from the home and ensuring the environment is thoroughly dried, decontaminated, and made safe for residents. It’s about addressing the immediate effects and preventing further issues like mold growth.
Restoration goes a step further by repairing or rebuilding damaged areas of the home to bring it back to its original condition. This can include everything from minor repairs to major construction work.
Components of Water Remediation
Water damage remediation includes the following steps:
1. Removing Wet Items
Quickly removing items that have been soaked by water—like carpets, furniture, and drapes—is crucial. These items should be dried outside the home where possible or professionally cleaned to prevent mold and mildew.
Remember that your insurance company expects you to take immediate steps to mitigate against further damage as part of your coverage. The measures you take can determine the course of your insurance claim.
2. Drying
The next step is drying the indoor spaces and the removed wet items. This is vital to mitigate against further loss and prevent the structure of your home from weakening.
Here are some of the steps to follow:
- Open windows, doors, closets, and drawers to ventilate and dry indoor areas
- Mop up as much water as you can
- Dry the drywall and floors with rags and towels
- Point a fan towards the wet areas
As a homeowner, you may not have the specialized equipment such as industrial fans, high-velocity water movers, or heaters to dry the areas effectively. It’s important, therefore, to hire a reputable water damage remediation company for this process because time is of the essence.
3. Cross-Contamination Prevention
Cross-contamination containment ensures that water damage does not spread to unaffected areas.
Here are the steps you can take:
- Turning off the main water supply (in the case of a burst pipe)
- Using physical barriers like plastic sheeting
- Employing negative air machines to control airflow
- Remove standing water
- Regularly sanitizing surfaces to prevent the spread of contaminants
Note that if you’re dealing with more than a foot or more of water, it’s best to engage remediation professionals.
4. Mold Damage Check
A thorough inspection for mold growth is crucial, as mold can start to develop within 24 to 48 hours after water exposure.
If you discover mold growth, take the following steps:
- Find the water source and eliminate it
- Keep the windows and doors open
- Remove any wooden furniture that could get damaged
- Place a fan or dehumidifier in the affected room
Mold damage can cause long-term health problems and structural damage to your home if left unattended. As such, it’s best to call a mold remediation expert for immediate removal and sanitization.
5. Call a Professional Water Damage Remediation Company
Handling remediation for water damage can be overwhelming and risky if not done properly. Professional remediation companies have the expertise, equipment, and safety protocols to manage all the steps above effectively, ensuring that your home is restored safely and efficiently.
We recommend calling a reputable water damage remediation company as soon as the water damage event occurs for the best outcome.
Get Professional Water Damage Remediation Services
Have you been devastated by water damage? All Hours Cleaning & Restoration is here to help. We understand that you need immediate help to remediate and restore your home. That’s why our trained technicians are on standby 24/7 to offer timely and effective water damage restoration services. Contact us and get the professional help you need to get your life back to normal in the shortest time possible.