What Should You Do Immediately After Water Damage Restoration Services are Performed?

Perhaps one of the most upsetting scenarios a homeowner can discover is standing water in the home, or a leaking roof or pipe burst that has led to significant water damage. If you notice a musty odor in a room or see spotting on the walls, ceiling or floor it is critical to call for water damage restoration services from a certified service provider before the destruction gets any worse. But once water damage services have been performed what are the next steps? This article is intended to help our West Palm Beach customers (residents and business owners) and those in the surrounding area learn what the next steps are after the water has been physically removed from the living space.

Water Damage Restoration Should Include Drying

When calling for water damage restoration services, make sure the service provider includes the drying of impacted areas as part of the water damage restoration process. Oddly enough, some providers only remove the water and do minimal drying. Construction materials like wood, sheetrock / drywall, and other matter are porous and absorb water quickly. This means all moisture needs to be removed, otherwise your materials can weaken and mold can develop. Water damage experts have state-of-the-art drying machines that range from high-powered models that can dry a room at a significantly higher speed that traditional industrial dryers, and some dryers use pegs and needles that go into the floorboards and send concentrated heat to the area to initiate rapid drying. Simply blotting an area with towels will not suffice; professional water damage companies need to use advanced equipment to truly remove all moisture from a home or office.

After Water Damage Restoration Services, do a Mold Inspection

According to insurance industry research, roughly 37% of homeowners experience water damage in a single year, and of these cases about 75% lead to a mold problem costing insurance companies an annual figure of 2.5 billion dollars.

In order to safeguard your home and protect your family’s health, it is recommended to have your water damage restoration company also perform a mold inspection, and execute any needed mold removal services. In some cases homeowner’s insurance policies have denied claims for mold remediation services because too much time went by from the date the water damage restoration services were performed. Insurers can argue that the homeowner was negligent by not taking the water damage service provider’s advice to have a mold inspection performed. So by doing this right after water removal and cleanup is performed, you are helping in preventing your home from becoming one of those statistics, and you are fortifying your home’s integrity while protecting your family’s health.

After Water Cleanup Services are Performed, Check for Electrical Damage

After a water damage disaster has struck your home, inspect the outside of your home to see if there was any electrical damage. Check the box and make sure all the wires and components are dry and free from rust. Electrical safety is critical when you have flooding, and inspecting from the exterior of the home before you work your way into the interior is ideal. Be sure to wear heavy-duty shoes with a rubber sole and rubber gloves, as electrical surges can’t pass electricity through rubber. You should also wear safety goggles to protect your eyes from potential sparks. When inspecting your electrical system, be sure to watch out for snakes, fire ants, or other dangerous creatures. Remember, your electrical system is likely in secluded spaces, and when you combine seclusion with water you create the perfect setting for snakes. If you discover some electrical problems and you are not a licensed electrician, do not try to fix the problem yourself; call a certified electrician. All too often homeowners have the best intentions in wanting to make their own repairs, but sadly shoddy electrical wiring can lead to devastating house fires.

Ask Your Water Damage Restoration Company to Help You Set Up a Preventative Plan

Once your water damage restoration company has identified the cause and performed water mitigation services, ask them for a checklist on all the things you can do to prevent another future problem. Here are some of the common things homeowners do to ensure their home is safe from an impending flood.

• If you live near a waterline add a retaining wall fortified with sandbags.
• If you live in parts of the world that get freezing temperatures at night, use pipe insulation to keep your plumbing warm, and turn off the water at night to prevent freezing within the pipes.
• Have a roof inspection performed by a professional roofing contractor.
• Make sure all of your plumbing is up to code.
• Rip up any carpeting in the bathroom or kitchen and replace with tile, hardwood, or even linoleum.
• Make sure all faucets have the ability to tightly close off and not drip for lengthy periods of time.
• Perform annual moisture detection services in walls where known plumbing runs. You can buy hand-held detectors at major hardware stores, and detection takes seconds to perform.
• Clean downspouts and gutters.
• Have a professional come out and inspect your tree’s roots to make sure they aren’t growing towards any buried pipes.
• Maintain all of your appliances.
• Check your water pressure on a regular basis.
• Install water detection devices.
• Make sure your water main shutoff is in good standing.
• Monitor your water bill.

By being proactive in these areas, you limit your chance of falling prey to water damage by more than 80 percent.

Contact Titan Remediation for Prompt Water Damage Restoration Services Today!

If you have noticeable water damage, or suspect a leak, call Titan Remediation to come out and investigate your property immediately. Delaying this can cost you thousands, as well as enable a mold infestation. Once water mitigation has been performed be sure to ask your water damage company what you can do to help safeguard your home from encountering another water damage problem.