Water damage repair after flooding, water breaks, leakage or other causes involves removing moisture and debris, and disinfecting as rapidly as possible to prevent the growth of mold and mildew.
Once mold and mildew have infected your carpets, walls, furniture, etc., water damage repair becomes very difficult and some materials may have to be destroyed and replaced. In the most severe cases, the home must practically be rebuilt from scratch. However, in most cases in which the damage is attended to quickly, the home can be restored to its previous condition.
Before water damage repair begins, the home must be checked for dangerous levels of airborne spores, which can be toxic. Also care must be taken to make sure the electricity is off especially if there is standing water. Wearing rubber boots and gloves is a good precaution.
Dehumidifiers are used to remove moisture from the air helping to prevent the growth of mold and mildew. Air purifiers will help remove spores and other contaminants from the air inside the house. Fans are not used because they tend to blow spores around decreasing air quality. If there is standing water in the home, it may have to be pumped or vacuumed out.
Once most of the visible water is removed from the home, steam cleaners can be used to clean and disinfect carpets and other parts of the home. The steam cleaner uses both the heat of the steam and disinfectant cleaners to kill bacteria, mold, mildew and mites. Furniture and other items are also cleaned, disinfected and dried. In some cases absorbent materials may be used to help in drying.
In cases where ceilings are damaged, you may just be able to replace the damaged ceiling panels. Ceiling water damage repair on drywalled celings is more challenging as you’ll most likely need to pull off the drywall material. Sometimes the water damage will loosen the taped joints of your drywall making it easy to pull down entire 4×8 sheets of the wall. This can make it much easier to replace the wall sections if you are doing it in full sections.
After the house is disinfected and cleaned, the interior and structure is inspected for damage. Dry wall and electrical insulation that has been in standing water should be replaced in many cases. Also wood floors that are not sealed may have to be replaced. Otherwise mold and mildew problems can spring up later on. The home’s electrical and plumbing systems should also be inspected.
Once the house is deemed electrically safe, fans can be used to speed up the overall drying process. The windows are opened to increase ventilation and the heating system can be turned on to increase evaporation.
If you’ve really got some serious damage, it may be best and fastest to hire a professional services company. Water damage repair professionals can be found in the local phone book or by searching over the internet. Angie’s List is a great service that can find local contractors with very solid reputations. No matter who you end up choosing, make sure to get a few estimates before deciding on which one to go with. A bad decision made in haste could last a lot longer than any damage to your floors or walls.