How Professionals Clean Up Water Damage In Your Home
by Rosa Pascual
One of the worst things that can happen to your home is to have water damage on the inside. It can be from something as simple as a burst pipe, rain water coming in through the window well, or even a sewer backup. Thankfully, there are professionals that specialize in water damage restoration and will take the following steps to get your home back to the way it once was.
Water Extraction
Everything starts with extracting the standing water from your home, which is done with a combination of different techniques. A submersible pump will be used to extract most of the water that has collected on the floor, which is done by placing it at the lowest portion where water has pooled. Mops and wet vacuums can be used to pick up the remaining water and removed from your home.
Moisture Removing
The next step will be to remove as much moisture from the area as possible. Dehumidifiers are key to this, since they remove the moisture from the air and help dry it out. Fans can be used to get air circulating and by creating a breeze to push moisture out through windows. The goal will be to get humidity levels down to a level where you can move on and not worry about moisture still being trapped in surfaces. Moisture meters can be used to test the moisture levels of wood construction materials, which helps let you know what is going on beneath the surface in terms of moisture damage.
Surface Cleaning And Sanitizing
All of the surfaces will need to be cleaned to ensure that there is no dirt and debris on them. A cleaning detergent with warm water can get most of the dirt off of the surface, but a professional may use a specialty cleaning product that will do the job a bit better than regular soap. All areas that are affected by the water must be sanitized as well, since you do not want mold growth in your home. It's common to use a disinfectant, such as bleach, which is going to kill off any mold that the disinfectant is capable of reaching.
Rebuilding
With all of the surfaces clean and disinfected, the water damage restoration company can start rebuilding the parts of your home that were damaged. This includes replacing wood flooring and drywall that was saturated in water and cannot be saved. There may also be insulation that needs to be replaced, which is ruined once it becomes wet.
Share
About Me
Although I was out of town during a hurricane storm, my friends told me that my house didn't look good good. Upon my return, I found a flooded basement and an upstairs that was absolutely torn apart. I didn't know what to do, so I turned to damage contractors to put things back together. I can't tell you how happy I am that I made that choice. They carefully evaluated my home and quickly resolved the issues that I had. It was amazing to see the difference they were able to make in a short period of time. This blog will explain why damage contractors are the right people to call.