Whether it comes from a pipe or rising from flooding, water can cause huge damage to your home. However, with the proper steps and action, danger can be significantly minimized, allowing you to save your personal belongings. Even the smallest amount of water in your home shouldn’t be treated lightly, as it’s the perfect way for mold to appear.
Mold eventually affect walls, furniture, carpet, and ceiling, leading to poor home air quality. If the water in your home comes from burst pipes and leaking pipes, you should instantly shut off the water and call a specialist. If these are your existing home conditions, it’s time to add significant care and take the necessary steps to repair the damage.
Water Damage Restoration
After water damage happens and the cleaning has been done, most people want to get back to normal lives. The problem with floods is that they’re likely to be absorbed through walls, floors, ceilings, etc. Rebuilding your home too quickly might not be possible, as floods can cause ever-existing mold problems and deterioration of wall coverings.
Caution!
- Inspect the electrical damage and ensure it’s safe to enter your home.
- Electrical safety is vital in floods – check fire dangers and gas leaks.
- Beware of snakes and other animals.
- Do not mix liquids like vinegar and chlorine.
- Wear vital gear and eye protection.
- If mold occurs, wear a respiratory mask that can filter bacteria.
What should you first do after a flood? Make sure everyone is out of danger. If you have insurance, call your insurance adjuster right away.
Contents Cleaning
Start your cleanup and drying as soon as possible. Even better, hire contents cleaning professionals to do the work for you. After your home experiences damage after a fire or water, there’s a lot of work to be done to restore it to its previous condition. It’s not difficult to see the damage to your home, but the damage to many of your belongings might not be that obvious. Thus, you need a service company to perform the full job, starting from cleanup and drying, to the cleaning and restoration of your furniture and possessions.
A reputable team will complete the entire work, leaving you with no frustration or headache. The purpose is to use a process to achieve cleaning and restoration to your real satisfaction and goals. It’s essential to know how your possessions will be handled. Thus, an experienced water mold fire restoration company will first make a plan. Then, they will document every corner of your home. The last step is to begin the process of cleaning items, and pack and send them out to the restoration facility.
After items are packed, they will be addressed accordingly. Closets, furniture, and many other contents will be specially handled, prior to your needs. All items will be cleaned and examined to see if they must be restored to their original condition. Sadly, many items are likely to be destroyed, so no repair can be done at this point. These items are eventually returned to the owner, so you can make the final decision. The items that can be cleaned and restored will go through a specific cleaning process, according to what the item is. There are many ways an item can be cleaned and restored, as such:
- Dry cleaning
- Wet cleaning
- Deodorization
These are just a couple of the many ways a belonging can be cleaned and restored to its original condition.
Other Tips for Cleaning Your Home After Water Damage
After water damage, you should unplug any electronics, disconnect the power, and move items out of the water. Water is a threat to a home and personal belonging, so take action quickly to save your home. Getting rid of the water – if possible, soak the water in towels, mops, and buckets. It’s a quick and effective method to remove water from your home. As long as neighbors aren’t affected, pour the water into the grass. Also, a wet vacuum can be very useful – but make sure you’re cautious when mixing electricity with water, as the results could be even devastating.
Once the water is completely removed, use a dehumidifier to help dry the area faster. Open all windows and doors, and let the airflow through your home. The sooner the area gets dried, the fewer chances for mold to take roots. Another essential thing to do is to disinfect the area to destroy bacteria that might have been built on your furniture, walls, and other items in your home. After cleaning the area, you still need to be aware of the mold – use non-toxic products and spray over the area and let it activate overnight. It helps remove mold quickly; if not, make sure to call a professional mold removal. Whenever your home gets affected by mold or a flood, make sure you contact a professional water and mold restoration company, so the building process can begin before it’s too late.
Flooding is likely to ruin interior finishes, but you can take action to start the cleanup promptly:
- Carefully clean and dry the floor; it may take weeks to do it, but it’s critical if you want to replace panels and do repairs.
- Check for deforming before attempting the installation of a new floor.
- To reduce mold, make sure you clean and dry walls, floors, and woodwork.
- Dry completely and fast – use the AC or the dehumidifier to speed the drying process.
- Control mold in the following weeks after the flood.
If you are unsure about how to handle the situation, please don’t hesitate to contact a water restoration company. They have proper training and equipment, so the restoration will develop an appropriate plan of action.
A flood or moldy wall is no fun to deal with. The last thing you want to have permanent damage. Delay can also cause mold build-up and can cost thousands of dollars to remove. Before running late, please use the above tips and keep your home safe from mold and other further issues.
