Fall in Western Colorado is spectacular, as trees turn to auburn and the first snow makes its appearance on the surrounding mountains.
But fall also means that winter is coming. Even without any White Walkers, who are refreshingly rare in Colorado, winter still offers plenty of challenges. Who needs the Others when your pipes have burst, your house is flooding, and your chimney’s on fire?
Before cold weather settles in permanently, fall is the perfect time to winter-proof your home. There are several steps that a homeowner can take to winterize their home, thus limiting incidents of floods or freeze. Thankfully, none of these require building a massive wall made of ice. Instead, you should:
Clean your gutters and drains
Service your water heater and boiler
Insulate pipes to prevent freezing
Check your chimney and fireplace
Inspect trees and check for loose tree branches
Drain the exterior water hoses of any water
Close your foundation vents
Clean Your Gutters and Drains
Flooding occurs if drains and gutters are clogged and blocked and water accumulates in dangerous levels before finding somewhere to seep through.
Now is the time to clean your gutters and drains from leaves, branches, and debris. Once the tree leaves have fallen completely, make sure you clean all your gutters, starting from the roof down. When you winter-proof your home, check your drains so that rainwater flows freely and unobstructed.
Service Your Water Heater and Boiler
Your water heater and your boiler will be in high demand during winter. Have them both serviced in fall so that you don’t find yourself needing a plumber in the middle of a snowstorm.
A plumber will ensure that the wiring and connections of the boiler are clean. They will also cleanse the system throughout and check your radiators and the valves. As for your water heater, they will check the valves for sediments and minerals left there by the water.
A poorly-serviced water heater or boiler can cause serious flood in houses and result in extensive restoration services to repair the damage. Add servicing them to your list of winter-proof tasks.
Insulate Pipes to Prevent Freezing
If you have any exterior pipes or pipes that might be exposed to the elements, this is the perfect time to insulate them. Frozen pipes can burst due to the expansion of the water inside them, as it turns into ice. As soon as they thaw, they will cause flooding and damage to your house.
Check Your Chimney and Fireplace
There is nothing cozier than a fireplace keeping us warm during cold winter evenings. However, chimneys and fireplaces need to be serviced and cleaned to prevent fire danger and smoke inside the house.
Have a professional inspect and clean your chimney. Whenever you light up your fireplace, soot builds up inside the chimney. This grimy substance is actually called creosote and is produced when burning wood. The more you use your fireplace, the more of it sticks to the inside walls of the chimney, making it dangerously flammable. If the temperature inside the chimney increases, the creosote can catch fire, followed by your whole chimney and putting your entire house at risk.
By having your chimney and fireplace regularly serviced, cleaned, and maintained, you have peace of mind that your house is as safe as can be.
Inspect Trees and Check for Loose Tree Branches
Tree branches can cut power lines as the wind sways them. They may also lean against your roof or a window. Fall is the best time to trim trees and loose branches to make sure they do not pose any risk.
Remember that wind gusts can make trees and branches shake vigorously, so make sure there is enough space between the trees and parts of your home. Winter-proof your home by ensuring that any falling branches stay at a safe distance from your roof or walls.
Drain the Exterior Water Hoses of Water, so They Don’t Freeze
Winters in Colorado are harsh and temperatures can often fall below freezing. If you have exterior water hoses that you can’t roll into the house, fall is a great time to drain them of water, so that no water freezes inside them. That way, your hose and pipe will be safe from bursting.
Close Foundation Vents
Foundation vents are usually kept open in summer to bring in fresh air while they are closed in winter when you don’t want cool air underneath your home floor. If your home has foundation vents, remember to close them as the weather turns cooler. Not only will this protect the pipes inside the crawl space from freezing, but it will also save you money in the form of lower gas and electricity bills.
Winter-Proof Your Home
Fall is a great time to winter-proof your home. Taking the small steps described above can make a big difference in keeping your home safe from flooding or fire.
However, if a disaster does occur, feel safe in the knowledge that a trustworthy restoration company is standing by you to fix the damage and return to you your beautiful home in pristine condition.
We will respond to your call 24/7. Call 970-964-4437 or contact us online because we are always ready for an emergency!
It’s unsightly, fast-spreading, and potentially dangerous: mold is a problem that can occur to anyone. Upon first spotting mold in the house, homeowners often act on their first instinct and start cleaning it with bleach or some other detergent.
While it makes sense that homeowners would want to get rid of this dangerous intruder, the presence of mold often signals a deeper problem of lingering humidity. An expert restoration company will examine the mold situation and solve it with the appropriate equipment and knowhow.
What Is Mold?
Mold is a fungus. Fungi have been on Earth for over a billion years and will likely continue living with us for billions more. There are many beneficial types of mold: think of blue cheese for instance. And when your vegetables and fruit are composting, it’s mold that is doing part of the job.
However, mold can be detrimental to our health. According to the CDC, exposure to mold can cause or exacerbate several health issues, including throat irritation, nasal stuffiness, eye irritation, cough, wheezing, asthma attacks, skin irritation, and more.
Also, mold in the house is a symptom of larger problems such as humidity or leaks. Mold and mold spores will always fly around our homes; it’s just the way nature works. What matters is the mold quantity and the colonies it builds that need to be taken care of.
Let’s take a look at 5 myths about mold that need debunking.
1. Mold Is What You See on the Wall
Although we like to think that mold is the ugly, black spots we see on our walls, this is not the case. The visible mold spots are usually just the tip of the iceberg—mold colonies may have spread underneath the surface. Cleaning the visible part will not eradicate the problem, which will likely return soon.
The spots you see are usually the flowering part of the fungus. Under the plaster, mold has already spread its roots and created colonies. It then spreads its spores on more surfaces.
That is why killing visible mold usually fails to eliminate the problem. If you have found mold damage in your house, you should call a mold restoration company. They will examine the problem, determine the extent of the problem and the actual spread, and use the appropriate equipment to eradicate the entire mold colony, not just the parts you can see.
2. Most Homes Have Mold
As with most myths, this one is grounded in reality. It’s true that most homes have mold. The air surrounding us is filled with mold spores; this is just natural. The problem occurs when mold is starting to build up in particular places such as bathrooms, kitchens, basements, and attics. The combination of heat and humidity are the perfect mix for mold to develop.
A little mold may be easy to clean with some bleach. And areas under 10 sq. feet can be dealt with using just water and detergent, according to EPA guidelines.
However, this doesn’t mean that there is no lingering mold problem underneath. If the problem persists, it means that there is a lingering humidity issue that needs fixing. This usually requires a specialist who will examine the area to determine what causes the issue. Possible causes include leaking water pipes and drains, both of which can result in more serious damage and even flooding if left unchecked.
3. No Smell, No Mold
Smell is not synonymous with mold, although we are all used to identifying mold because of its characteristic, musky odor. Mold is often visible before it develops its smell. That’s because the smell is due to the fungus’ spores. By the time mold has released them, it has spread into your walls and has formed colonies that are breaking down the plaster and destroying your house.
In any case, it is best if homeowners who see and smell mold in, for example, the bathroom, the kitchen, or under the sink, get in touch with a reputable mold restoration company that will identify the problem and implement a mold remediation strategy.
4. Bleach Kills Mold
Bleach will kill the visible mold spots but not the spores. Also, bleach can’t kill the mold colony under the surface. And the underlying cause of mold—such as a leak—will not be resolved by bleach.
In order to get rid of both mold and its spores, you need to apply specific cleaning products that suck the humidity from the surface. This is the only way for the entire colony, including the roots and mold spores, to die.
More importantly, you need to identify the underlying problem: was it a leaky pipe or drain? Is there too much humidity in your house? Only after sorting out this problem can you defeat mold infestations.
5. Once Gone, Mold Won’t Come Back
Mold is persistent. Even small increases in humidity allow mold to develop and expand. Humidity and warmth are the perfect breeding grounds for mold.
If you already have a serious mold problem, you need to take care of it with expert advice to make sure the problem doesn’t come back a few weeks later. Killing the well-hidden mold roots is the only way to destroy mold colonies.
Mold is around us and no home can be mold-free. However, the safest way to make sure that a mold infestation in your house will never come back is to make sure that humidity levels are low throughout your property, properly ventilate your house, and fix any leaks or broken pipes.
Also, remember that mold is often a symptom; not a cause. By the time you have to throw away items with a porous surface because mold has seeped through, it’s usually too late. Consider mold an early-warning system for your house’s condition.
Can You Live with Mold in the House?
If you have a visible mold problem or suspect a mold infestation, it is always best to call a reputable mold restoration company that will tackle the problem with expert know-how and the proper equipment and detergents.
They will also check for the underlying cause and fix any problems before these can further damage your house.
In order to avoid mold problems in the future, ventilate your home, make sure humidity levels are low, and fix any water-related problems.
We are here to respond to your call on a 24/7 basis. Our experienced teams will remove the mold, mitigate the mold damage, and fix the underlying cause. Contact us now online or call us on 970-964-4437 because we are always ready for an emergency!
Seeing our house flooded can be devastating. People’s first instinct is to salvage anything they can, then start cleaning the house right away. Only after that will they consider calling an emergency mitigation company.
Although our first impulses make psychological sense, our first response should be to call a reputable and trusted restoration company: they will have the appropriate tools and expertise to mitigate the damage and complete the restoration work.
Throughout our extensive experience, we have spotted the seven most common mistakes people make when tackling flood damage on their own. These are honest and understandable mistakes; however, they can make flooding worse and create bigger problems down the road.
1.Waiting Too Long
Water is pernicious. It seeps through floors, drywall, and walls, not to mention carpets, cupboards, and closets. The longer you wait, the more water will continue its destructive work and create further problems in the long run.
Sometimes homeowners attempt an initial cleanup on their own and postpone calling a restoration company while they consider whether they really need it or not.
Unfortunately, once water has leaked, it can cause dangerous mold and structural damage to the foundations of the house. Experienced crews can recognize the unseen damage and remedy it. The longer you wait, however, the worse—and costlier—the problem becomes.
2.Failing to Address the Root Cause
You may think that a burst pipe was the cause of the flooding—and it may well be. However, the obvious problem often differs from the real one.
A burst pipe may be the evident origin of the damage but there often is an underlying problem that needs fixing to make sure no more flooding occurs.
An experienced restoration company will establish what caused the problem in the first place and repair the true source of the problem.
3.Using the Wrong Equipment
Buckets, brushes, mops, and towels are excellent cleaning tools for everyday cleaning and tidying. Unfortunately, a flood is an exceptional circumstance requiring extraordinary equipment and tools.
Restoration companies have professional tools that pump water, dehumidify, and deodorize large areas. They can do this in a minimal amount of time to limit the water damage. And they know how to reduce the damage.
Sometimes homeowners make things worse by starting the cleanup with everyday equipment. They end up pushing the water deeper into carpets and floors and onto corners, thus worsening the damage and creating breeding grounds for potentially dangerous mold.
4.Ignoring Hidden Water Damage
A flooded house requires a thorough inspection to estimate the real damage. Sometimes, damage is hidden and will only show up in small stains or mold.
In a sense, cleaning up a flood is the easy part. Evaluating the hidden damage, however, requires expert knowledge and equipment. Restoration companies have special tools that show whether there is residual humidity in walls and floors.
Experts will also check the structural foundation of the house to make sure that it hasn’t sustained any permanent damage. And they will disinfect to make sure no mold develops in areas that were flooded.
5.Salvaging or Throwing Away Personal Belongings
People’s first instinct is to salvage any items they can from the flood. It is an understandable and very human instinct. However, people sometimes forget that flood water is often contaminated with bacteria. Personal belongings need to be disinfected properly before they can be used again.
Another common mistake concerns the opposite attitude: people discard belongings which they perceive to be beyond repair. However, a professional with the right equipment can work miracles in restoring water-damaged belongings to their previous glory.
A professional restoration expert will evaluate whether an item can be restored and will have the suitable tools to fix it. Even items that look unsalvageable may be easily fixed with the right tools.
6.Neglecting Safety Precautions
Hidden damage can extend to several issues: broken pipes, dirty water filled with bacteria, unstable flooring, potential electrical shocks, broken glass and debris floating in the water, and even broken gas lines. All these are safety hazards that experts know how to deal with. Homeowners sometimes fail to notice these dangers in their attempt to save their belongings.
Similarly, most homeowners forget to wear helmets and the proper safety gear when they are inspecting or repairing their house. This can lead to personal harm and worse problems than those caused by the flooding.
7.Improperly Documenting the Damage
Thanks to the tools, equipment, and machinery available to an experienced restoration crew, documenting water damage is thorough and comprehensive. This is particularly helpful and necessary for your insurance company.
Your insurance policy will cover all the flood damage. But you need to provide them with documentation about the real damage.
If you only document part of the water damage because you are unaware of deeper problems, your insurance policy will not pay for any residual damage that has not been recorded. You may well end up covering the cost yourself.
A reputable and professional restoration company will provide you with an exhaustive list of the flood damage. With that in hand, you will get compensation from your insurance company and your house will be fixed and safe for you and your family to live in—at no extra cost to you.
A Restoration Company Offers Peace of Mind
Water flooding and water damage can cause a lot of stress. A restoration company will help you deal with this terrible situation in many ways:
They have the experience and the expert crews to come in and start the mitigation and restoration processes.
They have the appropriate tools to fix problems.
They know how to investigate floods and discover the underlying problems.
They will not ignore hidden damages.
They will make sure that your house is clean, disinfected, deodorized, and safe.
They will fix items you may consider unsalvageable.
It is essential to call a restoration company the moment you discover water damage to make sure the problem is dealt with immediately.
We are here to respond to your call on a 24/7 basis. Our experienced teams will mitigate the water damage and restore your home to make it safe and habitable again. Contact us now online or call us on 970-964-4437 because we are always ready for an emergency!
A fire weaving its way through a home can be devastating in more than one way. There is the actual destruction due to the fire but there is also damage from water, smoke, soot, ash, and the pervasive smoke odor.
A fire-damaged house requires professional restoration services to bring it back to life and clear all the damage. However, homeowners can take some initial steps to make their life safer and easier. From calling early on their insurance company to finding a safe place to stay, people going through the traumatic experience of a fire can sort out several vital issues.
Make Sure Everyone Is Safe (Including Your Pets)
The first, crucial step is to make sure everyone is safe. Make sure that everyone has left the building. Account for the wellbeing and whereabouts of all family members, including pets.
Then, you need to make sure all family members are healthy and unharmed. Remember to check with your vet about your pets: they might have inhaled smoke or have burns that don’t show under their fur.
Call your Utility Companies
Firefighters usually disconnect utilities and shut off the gas, water, and electricity supply. If for any reason they have failed to do so, call your utility companies right away and ask them to shut off the services until it is safe again.
Call Your Insurance Company
Once you are safe and secure outside your home, call your insurance company.
Insurance companies have protocols regarding fire damages. They will tell you what steps you need to take next, such as contacting a trusted restoration company to startmitigating the fire damage.
Choose a Trusted Restoration Company
After the fire has been put out and you have contacted your insurance company, you need to get in touch with aspecialized fire restoration company to repair all the damage.
Remember that during a fire, damage occurs from the water used to put out the fire as well as from the smoke, soot, and ash. Odor, in particular, can linger in a building for a long time and requires specialized equipment to deodorize the place.
Protect Your Home by Boarding it
While putting out the fire, firefighters may break a window or a door to better control the situation. Also, windows may break from the intense heat.
If your house is exposed, you will need to board up all the openings to prevent any further damage and protect it from looters.
Thankfully, a restoration company will do this for you to make sure your house is protected from outsiders and any other external threats such as rain.
Record the Damage
When the fire department deems your house to be safe for re-entering—and only then—you may go in and record the damage.
Sometimes, insurance companies ask homeowners to record the fire damage and write down a list of items that got burnt. Look around carefully without touching anything and write down or record on camera or phone what has been damaged and needs to be replaced and what can be salvaged. You can then create a list of damaged items for reimbursement.
Remember that a restoration company has wide experience and are experts in determining which belongings can be salvaged and which ones need to be discarded. Some items that seem in dubious condition could be salvaged thanks to specialized equipment and tools that only professionals have.
Keep the Receipts
Depending on your insurance policy and what it covers, keep your receipts from items you bought to replace those burnt. The receipts are necessary proof for your insurance company to reimburse you for the expense.
Take Care of Valuable Documents and Records
The fire might have burnt important documents and records. Think of driver’s licenses, birth and death certificates, marriage certificates, income tax records, Medicare cards, wills, medical records, mortgage papers, credit cards, and so many more.
Whichever are safely retrievable should be recovered. If, however, you have lost important documents, make a note and start issuing new ones.
Take Your Valuables
If your house is not inhabitable and needs considerable restoration, you will need to relocate to another house or a hotel.
Before leaving your house—and assuming that the Fire Department has deemed it safe to do so—take with you valuable items like money, insurance policies, passports, any medication you are currently taking, as well as eyeglasses, dentures, and even toothbrushes.
Don’t forget to take with you any cash you may have in the house, credit cards, checkbooks, jewelry, and any other valuables that you don’t want to lose to looters.
Get a Copy of the Fire Report
The fire department will issue a fire report about the causes of the fire as well as other details relevant to the fire. This fire report will be necessary for your insurance company, which will include it in your file.
Notify People
Once you have moved, it’s good to notify certain people and organizations of your new address.
If you have children, let their school know your new address. Likewise, inform your employers, family, and friends of your temporary address. Don’t forget to inform your bank and utility companies about your relocation so that you can notify them of any changes in your situation.
Cancel Your Subscriptions
There is no need to pay for cable or Internet service if you won’t be in your home for a few months. It will save you money to call your cable and Internet providers and cancel your subscriptions for the length of the restoration.
You Are Not Alone
Witnessing a fire destroying or damaging your home can be an overwhelming experience. It is a very difficult situation for you, but you do not need to go through it on your own.
You are surrounded by professionals whose very job is to help you: the firefighters, your insurance company, and your restoration company. They will all take care of your home and make sure it is restored, habitable, and safe again.
A fire can be emotionally traumatic. If you get stressed and find it hard to cope with the loss, talk to a specialist who will help you manage your anxiety.
It may help to know that, as a professional and trusted restoration company, we are here to make sure your home is safe and restored. We will come to your home the moment the fire has been put out and start mitigating the damage before we begin the restoration. We will deliver a clean, safe, and fresh house for you and your family to continue living there and creating beautiful memories.
We are here to respond to your call on a 24/7 basis. Our experienced teams will mitigate the fire damage and restore your home to make it safe and habitable again. Contact us now online or call us on 970-964-4437 because we are always ready for an emergency!
Burst pipes, floods, or leaks can cause serious water damage in your home.
Once water damage has taken place, homeowners should call their insurance company and a mitigation and restoration company to assess the damage and start the repair process.
However, there are several things that a homeowner can do—or refrain from doing—to minimize water damage and limit further deterioration while they wait.
Here are some steps you can take to limit the extent of the damage to your home and your belongings.
Determine what has caused the water damage
There are many reasons for water damage in a home: a blocked sink, a washing machine hose that has become loose or is too brittle, rainwater coming into the house, an overflowing sewage system, or even blocked drains causing flooding in the house.
Your first step depends on the cause of the water damage. Sewage water and gray water are filled with germs and harmful bacteria.Vacate the premises immediately, without lingering or salvaging your belongings! The best thing to do is to call your insurance company, and a reputablemitigation and restoration company to start the reparation process.
Water damage from a washing machine, a water heater, or a blocked sink is safe. Homeowners can take the following initial steps to limit the damage.
Turn off the water main
Once you have determined the source of the water damage, the best thing to do is to turn off the water main valve, to stop more water flooding your home. It’s good to know beforehand where the main water shutoff is located in your house so that you don’t need to look for it in a state of panic.
Turn off power to avoid electric shocks
If possible, turn off the power to avoid electric shocks. Make sure you are not standing in water when you do this. If the whole area is flooded, it’s best to leave this to an electrician to avoid danger to yourself.
Do not plug or unplug appliances
socket and wire in fire and smoke, fire
Sometimes, our first instinct is to start water mitigation on our own. However, water damage is usually extensive and requires professional care. You cannot be certain about the extent of the damage in your internal electrical system.
Do not try to fix things by plugging any tools, pumps, or your vacuum cleaner to remove water. A vacuum cleaner will probably not be adequate to suck that much water and you could end up making things much worse by causing a short circuit or even a fire.
Similarly, do not unplug any appliance and do not use electric appliances before an electrician has checked and confirmed that your electricity grid is safe.
How do you control water leaks?
If you have a leak that can be temporarily constrained, put a bucket under the leak until the restoration company arrives at your home. If the leak is damaging pieces of light furniture that can be safely moved, move them to limit the damage.
You can also move any fragile and water-sensitive items out of the reach of water, for example by placing them onto shelves. Always make sure you are safe and do not risk falling or slipping.
Can you live in a house with water damage?
With the panic and stress we often feel during a calamity, we may misjudge a situation and make hasty decisions. Do not throw out any carpets, furniture, or belongings that you think are beyond repair.
Reputable and professional mitigation and restoration companies have specialized equipment and tools to save your home and belongings.
As a professional and experienced restoration company, we aim at salvaging and bringing back to life as many items as we can during our work. Many homeowners are amazed at how much of their precious belonging we have saved, cleaned, and repaired. Our cleaning equipment and specialized tools are much more powerful than common household appliances.
Trust us to bring your home and its contents back to their previous state!
Choose a professional mitigation and restoration company
Water damage can be dangerous to the structural integrity of a house. It is also a traumatic experience for homeowners. Hiring a restoration company is the best step to take to secure your home and save your belongings.
We are here to respond to your call on a 24/7 basis. Our experienced teams will mitigate the water damage and restore your home to make it safe and habitable again. Contact us now online or call us on 970-964-4437 to learn more!
One of the most important investments many people make is the purchase of their home or business premises. If something happens to it, the repercussions can be immense. Seeing your property after a fire or flood is a traumatic experience.
Thankfully, fire, water, and mold damage can be mitigated and restored by an experienced company specializing in emergency restoration.
Many property owners wonder what emergency mitigation and restoration is and whether it is necessary. It’s good to understand what these emergencies involve and how timely mitigation benefits your most important investment, so that you are prepared should it ever come to that.
Natural disasters happen: be prepared
A natural disaster at home can be overwhelming.
Water can flood parts or whole segments of a house and destroy electrical devices, clothes, furniture, and the floor, among others. If left unattended, water damage can also lead to mold and cause long-term damage.
Fire can burn ceilings, windows, and belongings and cause smoke damage that is particularly difficult to get rid of. Even as you put out the fire, the retardants and chemicals that fire extinguishers use can be hazardous and hard to clean.
What should you do in case of a natural disaster?
In the event of a natural disaster, the first step is to make sure everyone in your household or business is safe and accounted for.
Then, call the fire department if there is a fire. Turn off the water mains in case a ruptured pipe is causing water damage. In both cases, shut down the electrical main: fire melting cables can be as deadly as water leaking into light switches and power outlets.
The next step is to leave the house and call a reputable and trustworthy emergency restoration company.
When should I call my insurance company after a natural disaster?
Right after you call your insurance company, ask an emergency restoration company to assess the damage without interfering in any way with the actual damage. The restoration company can be onsite within a couple hours or less, whereas it may take the insurance company a few days to come out. While you are working with the restoration company, the insurance company can start their process and determine policy limitations, if any. If it turns out to be a small loss (less than or close to deductible), then the claim can be withdrawn at no consequence.
The company’s experts will come to appraise the damage: for instance, fire damage usually involves water damage, as water hoses are used to put out the fire. Experts will know whether mold will develop in the flooded parts of the building.
The emergency restoration experts will give you a general idea about the potential cost and their thoughts on what an insurance company is bound to cover. This can save you a lot of money—and hassle—down the road.
Do not clean up before the insurance company has inspected the property
Homeowners should never clean up before the insurance company has come to assess the damage. Insurance investigators need to see the whole damage without any prior intervention.
Once the danger is over and the insurance company has inspected the damage, a homeowner can begin with emergency mitigation and emergency restoration.
If it is not a significant loss, the restoration company will take photos. If given permission by the homeowner, they can work with the insurance company directly to determine the needed scope of work and resolve the damage according to the coverages of your policy.
What is the difference between emergency mitigation and restoration?
While some use the terms interchangeably, they mean quite different things.
What is emergency mitigation?
Emergency mitigation involves stopping any further damage to the house from fire, water, or the elements.
Emergency mitigation requires specialists to remove damaged furniture, debris, and damaged materials like drywall and flooring. Mitigation is also about ensuring the home’s structural stability and protecting its integrity—and your safety—by boarding broken windows and preventing any further damage.
If parts of the building such as the roof, windows, or the entrance door are exposed to the elements, emergency mitigation makes sure these are provisionally fixed until emergency restoration begins.
Emergency mitigation is all about stopping further damage to the building.
What is emergency restoration?
Emergency restoration involves returning the building to its former condition.
It covers everything from repairing the damage to cleaning, fixing, painting, or doing anything else that is necessary to make the building once again safe, habitable, and pleasing to the eye.
How do you restore a water-damaged house?
Water emergency mitigation requires a thorough inspection and assessment of the damage.
An expert will know where you may have hidden water damage, beyond what you can see at first glance. Specialists can detect hidden moisture. They will make sure that the water extraction process starts immediately: the sooner the water is extracted, the less the water damage or risk from mold.
Once the initial inspection is complete, the restoration crew will follow these steps:
1. Water extraction
Water mitigation means extracting the water from the house with powerful pumps that remove the standing water.
Places such as basements are particularly difficult to extract water from. Unfortunately, they are also the most prone to water and mold damage.
Be prepared for the fact that some of your belongings will be discarded. Damaged parts of the house such as wet ceiling panels will have to be replaced. To ensure your safety, restoration crews also pay extra attention to the electrical system, plugs, and cables that may have been damaged.
2. Drying and dehumidifying after water damage
Once all water has been removed, the emergency mitigation crew will start the drying and dehumidifying process.
The drying process goes further than drying the belongings that were salvaged. The crew will also dry wooden floors, carpets, and anything that can be restored. A mitigation company will also make sure that any lingering moisture is dried and will monitor the moisture levels to make sure that there is no underlying problem.
3. Mold and residual moisture monitoring
Moisture monitoring is necessary to confirm there is no mold.
If any mold is found, the emergency mitigation crew will take care of the problem and clean up with the appropriate equipment and detergents.
A professional emergency mitigation service will also ensure your safety by checking for category 3 water, aka black water. This contains unsanitary agents, harmful bacteria, and fungi that can lead to infections, illnesses, and long-term respiratory problems. If you come into contact with black water you risk even more serious health risks and even death.
4. Sanitizing, deodorizing, disinfecting
If the water came from outdoors or from a broken sewage pipe, or if black water is found, the property will require disinfection to make it safe and clean for habitation.
Once all water damage has been mitigated, the emergency restoration company will sanitize and deodorize the property, to verify there is no lingering moisture smell and that your house is once again suitable for living.
How do you restore a fire-damaged house?
In case of fire, mitigation deals with two important consequences: water damage and smoke damage.
The fire mitigation crew will first inspect and evaluate the damage to the building structure and to your belongings by both the water used to put out the fire and the smoke.
The specialists will then make an inventory of what is salvageable and what is not.
They will dispose of everything that is beyond repair or cleaning. This includes belongings, burnt floorboards, carpets, and other features. Fire-damaged areas of the house will be cordoned off from the rest of the house so that restoration work can begin there.
The crew will then remove all soot from any salvageable items and return them to their previous condition.
Once the initial fire inspection is complete, the steps below will be followed:
1. Water damage during a fire
The water used to put out a fire often causes its own damage. This water can linger on, especially in basements and behind walls, and cause mold.
A professional mitigation company will remove water with powerful pumps and will verify there is no lingering moisture or mold in the house.
2. Smoke damage during a fire
Smoke infiltrates everything and needs specialized equipment to get rid of.
Specialized fire mitigation companies know there are different types of smoke such as wet, dry, or soot smoke. These require different approaches during the cleaning process.
The fire mitigation crew will use specialized equipment that absorbs soot and smoke from walls, floors, ceilings, and other surfaces. The crew has the appropriate material and equipment to remove smoke odor from buildings and make them livable and pleasant again.
Lingering smoke can permeate a building and linger on for a long time, making it highly detrimental to people’s health. Therefore, it is essential to remove it immediately and effectively.
Smoke deodorization is an essential step in making your home safe again.
3. Cleaning up fire retardant chemicals
A crucial step of fire mitigation involves cleaning up the fire retardant chemicals used to put out the fire.
While these chemicals are very good for limiting a fire, they should not be breathed in. A professional team knows how to clean up them and make your home safe to live in once again.
4. Restoring the damage
Once all of the above is complete, it is time for the restoration. In some cases, the fire damage is extensive and requires significant structural reconstruction.
Fire restoration involves repairing all the damaged parts of the house such as windows, ceilings, wooden floors, wooden beams, doors, etc.
Experienced emergency restoration experts will guide you through the reconstruction process.
Make the most out of a disaster
Natural disasters are called emergencies for a reason: they are distressing events. But they can also be an opportunity for you to make the changes you have been dreaming about.
If your insurance company pays for the restoration, you can invest a little extra money to make the improvements and changes you have been meaning to. A more modern kitchen? A remodeled bathroom? A new wooden floor? Perhaps a flood or a fire can be the extra push you need to make your dream home come true.
Whatever your need after a natural disaster, Valley Restoration and Construction can help. Our emergency mitigation & restoration crews will restore your house to its pristine condition. Contact us online or call us now on 970-964-4437!
