What to look for when you're the victim of a water damage
Initial scoping to determine how extensive the water damage is. The water damage will be found in three dimensions. Water always seeks equilibrium with it's environment and wet always goes to dry, if it can. Just finding the extent of the water damage on the floor isn't enough. The water damage needs to be mapped to determine how far up the walls it has wicked, and how far down into the substrate the water damage has gone, including possibly entering the crawlspace in a conventional foundation. This can't be done by touch. Very specialized water damage inspection tools and meters will be required, and every water damage professional has them.
A thorough understanding of water damage demands every water damage contractor be familiar with the "science of drying", also called psychrometry. Ask your water damage contractor what the dry standard is of each structural component suffering potential water damage. With proper water damage inspection tools and water damage experience, he should be able to tell you on a scale of 100 points the moisture content of water damaged and non water damaged materials. If he can't, call a different water damage restoration professional. Make sure your water damage restoration contractor draws a "moisture map" of the affected area showing the FULL extent of the water damage migration, and that he updates the water damage moisture map daily to show the progress of the water damage/structural drying project.
A professional water damage restoration contractor should explain the risks of what are called secondary damages resulting from a water damaged structure. These secondary damage risks are primarily caused by increased vapor pressure (a result of poorly controlled ambient temperature and humidity), and mold/bacterial contamination. Make sure the water damage restoration contractor you hire has, uses, and documents the usage of a thermo-hygrometer to trend the drying potential of the environment. A water damage contractor should offer 24/7 service since water damage is a progressive condition that gets worse the longer it takes water damage mitigation to begin.
A professional water damage restoration contractor should select the structural drying equipment in a scientific method based on materials, size of the water damaged area, and the class and category of the water damage. At the very least he should be certified in applied structural drying, water damage restoration, and have a certification in mold remediation...a working knowledge of the relationship between water damage and mold damage should be mandatory.
For sewage related water damage, or water damage resulting from water coming into the structure from outside surface or ground water sources all hygroscopic (absorbs water) materials should be cut out and thrown away in a manner consistent with industry accepted guidelines for water damage restoration.
Oh, heck. There's far too many things to learn as a property owner, whether it's your home or business, to be educated in applied structural drying and water damage restoration via a web-site. So your best bet is to contact Diamond Restoration, and let us handle the water damage restoration project. We'll take care of you, and you can be confident that you've hired the very best at water damage restoration, and your insurance company will know they have a contractor who's skilled and ethical, something that's getting harder and harder to find.
If your home is ever the victim of a flood or water damage of any kind you need a professional restorer with extensive training and experience drying a wide range of different structural materials and contents. A professional restorer will tell you if the damage you see is the result of the flood or not and act accordingly.
Diamond Restoration is a professional restoration company with years of experience at structural drying and water damage restoration and mitigation and flood damage restoration and mitigation. True professionals, we guarantee not to provide less service than necessary to save the insurance company money. We also guarantee we will not provide more service than necessary to benefit the insured. Sometimes that can be a fine line to walk, but we refuse to do anything that will jeopardize our sterling reputation, or the quality of service we provide.
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