Water damage caused by flooding events such as a storm, flood, pipes bust, roof damage, etc. can be lethal to your property. Flooding of water in your house can cause many problems and can hit you hard monetarily. It can create a deep impact on your property value and the things you own.
Thus, it is important to address this type of emergency with precision. Now, as a homeowner, you might not know about the proper steps to take for flood damage restoration. So, here we will discuss the immediate steps you can take during any flood damage emergency.
1. Protect Yourself and Your Possessions
Contaminated water entering your property can bring in some potential threats like health and safety issue. Overflooding and mould growth can be some of the foremost problems that you can encounter. To tackle such a situation, you take the following actions:
- As soon as you realise the flooding problem, immediately switch off the electricity line. While doing that also unplug all your devices.
- If the water level is rising, evacuate the area until it is safe to return to your property.
- Do not enter property without wearing proper protective gears such as rubber gloves, boots and protective clothing.
- Collect all the valuable items such as important documents, electronics, etc.
2. Stop the Water Damage
It is important to identify the source behind the water problem. Once you spot it, take appropriate measures to prevent further damage from happening. You can take the following steps:
- Bursting of pipe or water tank leakage can be the most common cause of house flooding. Shut-off all the valves to cut the source of water.
- If there is any prediction of a flood, then you can take a preventive measure such as ditch sandbagging for preventing water to come inside your property.
- If you are facing a leaky ceiling problem then it is a wise move to call an expert and make the spot the source of the leakage.
- Foul smell and discoloured ceiling or floorboards is a sign of mould formation. Make a note of it to take proper actions.
3. Contact Your Insurance Company
Contacting your insurance company is one of the most important steps for any flood damage restoration. They will help you and guide you to overcome such emergency and ease your tension. The following tips will help you out in your claim file:
- You have to call the insurance company as soon as possible after the flooding damage. Find out about the official steps to take to claim your insurance.
- Ask them for claims adjuster for the assessment of the site. They are the qualified person to investigate the water damage. They will also help to assess the initial cost of repair needed.
- Click photos of all the areas affected by flooding of water. While you are at it, don’t forget to click the photos of affected valuables.
- Keep all records and receipts in filed manner, as it will come in handy for documentation process.
4. Dry Things Out
It takes almost 3-4 days to complete the drying process of the affected areas and valuables of your house. So, you have to start drying out your property within 24 hours to avoid any growth of mould and mildew.
- If possible, lift all the wet furniture and remove them from the flooded area to start the drying process.
- You can use aluminium foil between the furniture legs and carpet. This will help to prevent the formation of any carpet stains.
- Carpets are expensive, so use proper steps to save your flooded carpet. You can seek also seek the help of expert carpet cleaners to save your carpet.
- Remove all the rugs from the flooded area and hang them to dry.
- Keep your air conditioner and fans on to increase the pace of the drying process.
5. Cleaning and Restoring the Property
It takes time and effort to properly clean and repair the damaged area of the flooded property. Seek the help of experts in water damage repairs. These professionals know all the ins and outs of the situation. And can easily tackle any difficult situation. You can follow the following tips to help you out with the process:
- Determine what is salvageable and discard anything that is too damaged or no longer safe to use.
- Drywall, insulation, flooring, carpeting and baseboards may need to be removed and replaced to prevent mildew and mould growth.
- Moisture can seep into tight spaces which you can’t find. To deal with such tight spots, call professionals. They have equipment like moisture detectors, remote cameras, etc. to find the trace of any residual water.
- These professionals will help you out in the documentation process and will help you with drying out the electronic equipment.
The above-mentioned steps will prepare you for any sort of flood damage restoration. You need to be calm and composed while going through with this transition process.
