Steps to Take After Water Damage
Do you have water damage in your home? Here’s what you can do to solve it!
You go to great lengths to keep your home spick and span. But yet, when it rains or floods, or if you burst a pipe or faucet—all your efforts get washed away, quite literally. The results of water damage range from the visible marks of seepage, decay, molding, rusty metal parts and rotting wood, to invisible ones: internal corrosion, breeding infections and allergies, dampness and putrid smells. It’s important to get a yearly check-up of your house, to note any possible leaky pipelines, or if any patch of the ceiling needs a fresh coat of plaster to stop seepage of water, and so on; because prevention is better than cure.
But what if the nightmare strikes quite suddenly? Take prompt action! The following steps are your first and foremost calls to action.
Safety First!
When disaster strikes, you must keep yourself and your loved ones safe. Wear protective equipment, including rubber gloves and boots while re-entering your flooded house. In all cases of water damage, you must switch off the main electrical supply to prevent electrical mishaps. Turn off all stove knobs and gas supply as well. Beware of animals, snakes, etc.
Call Up Your Insurance Company
Document all areas affected by water damage with clear photographs, as proof to furnish to your insurance company. Click pictures before, during and after clean-up for clarity. Further, you should try to estimate beforehand the monetary values of all items affected by the water damage.
The insurance company will send an adjuster who will assess the damage in detail and determine if it is a loss covered by the policy. In case of damage due to floods, note that all home insurance policies do not cover flood damage.
If you’re residing in Warren MI, check out this resource to make a claim against your house’s basement damage due to sewer back up.
Clean-up Water Damage
Even before the adjuster arrives, you should start this step. Once you’ve been cleared to re-enter your house, start the water damage clean-up 24-48 hours afterwards. Do not attempt to do this alone; take professional help. Warren MI has a number of restoration services agencies, that can aid you in property recovery, basement clean-up and salvage of valuables.
Dry Out Your Property
A power vacuum can help pump out floodwater in your home, but wetness will still stay. Open up all the windows and ventilators to dry up the dampness. If you can safely turn on your electricity, use air conditioning, overhead fans, air movers or dehumidifiers to speed up the drying process, especially in hard-to-reach areas. Drying a house completely within 3-4 days eliminates the risk of mold and mildew. Avoid risk of mildew, molds, etc. by waiting for your house to dry out completely.
Check for Mold
Mold can begin growing within 24 hours of dampness. It can be difficult to get rid of it once it starts blooming throughout your house; the issue can be exacerbated if you do not handle the clean-up process carefully, by spreading the spores throughout the house. More often than not, you have to remove and destroy the mildewed, mold-overgrown areas. Ask a professional to take a look at mold-affected areas, paying particular care to crevices, the bath, damp corners, wood cabinets.
