What Should I do Immediately After Water Damage?

This may be hard to believe, but water damage is actually a devastating problem that could ruin your house and finances. Whether it came from a storm, HVAC leak, or busted pipes; water problems could be a serious threat to your things and your safety as well.

Within 24 hours of no repair, the damage can bring toxic mold infestations or structural problems such as discoloration of the walls and disintegration of your furniture. In many alarming cases, water damage can also cause health problems like bacterial injections, persistent allergies, or chronic headaches. 

Water damage could happen to anyone. It may result in sorts of safety hazards, but there are ways you can do to avoid them. Don’t wait to turn the damage into a much worse situation! 

Here are the immediate actions you can do after water damage hits your home.

Tip #1: Safety first! Protect yourself and Valuables

Water damage happens fast and it can prospectively harm your health and safety. To protect yourself and your family from the threats, make sure to do the following:

Switch off the Electricity

When flooding is likely to happen at home, be sure to switch off the circuit breaks and unplug any devices or appliances. As we know, water and electricity are not great together because it can electrocute or shock you.

However, if the water is leaking already at your home and you haven’t turned off the power, best not to make any engagement. For your safety, you should evacuate and call a professional electrician or the authorities to handle the situation.

Dress in Protective Gear

After a water disaster incident, make sure to wear the proper outfit as you enter your house again. Wear rubber gloves and boots, and protective clothing that will protect you from bacteria, mold, and other hazards in your home. 

Protect your valuable items

If it does not risk your safety, you should also consider rescuing your valuable items. This includes your furniture (especially the wooden ones), appliances, and other electronics. You should also keep the important documents safe, especially the ones you will need for insurance. 

Tip #2: Reach your Insurance Company

In times of disaster, your insurance company plays a vital role to recover what you have lost. Insurances can cover the restoration process and give you resources to recuperate from the damage. However, you will need to review your insurance policy to assure that the water damage can be covered. 

For a usable claim, you can follow this guide:

• Call your insurance company right after the damage to find out the next steps you should take.
• Contact your own adjuster to study the documents and let you know the estimate of repairs.
• Save all the transaction records and receipts from the prompt actions you did.
• Take documents such as photos and videos of the wrecked items before you take any repair or clean up.

Tip #3: Clean and Dry

The best time to restore your place from a water damage situation is within 24-48 hours after it has been cleared for re-entering. You can get help from water damage restoration services if the damage at your place is too extreme to handle.

If you want to get things done immediately, you can make the following simple clean, dry, and restoration steps:

1. Identify the items which are salvageable and discard those that can’t be used anymore.
2. Remove the drenched furniture, carpets, and other items and place them outside or someplace dry.
3. You can start removing water using plastic buckets or tubs to fill them. You can mop out the excess water or the corners you can’t reach easily.
4. To remove humidity and unpleasant smell, you can open the windows, or use dehumidifiers for fast drying of the wet areas and items.
5. Don’t forget to remove soaked floor covers (carpets or rugs), drywall, and insulation or else, mildew and molds will grow and spread.

Tip #4: Repair and restore what you can

Once you have removed the affected items and cleaned up your space, it’s time for the restoration action plan. This process can be more challenging, but you can always call experts to assist you with all the repairs that must be done. 

To salvage the structure of your house and most of your furniture, you need to know what must be restored quickly after the water damage. 

Here is a list of things you need to get done for a full recovery:

1. Check the ceilings and repair them first.
2. Replace the soaked hardwood floors and other wooden items
3. Determine the size of the affected drywall and replace them.
4. Repaint the walls and other affected parts in your house with fresh coat paint.
5. Install new and durable sealed flooring.
6. Disinfect the area, furniture, and other materials.
7. Perform further inspection to check for molds, mildew, and other water damage problems that may occur in the latter.

Tip #5 Seek Professional Water Damage Services

Extensive water damage may require special equipment to fully remove the water at your place. The fastest way to recover from that is to seek professional water damage services. 

They can perform complete restoration services including:

1. Proper inspection of the affected area
2. Thorough cleaning of the dirty and soaked furniture
3. Disinfection of the area
4. Full restoration and mitigation plan
5. Identifying and repairing the source of water damage

Technicians can recover your house into its normal state and identify the root cause of your water damage. You should trust a company with a reliable background of experience and training in home repairs and restoration. 

In this way, your finances, safety, and properties are secured.

Conclusion

Recovering from the aftermath of water damage is not an easy task. Always keep in mind that your safety should be your number one priority. 

Don’t hesitate to ask for help because professional technicians know the best thing to do during emergency situations like water damage. You can rely on a licensed and all-around water damage restoration company like Reactic Restoration San Jose to help you recover.