Listings and Storm Damage

Steps to take to alleviate water damage.
Article Submitted by Rudy McCormick- RE/MAX Preferred based on writing by author and writer Phoebe Chongchua.



When you first spot a water problem, Colombo says act quickly. Surprisingly many homeowners delay taking action and later create more expenses and necessary clean up.

“The critical thing when that happens is to quickly follow our procedures to remove the water and get the structure drying quickly to evaporate that moisture out of all those porous materials so that they dry back to the normal levels and don’t develop a mold problem,” says Colombo.

The first step is to get the water up. Next, Colombo says you need to get ventilation into the house. Experts may need to pull up carpet or wood floors and the walls may need to be physically opened or cut into so that the wet insulation that’s inside them can begin to dry.

Colombo says once everything is set up for the drying process to begin, an anti-microbial spray should be applied to sanitize the area. This is especially important if the water damage is from an unclean water source such as a sewer drain back-up.

Fans and de-humidifers should then be strategically placed in the area to help expedite the drying phase. “The drying phase with the equipment usually takes between three to five days,”

Delaying can be costly and risky for your health.

“Depending on the environmental conditions, mold can develop in as little as 24 to 48 hours after a water damage event,” says Colombo. It varies depending on a lot of circumstances, but mold can develop fairly quickly so a lot of times we will go through the house to investigate some sort of water spot that showed up on the ceiling and we come to find out that it’s been leaking for quite a long time and the inside of that ceiling is now all moldy,” says Colombo.

The bottom line is don’t delay. “As soon as you see something wrong, get it taken care of,” says Colombo. He adds, “Don’t put it off. Those types of things don’t go away and they don’t get better by themselves.”

Be involved in the claim process.

Be sure to speak with your insurance company to see what if any amount of the damage is covered. Colombo recommends that you be in constant contact with your claim’s adjuster and insurance agent. “Be very involved in the claim process,” says Colombo. He adds that, in order to get what you are owed for the claim, “You need to have a good company helping you that is experienced in the insurance business.”
If you have roof damage in the area Advanced Designs can help.

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