Water Damage? Here’s How to Analyze and Fix the Problem

Maybe a heavy rainstorm revealed a leaky roof. Maybe a problem with your interior plumbing has left you with lingering water spots on the ceiling. Or maybe you’ve noticed some unusual signs of water without determining the culprit.

Whatever the case, you have water damage. And you’ll need to find a way to analyze and fix that water damage.

Unfortunately, you may not be able to analyze and fix the problem entirely on your own. As you’ll see, if you want to take the best care of your home, it’s important to hire experts to evaluate the problem, mitigate further damage, and apply the proper repairs.

Why Water Damage Is an Urgent Problem

First, understand that water damage in your home is a truly urgent problem. It may not seem like a real emergency, but you need to act quickly if you want to prevent the worst.

· Water can be incredibly destructive. Water damage can devastate your home – and that’s not an exaggeration. You can spill a glass of water on the floor and not worry about any long-term damage (as long as you clean it up).

But if high volumes of water get into your floors or walls, they can cause the structure of your home to warp or rot. On top of that, if you allow moisture to remain in your home without treatment, it could cause the growth of mold and mildew, which are harmful for human health and expensive to remove.

· What you see may only be superficial. It’s also important to realize that the water spots and the damage you see may only be superficial. You may notice a water spot that eventually goes away, but there could be deep, lasting damage beyond it.

· Damage gets worse over time. Water damage tends to get worse over time. The longer you leave water damage unexplored and untreated, the more likely you’ll be to face problems like mold and mildew, and the more expensive the repair job is going to be. After just a day, the water can cause drywall, wooden doors, and window frames to swell. After a week, you could have a serious mold problem on your hands.

Hiring an Expert for Water Damage in Your Home

In some cases, you may be able to inspect and mitigate water damage on your own. If it’s only a small amount of water and you’re absolutely confident you know what the root cause is, you may be able to fix it independently; for example, you might replace a couple of shingles on your roof to prevent it from leaking.

However, even if you feel somewhat confident about the nature of your water damage, it’s a good idea to hire an expert to analyze the situation anyway.

According to New Jersey Water and Mold: “Unfortunately, we do receive a lot of mold work because clients do not call a professional restoration company to mitigate ‘small’ water damage issues.

We have seen many instances when a homeowner suffers a water line leak or a water heater rupture and quickly mops up the visible water and assumes the job is done.”

“But water gets into, behind and around every surface and a few days/weeks later the signs and smell of mold start to make their presence felt. By that time, it’s too late – and a small water damage cleanup turns into a much more expensive mold remediation.

Mold is much more costly to clean up/contain and creates more damage and repair costs. It is important to have a professional restoration company on the job asap to clean and dry a property quickly and safely.”

A professional water damage and mold mitigation expert can:

· Get a proper assessment. Even if you have some DIY experience, you don’t know water damage like experts who deal with it every day. Hiring a professional means you’ll have a thorough and proper assessment. Those professionals can figure out exactly where the damage is, where it’s coming from, and how best to completely eliminate the problem.

· Prevent future damage. It’s also your contractor’s responsibility to prevent any future damage. Their goal is to eliminate all unnecessary and unwanted moisture in the structure of your home so they can keep the risks of mold and mildew to an absolute minimum.

· Save time and money. Some people are reluctant to call an expert for water damage because they don’t want to spend the money on an expensive cleanup. But realistically, cleaning and mitigating the problem thoroughly and proactively is your cheapest option. Generally, if you invest in expert work, you’ll save time and money in the long run.

· Enjoy peace of mind. Don’t lay awake at night wondering whether there’s deeper, more devastating damage to your home. Get the job done right, and get it done quickly.

The Professional Approach

When professionals are called out to look at water damage, they typically try to resolve the problem as fully and non-invasively as possible. Depending on the nature of the situation, they usually perform the following:

· A full assessment. There are many professional tools and processes that can help experts conduct a full assessment on the area. The goal is to understand not only where the water is coming from but how deep the water damage goes. Experts can test for humidity, temperature, moisture levels, and even use infrared sensors to better understand the depth of the damage.

· Dehumidification and desiccation. Nobody wants to rip up your floors or tear down your walls unless absolutely necessary, so processes of dehumidification and desiccation are typically employed to remove both visible and invisible moisture. Advanced equipment can remove all traces of water and moisture from even the deepest-penetrated spots.

· Repair and abatement. In some cases, drying efforts aren’t enough; for example, there may already be signs of mold and mildew growth. If necessary, pros can conduct repairs and abatement, removing sections of walls or floors wherever necessary and replacing them with fresh materials.

· Cleaning. Water and mold experts usually clean up after ourselves – and make sure to clean away any lasting damage from the home. They want the area to look like new when they’re done.

· Disposal (when necessary). Abatement means properly disposing of all materials. Once the abatement is complete, experts will dispose of all hazardous materials in a responsible way.

Are you dealing with water damage? Or are you concerned about previous water damage that could have caused a mold issue in your house? Even if it looks like you can temporarily mitigate the problem on your own, play it safe and call an expert to help. You won’t regret it.