What is Involved in Flood Damage Remediation?

6/25/2020 (Permalink)

When flooding occurred in this home, SERVPRO was there. We restored this home to its preloss condition.

After a Storm, SERVPRO Has the Flood Damage Restoration Techniques Necessary to Bring Your Chicago Home Back to Pre-Loss Condition 

With a flood loss event, it might seem overwhelming to determine what is salvageable in your Chicago residence and what is not. Regardless of the devastation level, it is imperative that you have a team on your side ready and promptly handle water removal and restoration. SERVPRO responds fast to not only put your mind at ease but also to lessen the development of secondary damage. Everything gets done to ensure your interior is left "Like it never even happened." 

Is the Floodwater in My Home Dangerous? 

We want our customers to know that dealing with flood damage in Chicago is best left to the experts as this water is known for harboring many contaminants. We have specialized procedures for mitigating the water damage while ensuring your interior remains protected from the transmission of microbes and bacteria from the loss zone into other rooms. Once we arrive on your property, we work to eliminate various safety hazards by: 

• Wearing the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE)
• Our technicians wear foot coverings to eradicate the chance of grime and debris tracking
• Posting signs
• Setting a perimeter
• Tarping off areas to limit tracking from one room to the next
• Treating the flood-zone with specialized products to keep hazards to a minimum 

We must work diligently, yet carefully, to remove silt and debris from your interior that the floodwaters bring in. Floodwater often contains hazardous materials such as: 

• Lead
• Asbestos
• Fuel
• Fecal matter, and more 

In some cases, our skilled technicians may implement containment measures to keep contamination from spreading to unaffected areas. Some contaminated regions benefit significantly from negative pressure, limiting the spread of hazardous mold spores into clean spaces within the house.

How is the Water Removed from My Interior? 

SERVPRO technicians can execute timely water extraction by using: 

• Truck-mounted extractors capable of handling large amounts of water riddled with debris
• Submersible and portable pumps
• Light wand extractors
• Weighted extractors, known as rovers, use the technician's weight to push water out of carpeting and the padding beneath 

What Makes Floodwater Harmful? 

After a significant storm that results in flooding, black water throughout your home poses a considerable health threat to your family and pets. Blackwater is standing water, discolored with visible contaminants floating within. Such pollutants include debris that comes from outside your home and usually consists of a range of biohazards and bacteria.  

You Can Count on Us to Safely Address Black Water from a Flood 

Our skilled water restoration technicians (WRT) can handle whatever safety hazards and flood damage your Chicago home encounters after a storm. We have experience dealing with significant flooding and extensive interior damage, allowing us to formulate a plan of proven restoration methods.  

You mustn't try walking or wading through any portion of your home with standing water, which could lead to potentially dangerous pathogen and bacteria exposure with possible health effects. There could be hidden hazards within the murky water that could lead to bodily injury or electrocution. Once our crew arrives on the scene, we will carefully perform an assessment to tell us what type of damage to which we are working. We formulate a plan using a unique process that helps us determine the best equipment for the job. The restoration steps usually resemble the following: 

• Flood-zone assessment
• Address any potential safety hazards
• Determine the structural integrity
• Water extraction using industrial-grade equipment
• Drying measures using air movers, powerful fans, and dehumidifiers
• Moisture detection to keep hidden moisture pockets from festering and creating secondary damage
• Controlled demolition to remove unsalvageable building materials, including baseboards, drywall, carpeting, carpet padding, and subflooring
• Detailed cleaning, sanitization, and disinfecting to ensure your interior is ready and safe for your family to enjoy once again 

Besides Flooring and Drywall, What Other Items May Not Be Salvageable After Flooding? 

Each case gets treated as unique due to the uncertainty of contaminants within the flooded portion of your home. Once we perform the initial loss assessment and begin the cleanup process, we will have a clearer picture of which items need disposing. Depending on how long the water is left to fester, many belongings, fixtures, furnishings, and other building materials may call for a total replacement.  

Throughout the cleanup and restoration process, you can trust that our crew will take a detailed inventory of any pack-outs and items with which we dispose of, which helps with your records, as well as your insurance claim. 

SERVPRO of West Loop/Bucktown/Greektown is here whenever you need professional assistance with flood damage. Call us 24/7 for emergency service at (773) 434-9100, and we send out a team as soon as possible.