What to Expect in A Water Mitigation Response? By Brian Marshall Tampa
Be it a sudden violent storm, flood, heavy rain, broken tap of your bathroom or kitchen, or tap of your kitchen that you left open by mistake and went to the office. These things can flood your premises without any warning and cause wet documents, wrecked furniture, and mold growth. Florida encounters floods every year which causes severe water damage. The aftermath of water damage is always devastating, and you may not know what to do for cleanup. How to start and where to start?
In such conditions, it is advised to call a professional water mitigation company. Professionals can help you a lot in dealing with this unwanted situation. Knowing what to expect in a water mitigation response leaves you prepared for such a disaster.
What is Water Mitigation?
First, let us talk about mitigation. What is water mitigation? Water mitigation is different from the restoration. It is performed to reduce the immediate impact of water damage. The first task that a professional mitigation technician will do is review the situation and decide further actions. Below are some steps of the mitigating process that you can expect in response.
1. Inspection
The first thing that a water mitigation technician does is inspect the area and find out the seriousness of the issue. A professional will take note of the flooding source and remove it. They may also shut off all sources of water completely. After that, they prepare a plan to take further actions to minimize the damage.
2. Drying
Now comes the draining of water. Technicians may use water vacuums, underwater summer pumps, or large tanker trucks that use hoses, depending on the nature of the flood, to drain the standing water. In case of severe flood or basement flood which may have sand, mud, or silt with water, technicians may also use a trash pump to remove debris.
Mitigation workers wear specialized equipment during this process to save themselves from dangerous contaminants that the water may contain. After drying the standing water, technicians may use the state-of-the-art technology to detect hidden areas of water contamination. Fans and dehumidifiers are used to take excess water vapor out of the air.
3. Restoration
After drying, they come to the task of saving your valuables. Once standing water is out, technicians look for your most valuable items and try to minimize the water damage over them. Water absorbing items will be removed. Wet furniture, items of clothing, important documents, or other valuables that may have contacted water will be removed and dried. Specialized drying techniques are used to dry wet books, important documents, or photographs.
4. Decontamination
Decontamination is done to prevent mold growth. The surface is wiped down. After that, it is treated with disinfectants approved by EPA, especially the surface susceptible to mold growth.
5. Flood cuts
Flood cuts are made into the wall about a foot above the water line to check if interior walls have taken on water and if wiring and insulation have been damaged or not. These cuts are also used to check for mold growth, especially, after a flood or severe water damage. To check for mold growth, these cuts are made several days after the flood. If mold is found behind your wall, the insulation may have to be replaced.
6. Removal of Odors
Now comes the task of removing unpleasant odors. After the removal of dirty water, unpleasant odors may remain for weeks. A professional mitigation technician will use ozone machines to clear the air. They may use thermal foggers on items that you want to retain. With unpleasant odors, removal of excessive moisture is also necessary as it may lead to mold growth in the house.
7. Follow up
Once the mitigation process is done, the company that you hired for the task will keep future inspections to ensure the effectiveness of the mitigation and to check whether some new problem has arisen because of water damage. Depending on the damage, you may need remediation services after a flood. The mitigation technician may also provide you with some help in this regard. They can also give you information regarding whether your home insurance covers the remediation or not. This is an important process that only professional companies can provide accurately.
Hello, I am Brian Marshall, owner of Pherian LLC located in Tampa, Fl. Living in Florida for years has made me realize that water damage can become very severe if not treated immediately and carefully. Florida is already susceptible to floods which can cause severe damage. To minimize the damage and treat accordingly, water mitigation is done. Water mitigation includes assessing the severity of damage, planning, drying out the water and moisture, disinfecting, and other processes. It is advised to hire a professional company for the task. Pherian LLC, located in Tampa, Fl, is one such company. We provide water mitigation, decontamination services, restoration services, fire losses/repairs, selective demolition, and various remediation services. We are a team of trained professionals with a goal to provide people with the best services in town.
