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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration

What You Can Do To Help In The Event of a Damaging Water Event

11/8/2020 (Permalink)

When you find a water leak in your home or place of business, rest assured that SERVPRO of Ennis/Red Oak (972) 937-1494 is ready to rush to your assistance. Water Damage is our specialty! But while you are waiting for our technicians to arrive, there are several steps you can take immediately to prevent further damage.

  1. Stop the leak. Find where the water is coming from and turn the water off at that point. You may be able to isolate the leak by turning the water off at a specific pipe or fixture. If not, you will need to cut the water off at the main line.
  2. Soak up the water. If there is standing water and it is manageable, remove it to prevent it soaking into your floors and surrounding structures. Sometimes the amount of standing water is of such an extent that you will not be able to remove it yourself but will require SERVPRO’s special extraction equipment to remove it fast enough to prevent damage.
  3. Move small items out of the water. Small, valuable items, such as ornamental items, boxes of stored items, or small pieces of furniture will continue to soak up water if they are allowed to stand in it. Move them away from the water if possible.
  4. Try to identify the source of the water leak. It might be something obvious, like a broken connection behind the toilet or a supply line to the dishwasher or washing machine. If you suspect the damage is at the main waterline level, make sure to contact your water company right away.

When SERVPRO of Ennis/Red Oak technicians arrive at your property, they will extract any remaining standing water and assess the extent of moisture in the flooring, walls, cabinets, furniture, etc. They will then place air movers, dehumidifiers, and possibly other specialized equipment to begin the critical process of drying the wet area to prevent damage to materials and the growth of dangerous mold. Most water damage jobs require that the equipment runs for several days to dry the property to be assured no mold growth will occur.

SERVPRO technicians will visit your home every day while the drying process is taking place to monitor equipment and check on the moisture content remaining in the floor, walls, etc. In between those visits are 24 hours during which the actual drying occurs. Again, there are steps you can take to ensure that your water damage dries as quickly and hassle-free as possible.

  1. Don't move the equipment. Our technicians place equipment in strategic locations to create a cylinder of airflow that leads back to the dehumidifier to maximize the effectiveness of the drying equipment. You should not move or reorient the machines, rather leave them where we place them if at all possible. We understand that at times the optimal placement creates an inconvenience. If you must move a machine, please place it as close to its original position as possible to maintain the airflow we were hoping to accomplish.
  2. Leave doors closed on affected rooms. If the water damage is in a single room, our technicians may close the door to that room to assist the drying process. It helps immensely if the room is contained and the air in that room is constantly cycling through the dehumidifier. For this reason, we ask that any rooms with equipment remain closed if possible.
  3. Leave thermostats up a bit. These rooms with equipment will probably be slightly warmer than the rest of the house, which is a good thing. Warmer temperatures allow for more condensation to transfer into the air, which makes it easier to remove the moisture via the dehumidifiers. While we do not expect you to live in persistent heat, allowing the temperature in your home to remain a few degrees higher will promote quicker drying.
  4. Most importantly, leave the machines on. We realize that, depending on the amount and location of our equipment, the machines can be loud and intrusive to one’s daily life. While we strive to be as minimally invasive as possible during water mitigation, with equipment sometimes needing to be placed in living rooms and kitchens, there is no way around it – the situation can be annoying. However, turning off the equipment only prolongs the drying time, and therefore, the cost of the drying job. The equipment must be allowed to run until the affected material is dry in order to meet our goal of preventing damage and mold growth.

With you, the customer, and our technicians working together, we will have your job dry and cleaned up as quickly as possible so that you can get back to your usual routine.

In the unfortunate event that you do experience a damaging water event, don’t hesitate to call the experts at SERVPRO of Ennis/Red Oak. Our technicians will make your property “Like it never even happened,” as quickly as possible. Call (972) 937-1494.

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