Water Restoration – Loss assessment and evaluation

Water restoration services include the inspection of the affected areas. Probes and other infrared tools will be utilized in order to determine the extent of area affected. Water restoration services would then be rendered to the residence in order to dry the structure. We will sanitize and deodorize all affected areas and materials. After the labor is completed, water restoration equipment including, but not limited to, air movers, air scrubbers, dehumidifiers, wood floor drying systems, and sub floor drying equipment is left in the residence. After a period of two to three days after the labor is completed, a reevaluation of the residence is taken to monitor the drying process. Any equipment not further needed is removed as to keep the charges under control.

Water Restoration Categorization

Water, under the IICRC’s S-500 Standard Guide for Professional Water Damage Restoration, has been broken off into three categories. These categories are based upon the level of contamination present in the source water.

Category 1 is water from a clean or sanitary source. Previously known as clear water. These can include water from broken clean water supply lines; clean water from toilet tank or bowl; faucets; and bottled water. Although the source may be from a clean source, it can quickly degrade into category 2 or 3 depending upon such factors as time, temperature, and contact with contaminants.

Category 2 is water with some level of contaminants that could cause discomfort or illness if ingested. Previously known as grey water. Sources for category 2 water may include washing machine overflow; toilet overflow with some urine, but no feces; dishwasher overflow. Category 2 water can quickly degrade into category 3 depending upon such factors as time, temperature, and contact with contaminants.

Category 3 water is grossly unsanitary, and could cause severe illness or death if ingested. Previously known as black water. Sources for category 3 water include, but are not limited to, sewage; flooding from rivers or streams; Wind driven rain, water from beyond the toilet trap; water from the toilet bowl with feces; and standing water that has begun to support microbial growth.

Water Restoration Classifications

Water damage is classified into one of the following classes: 

• Class 1 Water Damage – (least amount of water, absorption and evaporation): Water losses that affect only part of a room or area, or larger areas containing materials that have absorbed minimal moisture. Little or no wet carpet and/or cushion are present.

• Class 2 Water Damage – (large amount of water, absorption and evaporation): Water losses that affect at least an entire room or carpet and cushion(pad). Water has wicked up walls less than 24”. There is moisture remaining in structural materials (e.g., plywood, particleboard, structural wood, concrete).

• Class 3 Water Damage – (greatest amount of water, absorption and evaporation): Water wicked up over 24″, or water may have come from overhead affecting ceilings, walls, insulation, carpet, cushion and sub-floor. The entire area are saturated.

• Class 4 Water Damage – (Specialty Drying Situations): These consist of wet materials with very low permeance/porosity (hardwood, plaster, brick, concrete, stone). Typically, there are deep pockets of saturation, which requires very low specific humidity.

Water Restoration Principles in drying

Structural and contents consideration

When working within a residence, it is often the case that those who are performing the water damage restoration must work with and around the contents of the home. This includes, but is not limited to, furniture, electronics, books, and any other materials that may have been affected by the water damage. The moving around of the said contents is often referred to “contents manipulation.” Water restoration firms often bill content manipulation on a per hour basis.

Contents may also require treatment due to the effects of water damage. This may include, but is not limited to,sterilization, sanitizing, deodorization, drying, and storing of said contents. Other contents may not be salvageable or the cost of having it salvaged would exceed its current value. In these cases, the contents would be discarded.

Monitoring

After the water has been extracted and any non-salvageable materials have been removed, water restoration professionals should place drying equipment according to industry guidelines for capacity in the affected areas. Industry standards state that drying vendors should return to the residence at regular time intervals, preferably every twenty-four hours, to monitor the equipment, temperature, humidity, and moisture content of the affected walls, contents, or other affected materials. Should one area be dry and another affected area still wet, the firm will relocate or remove equipment accordingly.

Completion

Once the temperature, humidity, and moisture content is deemed acceptable and safe according to industry standards, the water restoration equipment would be removed and the water restoration process would be complete.

It is important to hire a professional water restoration company to perform these services since there are defining criteria and methods to be used for assessing water damage and establishing restoration procedures. Because of the unique circumstances of every water damage restoration project, it is impractical to issue blanket rules intended to a situation. In extenuating circumstance, deviation from portions of the S500 may be appropriate. In performing a job, carelessness is never acceptable and common sense should always prevail.

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