Each year, one in fifty insured homes experience water damage. There are a variety of reasons for water damage to occur, but the result is the same. You’re left standing in the middle of your home with a soaked floor, furniture, and walls.
The key to getting your home back to normal is quick and aggressive water damage recovery. Hiring professional cleaners can ensure everything is taken care of, but there are a few things you can do on your own.
Follow these four tips for drying out your flooded home.
1. Remove Everything
First, you need to dry out your home and remove the furniture and carpet. Remove these items from the house and place them outside for quicker drying and cleaning. This is also the first step in discarding them should you not be able to save them.
Some carpet can be saved if the water was clean and you dry it fast enough. If the carpet is dirty, then have professionals clean it before reinstalling it.
For drying the inside of the home, fans can help. But if you want to dry your house effectively, use industrial air movers. Professional cleaners will place these powerful air movers throughout your home.
2. Heat and AC
Have warm air circulate through the home to help dry the home faster. Check that your furnace and air conditioning units weren’t damaged by water. Running the units after they’re flooded can cause contamination throughout the home.
However, if your units weren’t flooded, then turn the heat on and let the warm air get to work. Keep in mind that warmer air tends to hold more moisture, so once it gets too warm, you’ll want to turn the AC on and cool the house back down.
Creating a wet and hot environment will encourage the growth of mold and fungus. This will create an even bigger problem.
Finally, once the house cools down again, turn the heat on, and start the cycle over again.
3. Check the Electrical System
Water and electricity don’t mix. So if your home is flooded or has standing water, then you’ll need to shut the power off to your home. Do not enter any area that has standing water before turning off the power.
Has an electrician experienced with water damage remediation come and check the grounds? They’ll be able to look for possible dangerous situations.
4. Remove the Water
If there’s a lot of water in the home, then speed up the process by removing it yourself. You can do this with the use of pumps and vacuums. Letting standing water sit in your home will continue to cause damage and make the cleanup more expensive and extensive.
Only use a wet-dry vacuum to clean up the water. You will ruin your regular vacuum if you try to clean up water with it.
Act Fast for Water Damage Recovery
In light of saving your home after water damage, you need to act fast. Within days of the water receding, you should check that the power is off and then enter the house.
Remove everything and get to work drying out your home. Through aggressive drying and mold control efforts, you can have a successful water damage recovery.
Contact us today, and let’s get your home dried out.