MN damage Extracting, Drying & Disinfecting

Damage To Home in Richfield MN

It is any homeowners worst nightmare; damage from water! Coming home to a flooded basement, broken or burst pipes and sewer or septic backups or even damage from an ice dam is a bad day for anyone. It is a disastrous situation.  This home in Richfield Minnesota had a severe foundation issue.  The entire lower level was flooded in 2 feet of standing water.  The sheetrock had to be completely removed.

Drywall, insulation, and in some cases ceilings should be removed and replaced. It takes a long time for water under vinyl floors, and in the walls, to dry out. While they are wet, two things are happening. Water spreads up the walls and insulation much higher than the flood water level due to a process called “wicking.” As the water spreads through the walls and insulation, mold quickly develops. With the mold established in the drywall and insulation, it will grow anytime in the future that the humidity is high enough. Just sealing the surface with paint, polyurethane, or fiberglass is not adequate. Removing the drywall and insulation was the only way to determine the extent of wicking.

Damage Restoration Is A Job For The Professionals

Damage restoration is not a simple process and involves many stages using high powered machinery and expert knowledge so as not to cause further damage.  A professional damage restoration contractor will use innovative methods for water extraction and removal that involves drying of carpets, rugs, mats, floors and walls to deodorizing and disinfecting effect that restores your damaged areas.

Water Removal Equipment

• Moisture detectors, hygrometers and other meters measure the extent of moisture saturation.
• Infrared camera may be used to identify water location for thorough water removal.
• Submersible and commercial grade pumps for continuous pumping of high-level water.
• Truck mounted and portable extraction units perform efficient water removal.

Sanitizing Agents, Germicides, & Anti-Microbial Treatments

• Deodorization products control odors from excessive moisture.
• Disinfection products stop the growth of bacteria, fungi, mildew, and other harmful microorganisms.

State-of-the-Art Drying Equipment

• Drying equipment helps prevent property damage like swelling and warping of floors, walls and furniture.
• Industrial grade dehumidifiers minimize secondary damage.
• High-speed air movers create airflow across walls, carpets, pads and furniture, evaporating moisture.
• Some situations call for special drying techniques that require other state of the art equipment and training.

Initial scoping needs to be done to determine how extensive the damage is. Water always seeks equilibrium with its environment and wet always goes to dry, if it can. Just finding the extent of damage on the floor isn’t enough. The damage needs to be mapped to determine how far up the walls it has wicked, and how far down into the substrate the damage has gone, including possibly entering the crawlspace in a conventional foundation. This can’t be done by touch. Very specialized damage inspection tools and meters will be required, and an experienced damage professional has them.

A thorough understanding of damage demands every damage contractor be familiar with the “science of drying” also called psychrometry. Ask your damage contractor what the dry standard is of each structural component suffering potential damage. With proper damage inspection tools and damage experience, he should be able to tell you on a scale of 100 points the moisture content of the damaged materials.

If he can’t, call a different damage restoration professional.  Make sure your damage restoration contractor draws a “moisture map” of the affected areas showing the full extent of the damage migration, and that he updates the map regularly to show the progress of the damage/structural drying project.

A professional damage restoration contractor should select the structural drying equipment in a scientific method based on materials, size of the damage area, and the class and category of the damage. Minnesota homeowners, property managers, building owners, and churches suffering the effects of ANY kind of damage, cleaning needs to be done right to avoid further damage.  At the very least he should be certified in applied structural drying and damage restoration.