Water damage in your home can be an expensive nuisance to deal with. Sometimes you can clean it up yourself and other times it may need to be addressed by a professional restoration company. It’s important to know the different types of residential water damage, when you can clean it up yourself, and when you need to call in the experts.

Tips for Handling to Residential Water Damage

The moment you notice that water is leaking in your home or into your home, you’ll need to find the source. Immediately shut off the water if it’s a pipe, faucet, toilet, or an appliance leaking. If it’s near anything electrical, turn off the electricity first for safety reasons. Remove any of your personal belongings in the affected area. If there is standing water, you’ll have to assess the situation further so you’ll know how to deal with the cleanup.

Clean Water is Safe to Clean Up

Clean water damage is when fresh water from pipes in your home leak. It can also be rainwater seeping in through the windows or roof. Since the water is not contaminated, it is usually safe to clean up yourself. You may need to use a fan to dry it thoroughly after the water has been soaked up. If an area of the carpeting gets soaked, pull it up so the carpet and pad can dry all the way through. 

Leaks From Grey Water

Gray water is slightly dirty water that has leaked from an appliance inside your home, like a dishwasher or a washing machine. This water will have more contaminants than clean water. It is still relatively safe to clean up yourself wearing gloves. Use a disinfectant cleaning solution to wipe down floors, ceilings, and drywall. If the carpet gets wet, have it steam cleaned with a good cleaning solution. A fan will help dry it faster.

Call in Professionals for Black Water Damage

Black water may come from a sewer, flood, or septic tank. This water is contaminated and can be very dangerous to your health. It often contains bacteria, human or animal waste, and other pollutants. Call in the experts to clean up this type of residential water damage.

The first thing to do is to take photos of the damage and call your insurance company right away. They will assess the damage and most likely assign a home restoration company. The restoration company will decide what needs to be done in order to clean up the damage. They may need to replace materials and remove mold. Contact with contaminated water can make people very sick, as can toxic mold that grows on wet surfaces.

Residential water damage can happen for different reasons. It’s important to get to the source and clean it up properly to avoid mold growth and health issues.

Best Choice Inspections provides home inspection services including water intrusion inspections and mold inspections. Contact us to schedule our services in Knoxville and the surrounding areas.