What is flood remediation?

Flood remediation refers to the activities carried out after a flood damage to reverse or cure the damage caused by unwanted water accumulation. It involves cleaning up, drying, and sanitizing affected areas. 

Usually, after a flood, the recovery process has three phases:

1. Mitigating water damage, which involves tackling the damage left behind after the flood and minimizing further damage
2. Flood remediation, which involves cleaning, drying, and sanitizing affected areas and materials
3. Reconstruction work that ensures the property goes back to its pre-flood condition

At West Central Equipment and Restoration, we know that most flood waters contain refuse, deceased animals, feces, soil and other debris. And this can and does leave a foul-smelling sledge on every surface of your home. 

Also, the water can collect behind walls and areas that you can’t see, resulting in dangerous mold. And worse, the leftover standing water can enable microbial growth in fabrics like carpet and even drywall.

So we will act swiftly, boldly and professionally to eliminate the health threats that the flood water may bring to your home. After you contact us, we will:

1. Gather information from you over the phone and make arrangements to reach your property immediately.
2. Quickly and accurately assess the flood damage situation as soon as we arrive in order to know what activities to prioritize.
3. Determine the scope of work required
4. Ask you to sign a work authorization form to give us legal access to your property
5. Extract standing water quickly
6. Go on with the remediation and restoration work

So how is flood remediation done?

1. Salvaging items

Part of flood remediation is saving and cleaning items from flooded areas.  Of course, certain items such as pillows, box springs and mattresses are porous and will be full of multiplying microbes so they can’t be restored. We’ll help you itemize such items for insurance purposes before we dispose of them.

But for items that can be salvaged from your property, we will quickly remove, clean, and store them before we proceed with other remediation steps.

We will make sure to salvage precious items including:

1. Solid wood furniture that isn’t padded or cushioned
2. Photographs and critical paper documents
3. Drapes, clothing, area rugs, and other fabrics
4. Large appliances that have not been submerged
5. Various electronics, including computers
6. Cleaning affected areas

Protecting themselves with gloves, goggles, boots, gowns, and respirators, our flood remediation technicians will move in quickly, turn off gas and electricity and begin the cleanup process. We will employ water extractors, pumps or vacuums to remove all standing water from cavities and from all soaked materials.

Materials that may stain the floors and walls are also removed. They may include curtains, rugs, pot plants, wood, books, and metal furniture. Mud is shoveled out, and the walls and floors are scrubbed before being disinfected with bleach solution. 

3. Drying and dehumidifying the space

When there is minor flooding, the drying process takes a few days. But in case of a major flooding, the drying process may take a week or longer and may require sophisticated equipment.  

In short, wet-dry vacuums are used to thoroughly clean and dry the carpet, floors and walls. Then air dehumidifiers are placed in affected areas to dry them quickly and prevent mold growth. Mild chemical treatment may also be used to kill existing mold, preventing potential spread.

For porous materials such as drywall and wood, extensive structural drying techniques are used. A combination of centrifugal air movers, heavy-duty dehumidifiers, aerodynamic axial fans, and hardwood floor drying systems are used.

4. Sanitizing everything

Since flood water is unsafe, everything that comes into contact with it should be sanitized. Even if your home was flooded with gray water that did not contain pathogens, we will still sanitize to guarantee safety. We use powerful disinfectants during this process, but are quite careful on where and how we apply disinfectant solutions on various items or surfaces, especially wooden furniture.

Timely flood damage remediation

At West Central Equipment and Restoration, we offer emergency flood damage remediation 24/7. We’ll reach you quickly to help with your flood damage emergency, mitigate the damage, and embark on remediation and restoration. 

Our process involves:

1. Initial inspection
2. Water extraction
3. Cleaning of structural elements and furnishings
4. Deodorization
5. Dehumidification (drying by air movement)
6. Structural repairs
7. Mold prevention
8. Restoration

We are proud of our advanced equipment and supplies, such as:

1. Moisture meters for detecting wet areas
2. Professional pressure cleaners
3. Self-contained vacuum equipment
4. Negative air machines with HEPA filters
5. Mold-killing and antibacterial solutions
6. Fans, air dehumidifiers, and heaters
7. Generators (when power is not available)

You can count on us to do a great job. For more information on flood damage remediation and restoration, visit the site “West Central Equipment and Restoration.”