Water damage is a regular occurrence for homeowners and property owners, causing many issues that end up costing money and resulting in material losses. So many things can happen that lead to water damage in the home, from a burst pipe to heavy rains to a leaking appliance. When disaster strikes and water collects somewhere in your home or business that it doesn’t belong, your possessions may be at risk of damage.
When personal belongings are affected when water damage occurs, your first reaction may be to despair. Water can completely ruin many materials, so this item is a lost cause. But that is not necessarily the case. There are ways to salvage all your belongings after an incident results in water damaging your home. All it takes is the right contents restoration process.
What is Contents Restoration?
This process is simply restoration efforts that are made to save possessions that have been damaged by water. It involves, drying, cleaning, restoring, or even freezing the items to give them the best chance of being returned to their pre-loss condition. Some companies offer contents restoration services that can preserve your belongings after a water incident, but you can also attempt the restoration yourself. Follow these cleaning and restoration tips to save your possessions after flood damage.
Restoration Process for Personal Belongings
There are several important steps involved in the restoration process for personal possessions. To have the best chance of saving the various items affected by water, you will need to implement each step efficiently and quickly after the incident.
Drying
The first step to saving your precious items after significant damage is to start drying them out as quickly as possible. You should remove items from the affected area to increase the rate of drying. Air drying with the use of fans, air movers, dehumidifiers, air conditioners, and open windows will help remove as much moisture as possible from the items. This step is critical for delicate items, especially legal documents like medical records or tax records. They should be your priority for drying.
Cleaning Gently
Being gentle is the key to restoring your items that have been affected by water damage. Possessions that have sentimental value, such as family heirlooms, will need to be cleaned once they have dried to remove any bacteria that could be left behind. Restoring furniture will also require gentle cleaning, as you don’t want to ruin the materials with aggressive scrubbing or scraping. For fabric items, it may require dry cleaning or running them through the washing machine to fully restore them. Make sure you perform a deep cleaning ritual on all belongings inside the affected area, using bleach or soap if necessary.
Freezing
If you have a lot of items that got wet, it may be impossible to restore them all in the time that you have. You may have to prioritize what gets saved first. But in some cases, you may be able to freeze certain items to prevent further damage until you have time to thoroughly clean them. This can be done with photos, papers, books, or other textile items. While you work to repair some items, others can be frozen to be restored later.
Why You Must Take Action Immediately
If the condition of an item is left unchanged, it could result in permanent loss of the object or at least damage that cannot be fully repaired. After a disaster soaks some of your belongings, action must be taken immediately to mitigate the losses.
Prevent Mold
Mold damage is a common side effect of water spilling into areas where it does not belong. The cost of water damage restoration could go up if mold growth occurs, resulting in more property damage and poor air quality in the building.
Reduce Structural Damage
Water can be absorbed by any porous surface, and this includes critical building materials like wood, concrete, and drywall. Allowing your wet items to be left unchanged could result in structural damage if the moisture is in close proximity to building materials. Then, the cost of property restoration would climb significantly. Clean as many items as possible to prevent them from causing damage to the structure of the house or commercial building.
Working with a Professional Contents Cleaning Service
In some cases, you may not have the knowledge or equipment to save all of your belongings after a flood or other water incident in your house or other property. When this is the case, you should contact a Portland water damage restoration company.
Access to Special Equipment
A restoration service uses specialized equipment to perform contents restoration and mitigate damage to your belongings and property. These technologies ensure a thorough drying and cleaning process that will raise the number of items that will be saved from water damage or fire damage.
Will Determine the Extent of the Damage
It is possible that you are not even aware of how much damage has been caused by the water in your house or business property. When you seek out a professional restoration contractor, they can help you take inventory of the affected items and determine if there is damage in unknown areas.
Can Work with Your Insurance Company
The insurance claims process can be complicated after fire/smoke damage or water damage occurs. With the right restoration company, you can feel certain that they are communicating with your provider to figure out billing and what is covered by your policy.
Relying on Professional Help Will Save More Belongings
To have the maximum number of items restored after a fire or water damage incident, you should rely on a professional contents restoration team to get the job done. Their expertise and equipment will achieve better results than you could manage yourself, potentially saving the precious items that you thought were a total loss. When a storm, fire, flood, or other incident occurs that damages your belongings, take action quickly and reach out to a restoration service.
