Since it’s in the Northwest, Portland is a city that is prone to rain and damp conditions. This also means that your home is prone to water damage. Whether it’s from rain or flooding, water damage can affect your home in serious ways, especially if it’s not immediately addressed. You need to be able to identify and know what to do if your home has water damage. Today we’re going to take a look at the steps you can take to mitigate Portland water damage in your home.
Assess the Damage
The first thing you need to do is to look for water damage. If it’s an incident like a burst pipe or basement flooding, this shouldn’t be too hard to find. Those aren’t the only occurrences of water damage, though. Leaks can lead to water damage on your roof, ceilings, and even walls. Damage in these areas is a bit more difficult to spot. If you see discoloration anywhere or smell mildew, you most likely have water damage.
When Possible, Stop Water Flow to the Area
If the water damage is from something like a burst or leaky pipe, you can take the measure of shutting off water to the area, or even your entire home if needed. When it comes to something like your basement flooding or a leak in your roof, stopping the water flow may not be possible. That’s when bringing in a professional to handle stopping and removing the water becomes the most viable option to help you mitigate the water damage in your home.
Remove the Water
Before you can move forward with any other part of this process, it’s important to remove the water from the damaged area. This is necessary for preventing any further water damage from happening. If your basement is flooded, run a sump pump to remove the water. Depending on the situation, using a shop vac can also help remove water from the area.
Remove Any Items That Have Water Damage
For this next step, it’s important to get anything that is water-damaged out of the area. This includes any furniture, carpets, or other personal belongings. Doing so makes it easier to repair the water damage on those items. It also makes it easier to clean and assess the remaining water damage in the area. Additionally, it minimizes the spread of mold.
Clean and Disinfect the Water-Damaged Area
It’s important to clean any area that has been water-damaged. This is because the longer you leave a water-damaged area without cleaning, the more likely you are to have mold growth. Mold starts growing within 24 to 48 hours of water damage occurring, with mold not being visible until weeks after the fact. Mold can not only cause further damage to your home; it can cause serious health issues for you and your family.
Cleaning with bleach isn’t going to be enough. It’s recommended that you have a professional come in to clean and disinfect the area. They will have the proper equipment for the job. They will also have professional-grade cleaners specifically designed for cleaning water-damaged areas and removing mold.
There is a misconception that mold is dead and gone when it’s removed. This isn’t the case. Mold is simply minimized to a microscopic level. Other measures are put into place to prevent it from growing, ensuring that you and your loved ones are safe from mold exposure in the future.
Removing the Remaining Moisture
After the area is cleaned, plug in a dehumidifier to absorb excess moisture. This helps dry out the area, which makes it easier to make repairs and combat mold growth. Since mold likes to grow in wet areas, removing any moisture is going to keep it at bay and prevent it from spreading any further.
If You Live in Oregon and Need Portland Water Damage Mitigation, Call PNW Restoration Today!
Don’t deal with the potentially hazardous job of cleaning up Portland water damage. Call the experts at PNW Restoration today at (971) 247-3470. We offer a 24/7 emergency response line where one of our trained experts will come out at a moment’s notice and take care of your water damage emergency.
Leave A Comment