How Water Damage Advances As Time Passes | SERVPRO® of Eastern Rockland County

8/22/2023 (Permalink)

No matter the damage sustained, SERVPRO of Eastern Rockland County has the tools and team to help your home return to a normal state quickly.

So you noticed a slight, steady drip of water coming from your ceiling. For the moment, a bucket can easily take care of the mess, and you don’t think much of the water since it’s a small amount.

However, you should never underestimate the destructive effects moisture can have on your home. The average household leak can waste up to 10,000 gallons of water in a year, with much of that water circulating somewhere in your home.

It’s vital you address water damage before it gets out of a hand to prevent irreparable damage. Moisture will quickly seep into your floors, walls and soft surfaces. You can expect any significant water damage to follow this destructive path:

<h2the-first-24-hours">In the First 24 Hours

In your Eastern Rockland County house, there is a one in four chance of a flood damaging your home within a 30-year period in a high-risk area. Knowing what to do next is essential.

You want to take advantage of the first 24 to 48 hours because it will become much harder to salvage items after this point. Fragile personal belongings like books and photographs will immediately fall victim to water’s harmful effects.

Soft furnishings and upholstery will soak through, and wooden structures can swell from the moisture. In addition, mold typically starts to develop within this timeframe. It’s essentially you act quickly.

SERVPRO’s expertise and “restore vs replace” mentality can help you save money and preserve precious keepsakes that can’t be replaced, such as family heirlooms. Our experts will go ahead and remove any salvageable items to speed up the drying process. If we encounter any items that cannot be saved, we will communicate this to you as soon as possible.

<h2the-first-week">Within the First Week

After the first 24 hours, water damage will progress further and quickly. At this point, mold will begin to form, and it can spread like wildfire with excessive moisture. Mold will also lead to further structural damage.

Additionally, porous surfaces, such as wood surfaces and walls will become increasingly compromised, and metal surfaces will start corroding.

<h2one-week">After One Week

Most likely, the damage will have progressed significantly, perhaps even too far, by this point. You want to avoid letting moisture sit and fester in your home for over a week because as time goes on, the costs and efforts to restore your property will increase significantly, as will the risks of structural damage.

<h2SERVPRO-will-help">How SERVPRO Will Help

Here’s where we come in. Our Eastern Rockland team of specialists will start the restoration process as soon as you make that first call. Service work typically begins by drying your home completely and extracting excess water to prevent any more damage.

Mostly likely, floors, furniture and other belongings will require cleaning, sanitizing and deodorization. After the bulk of the water has been removed, our specialists will use industry-leading drying equipment to remove the water you can’t see.

Once these steps are completed, our team can move on to the construction phase, where we will make minor or major repairs to your home. We will do whatever it takes to get your property back to its preloss condition.

Allow our team to simplify the restoration process by handling both the initial damage mitigation and rebuilding the affected areas. SERVPRO will keep you up to date on every step and have you back in your home or business in no time.

Regardless of the type of water damage sustained, SERVPRO has the tools and teams to help your home or business recover. Contact us 24⁄7 when you need a dependable team to help you recover.