Avoid Wading Through Standing Water
Even after you’ve shut off the power, it’s important to stay out of the water, because it could be contaminated with sewage, animal waste and agricultural runoff. The bacteria, viruses and toxic chemicals these contaminants carry are obvious health hazards.
If the water is deep, there could be all sorts of debris in it that you can’t see, including broken glass and sharp metal. One false step, and you could suffer a cut that would be instantly infected if there are pathogens in the water.
File an Insurance Claim Immediately
“Many policies have specific windows for reporting flood damage, and delays can complicate a claim,” warns Hickerson. To avoid delays, call the insurance company as soon as it’s practical to do so and file a claim.
You don’t need to provide any details at this point; you’re just getting the claims process started. It will be the adjuster’s job to assess those details at some point in the (hopefully) near future.
Take Photos
You’ll need photos to document the damage, and foundation repair specialist Shane McClintic recommends taking them before you start the cleanup. “Go around your house and film everything that suffered damage,” advises Gulf Coast flood insurance specialist Brad Spurgeon. “Once you have cleaned up your damage your pictures won’t be as useful to the insurance company.”
In particular, advises restoration expert Vinnie Guaderrama, take a picture of the highest point of water on the wall. “Always photograph the data plates with the model and serial numbers before you remove water heaters, furnaces, washers and dryers. Many people forget to do this, and it can be difficult to find these numbers at a later date.”
Beat the 48-Hour Mold Clock
Try to have a restoration professional on site quickly. Restoration pros are in short supply during widespread disasters, however, so you might be working by yourself. If so, “work fast,” says McClintic.
According to the EPA, mold probably won’t grow on water-damaged materials if they dry within a 24-48 hour period. Once mold gets a foothold, it’s much harder to eradicate, so time is of the essence.
Get the Water Out
Because you need to work quickly to prevent mold from getting a foothold, water extraction should begin as soon as you can do it safely. “A wet/dry shop vac works for smaller amounts,” says Hickerson, “but a sump pump is worth renting for anything beyond a few inches of standing water.”
When you can’t reach a hose into corners and under cabinets, don’t be afraid use a bucket and sponge to get the water out. Any standing water you leave will raise the room humidity and promote mold growth.
Limit Damage to Home and Belongings
When you uncover previously submerged carpet, McClintic recommends either taking it outside or, if you can’t, pulling it back to air it out. “Prop up furniture on wood blocks to stop wicking,” advises Hickerson, “and pull baseboards, not just carpet, in flooded rooms.”
Drywall is a porous material that wicks water upward, and once waterlogged, you need to replace it. To avoid having to replace entire walls, McClintic advises cutting the drywall about a foot above the water line.
If you have valuable documents or photos, Guaderrama suggests putting them in the freezer (if it’s working) until the house dries out. Strangely enough, the freezer is a low-humidity environment.
Ventilate, Ventilate, Ventilate
Run fans and dehumidifiers and, if it isn’t raining, open doors and windows to get air circulating and dry the space as fast as possible. Hickerson warns that things may look dry when they really aren’t, so he recommends keeping the fans running for at least 48 hours, and perhaps as long as 72 hours.
Clean and Sanitize
Once the area is dry, Florida restoration pro Darren Impson advises cleaning and sanitizing with an anti-microbial cleaner. He says you should call a restoration company for this, but it might be hard to schedule one immediately after a disaster.
If you do it yourself, the CDC recommends using dish detergent and water or one cup of bleach per gallon of water. Use bleach only on hard, non-porous surfaces. It doesn’t penetrate porous materials like wood and won’t reach mold embedded in them, so scrub porous surfaces with detergent until the mold is gone.
Check and Clean HVAC Ducts
People often forget to look in HVAC vents, says Hickerson, and if they’re wet enough to support mold, the blower could contaminate the rest of the house as soon as the HVAC system turns on, despite your sanitation efforts.
Uncover any vents that were submerged, ventilate the ducts to dry them out, then sanitize the metal with a bleach solution (metal is non-porous, so bleach is effective). It’s best to wait until you’ve done this before you operate the HVAC system.
About the Experts
- Sam Hickerson is the founder of
<li><strong>Shane McClintic </strong>is a sales and service trainer with
