What are the first steps I should take when my home has suffered from water damage?

<h1>What are the first steps I should take when my home has suffered from water damage?</h1>Author: <a title="Chris" href="http://www.articlesbase.com/authors/chris/152128.htm">Chris</a> It is extremely traumatic when you have to deal with a flooded home, especially when you do not know what you should be doing in order to salvage as many of your belongings as you can. Well, here is a step by step guide of the first steps you should take when your home has suffered from flood damage or other types of water damage. Before you do anything, you will need to know if your home is even structurally safe to enter. Look for sagging ceilings and collapsed walls. If you have any doubt about the safety of entering your home, don't enter it. Have a professional assess the damage first. You will need to turn off the power to your home by disabling the main circuit breaker, and then turn off the main water supply. Then, you should do everything you can to protect your home against any break-ins. It may sound ridiculous, but stranger things have happened. Board up windows and doors, and if you feel that the house is not secure against theft, you should remove your dry valuables such as jewelry, money, credit cards, checkbooks, and documents such as birth certificates and marriage licenses, and put them somewhere safe. Next, assess the extent of the water damage. Your insurance company will need to know the extent of the damage, and the easiest way to do this is to hire a professional water damage restoration company. They will be able to assess the damage to your home quickly and accurately, which will help your insurance company to process your claim as quickly as possible. The assessor will check the interior and exterior of the home, as well as go over personal belongings that were damaged. After all of this, you can start actually cleaning up the water damage. The first thing that you will want to do is help everything dry out quickly. Open doors and windows to help ventilate the area. Also, you can rent high velocity industrial fans for a low fee that will help your home dry out much faster. You want to dry your home out as quickly as possible in order to keep mold from infesting the home. Also, you can get a dehumidifier, which will help get moisture out of the air, also speeding the drying process. Once everything is dry, you can begin doing things such as installing new carpet or re-painting.About the Author: Kent Hamilton is the SEO Expert for <a href="http://www.rightwaycontracting.com" target="_blank">www.rightwaycontracting.com</a> - a leading nationwide water damage restoration company specializing in 24/7 emergency service <a href="http://www.rightwaycontracting.com">water damage restoration</a>, water damage repair, mold remediation, <a href="http://www.rightwaycontracting.com">flood damage repair</a> document drying, fire and smoke damage restoration and crime scene clean up.Article Source: <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/">ArticlesBase.com</a> - <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/diy-articles/what-are-the-first-steps-i-should-take-when-my-home-has-suffered-from-water-damage-903638.html" title="What are the first steps I should take when my home has suffered from water damage?">What are the first steps I should take when my home has suffered from water damage?</a>

It is extremely traumatic when you have to deal with a flooded home, especially when you do not know what you should be doing in order to salvage as many of your belongings as you can. Well, here is a step by step guide of the first steps you should take when your home has suffered from flood damage or other types of water damage.

Before you do anything, you will need to know if your home is even structurally safe to enter. Look for sagging ceilings and collapsed walls. If you have any doubt about the safety of entering your home, don't enter it. Have a professional assess the damage first. You will need to turn off the power to your home by disabling the main circuit breaker, and then turn off the main water supply.

Then, you should do everything you can to protect your home against any break-ins. It may sound ridiculous, but stranger things have happened. Board up windows and doors, and if you feel that the house is not secure against theft, you should remove your dry valuables such as jewelry, money, credit cards, checkbooks, and documents such as birth certificates and marriage licenses, and put them somewhere safe.

Next, assess the extent of the water damage. Your insurance company will need to know the extent of the damage, and the easiest way to do this is to hire a professional water damage restoration company. They will be able to assess the damage to your home quickly and accurately, which will help your insurance company to process your claim as quickly as possible. The assessor will check the interior and exterior of the home, as well as go over personal belongings that were damaged.

After all of this, you can start actually cleaning up the water damage. The first thing that you will want to do is help everything dry out quickly. Open doors and windows to help ventilate the area. Also, you can rent high velocity industrial fans for a low fee that will help your home dry out much faster. You want to dry your home out as quickly as possible in order to keep mold from infesting the home. Also, you can get a dehumidifier, which will help get moisture out of the air, also speeding the drying process. Once everything is dry, you can begin doing things such as installing new carpet or re-painting.

Kent Hamilton is the SEO Expert for www.rightwaycontracting.com - a leading nationwide water damage restoration company specializing in 24/7 emergency service water damage restoration, water damage repair, mold remediation, flood damage repair document drying, fire and smoke damage restoration and crime scene clean up.

Rate this Article:

0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s)

Re-Publish

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/diy-articles/what-are-the-first-steps-i-should-take-when-my-home-has-suffered-from-water-damage-903638.html

Article Tags: Water Damage, Water Damage Restoration, Mold Remediation, Mold Removal, Fire Damage Restoration, Atlanta, Flood Damage, Water Extraction, Water Removal, Flood Clean Up, Document Drying, Crime Scene Clean Up, Carpet Repair And Clean Up, Carpet Repair

Related Articles
Related Q&A

Latest DIY Articles
More from Chris

Solar Electric Energy-Learn How to Generate Solar Electric Energy

By: N Jamal | 24/12/2009
The best thing about solar power is that it has an unlimited potential. Learn how to generate solar electric energy, easily and save $1000’s on utility bills forever. You just need to know how to make your own renewable energy source and today I am going to tell you exactly how to generate solar electricity.

Solar Electricity Energy-Learn How to Generate Solar Electricity Energy

By: N Jamal | 24/12/2009
The best thing about solar power is that it has an unlimited potential. Learn how to generate solar electricity energy, easily and save $1000’s on utility bills forever. You just need to know how to make your own renewable energy source and today I am going to tell you exactly how to generate solar electricity.

Building Solar Home Energy Panels – Blueprints DIY Solar Energy At Home

By: Gary Ashby | 24/12/2009
Are you interested in learning how to build solar home energy panels? A solar energy panel is capable of collecting the sun's energy and then converting it into direct current electric power. It works when the sunlight's protons knock negatively charged neutrons away from 2 oppositely placed slices of silicon. The 2 pieces of silicon that are placed close to one another will then create an electric field that can be channeled into the home for domestic use.

Build Wind Powered Electric Generators – Guide To Make Wind Electricity From Home

By: Gary Ashby | 24/12/2009
Are you looking to download a guide to make wind electricity from home by building wind powered electric generators? Even though such renewable power systems used to be very costly to acquire and maintain, many energy enthusiasts have now come up with highly affordable DIY plans for assembling their own wind power systems easily.

Solutions Using Renewable Energy – Discover How To Use DIY Solar Energy At Home

By: Gary Ashby | 24/12/2009
Do you want to discover how to use DIY solar energy at home with solutions using renewable energy? There are a couple of guides online today that teach homeowners how to set up their own homemade renewable solar and wind powered systems to generate free electricity. Renewable energy solutions are widely discussed online and offline today, with many homeowners like myself adopting these technologies to create free electrical power.

Solar Energy Electricity-Learn How to Generate Solar Energy Electricity

By: N Jamal | 24/12/2009
The best thing about solar power is that it has an unlimited potential. Learn how to generate solar energy electricity, easily and save $1000’s on utility bills. You just need to know how to make your own renewable energy source and today I am going to tell you exactly how to generate solar powered electricity.

Solar Power Electric Systems-Learn How to Build Solar Power Electric Systems

By: N Jamal | 24/12/2009
The greatest thing about solar power is that it has an unlimited potential. Learn how to build solar power electric systems, easily and save $1000’s on utility bills forever. You just need to know how to make your own renewable energy source and today I am going to tell you exactly how to build your own solar power systems.

Solar Power Electricity Generation-Tips for Solar Power Electricity Generation

By: N Jamal | 24/12/2009
The best thing about solar power is that it has an unlimited potential. Discover the easiest method of solar power electricity generation so that you can easily go solar and save $1000’s on utility bills forever. You just need to know how to make your own renewable energy source and today I am going to tell you exactly how to generate solar electric power.

Water damage mitigation

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
Water damage mitigation is something that should be dealt with fast and efficiently. Although most insurance policies cover the charge of water damage mitigation, they in addition need the policyholder to take the essential steps to avoid secondary damages. One of the several worries for those who have experienced a water damage occurrence is avoiding the existence of mold; however it must not be the single concern.

Storm damage in Atlanta, GA

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
Every year countless numbers of people are constantly dealing with the effect of storm damage. In most cases it usually ends up in having more added stress than necessary because they did not do the proper planning before the storm to ease the burdens they have after the storm. While this is no doubt frustrating you can be able to avoid the many different problems that these homeowners run into every year by taking some simple steps to ensure that you are ready for what ever may come your way.

Frequently asked questions about water damage

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
Water damage within a home is one of the most detrimental things that can happen to the structure, visual appeal, and longevity of a residence. Water damage may include rusting, molding, or moistening among other things. Many homeowners or prospective home owners have questions regarding water damage in house, some of those frequently asked questions include such as “what are the causes of water damage?”

Is water damage hazardous to your health?

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
Even the smallest amount of water damage in your home can be extremely hazardous to your health. Whether you have a small leak or a flood of biblical proportions, mold and mildew can grow in your home can cause serious health issues for you and your family.

What to do when your water pipe bursts?

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
Everyone always wants to tell you what to do to prevent your pipes from bursting, but sometimes it just happens. Let's take a look at what to do when the pipe bursts, and how to repair it without dropping tons of cash on a plumber.

What are emergency restoration services?

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
ERS or Emergency Restoration Services are clean up and restorative services for your home, business, and personal property that are provided by experts and after such catastrophes as flooding, storm or fire, mold, crime or bio-hazard damage has occurred.

Prevent large loss damage

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
Water damage from a flood, a storm or burst pipes can be devastating to the interior of your home. There are ways to prevent large loss damage. When constructing a home or finishing a basement following a few simple common sense steps can easily save a considerable amount of money from water damage that may occur sometime in the future.

Carpet cleaning after water damage

By: Chris | 29/06/2009 | Home Improvement
It's happened to the best of us; flooding, or a burst pipe, causes water to come in to our home, creating water damage all over that wonderful cream-colored piling. All is not lost, though - let's take a deep breath and look at how to clean up after the (water) damage has been done.