water cleanup

Water Damage Cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh | What You Should Know About Flood Waters and Carpet

Posted on by Matt Nelson

When you are dealing with a flooded home, one of the main concerns you will have will be what can be saved from your belongings, flooring, and carpets. Professionals who handle water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh have many tips and tricks they can use to restore your carpets so they can be saved instead of needing replaced. This will save you time and money on your restoration process, but there are many factors that will go into the determination.

How Will Flooding Affect the Carpet?

There are three distinct categories of flooding and each will impact your carpet differently.

Category 1 flooding comes from clean water that is not mixed with any contaminants. When a pipe bursts or rainwater comes in through a leaky roof and soaks the carpeting, if it has been saturated for less than 48 hours, the carpeting can usually be saved through drying, cleaning, and sanitizing.

Category 2 flood water is also called greywater and is water that is contaminated and can make you sick if consumed or if it touches your body. Examples of category two flooding includes overflowing washing machines or dishwashers, toilet backups and overflows without waste, aquariums that shatter, or failed sump pumps. When you need water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh for category 2 flooding, you will need to have the padding replaced, but the carpet can typically be salvaged.

Category 3 flooding is blackwater and extremely dangerous. Sewage, flooding from bodies of water such as rivers, lakes, or seawater, hurricane or storm water, or anything else with dangerous pathogens. Water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh for category 3 flood incidents calls for carpet replacement.

No matter what kind of flood waters you are dealing with, there are other factors that need to be considered before determining if the carpet can be saved including how saturated it is and how long the water has been sitting. The best way to make sure you can salvage your carpets is to call a company that does water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh such as ServiceMaster within hours of the flooding.

Call ServiceMaster of Greater Pittsburgh for all your water damage cleanup needs at 412-960-1653 or visit us on Facebook.

Water Damage Cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh | Why Do Basement Foundations Crack?

Posted on by Matt Nelson

When homeowners see cracks in the basement it is always cause for concern. Cracks can indicate a significant structural problem with your home that needs to be addressed right away. Luckily, cracks don’t always mean you’ll have to undergo a major construction project. Often, there are simple DIY fixes that can go a long way to keeping your basement dry and avoiding water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh. The best way to avoiding these structural issues however is to know what causes them.

  1. Poor Drainage- Having inadequate drainage around your home is the most common reason your basement will start to have cracks. Drainage involves more than just a good gutter system, however. Your yard needs to be properly graded and your irrigation systems need to be on a timer. If your drainage is poor, you will be making frequent calls for water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh.
  2. Concrete Shrinkage- After the basement floor is poured and the concrete dries, slight shrinkage will occur that can lead to small, hairline fractures in the flooring. These cracks can appear for up to one year after pouring the basement and are not a major cause for concern. Homeowners can seal the cracks to avoid leaks of water or radon gas.
  3. Concrete Settling- The floor slab can crack as it settles and the less supported section can sink, causing the surface to become uneven. These cracks will need to be leveled and stabilized by a professional. You’ll need to fix this issue immediately to avoid water seepage into your basement and having to handle water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh.

Sometimes there is nothing you can do to prevent a basement flood. Cracks can appear spontaneously, especially if the weather has been disastrous. Check your basement frequently during times of heavy rain to ensure there are no sudden risks of flooding that will leave you needing water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburgh.

If you didn’t catch the basement crack in time and your basement is flooded, call ServiceMaster of Greater Pittsburgh to handle the water damage cleanup at 412-528-6077. You can also visit us on Facebook.

 

Water Damage Cleanup | Always Allow Maximum Drying Out Time

Posted on by Matt Nelson

Water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburg takes several steps to complete sufficiently and none of the steps should be skipped over. However, the most vital step to never skimp on is the drying out process. Making sure all the water, moisture, and humidity is gone from the walls, floors, and carpeting is the best way to prevent mold and mildew; however, many homeowners are not sure what the correct drying process is or how long they should expect to wait for the process to be completed. Luckily, there are a few tips and tricks to ensuring proper technique in drying.

What to Do to Dry Out A Room

There are several steps to the drying process when you are doing water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburg. The drying out process happens after all water is removed out of the room. Most professionals use large, commercial water removal machines that suction out the water.

  • Empty the room of all furniture and possessions.
  • Open all the windows if weather permits.
  • Tear out carpet if carpet needs replaced.
  • Commercial cleaning of carpets if not tearing the carpet out.
  • Set up large commercial drying fans or box fans and point to the carpet or flooring, as well as the walls. You will need to use more than one and be prepared to rotate them if needed.
  • Set up a dehumidifier to pull moisture from the air.
  • Replace carpet after the room is dry.

The drying time can take multiple days to complete. The longest part of the process is leaving the fans and dehumidifier on to remove the excess moisture from the room. Depending on how much water was in the room and the type of flooding that occurred, the drying process can take 1-5 days.

Water damage cleanup in Greater Pittsburg is always completed faster when done by professionals who have the commercial grade equipment needed for proper water cleanup.

Call ServiceMaster of Greater Pittsburgh for All Your Professional Cleanup Needs at 412-424-6755 or visit us on Facebook.