Prompt Water Damage Clean-up Critical for Businesses

If your business is damaged by a flood or other water-related catastrophe, prompt assessment and water damage clean-up is of vital importance. Failure to act quickly can result in structural deterioration, growth of dangerous mold or fungus and other problems that can be difficult and expensive to correct. In addition, taking fast action means your business will be back up and running more quickly, thus minimizing loss of income.

 

When a water-related loss occurs, quick assessment of the damage to your property is the first priority. While there are a great many companies specializing in water damage clean-up or remediation, it is important to choose a company with experience and proven expertise, such as SRP Environmental. SRP works with individual business owners as well as insurance providers and restoration contractors to help ensure prompt and professional water damage mitigation and restoration.

 

SRP has the capabilities to provide all of the services you will need to handle a water-related loss. This includes development of scope of work protocols as well as providing microbial assessment, moisture mapping, thermography & environmental monitoring, mold removal, asbestos inspection, air monitoring and more.

 

The scope of water damage clean-up services required will depend upon many factors, including the category of the water release. Water release categories are based upon the level of contamination present in the source water. Category 1 is water from a clean or sanitary source, such as water supply lines, faucets, fire sprinklers, etc. Category 2 is water with some level of contaminants, such as water from washing machines, dishwashers, etc. Category 3 is water that is extremely contaminated and can cause serious illness if ingested, such as sewage, river water, etc. Identifying the category of water properly is important – as this will help to determine potential health and safety risks.

 

Once the category of water is determined and water damage assessments are complete, it may become necessary to develop written protocols. If this is the case, it is vital to have a reliable company develop the scope of work. This includes technical specifications identifying materials to be removed, water damage cleaning procedures for contents, personal protection for restoration workers, infection control techniques and more. Having a workable plan of action will ensure that your business losses are minimized and the work is completed safely. After completion of the entire scope of work, post-restoration samples must be collected to scientifically verify that the remediation techniques were successful prior to moving forward with repairs or build-back.

 

While some businesses have been known to utilize their own personnel to perform water damage restoration in order to save money, this is highly unadvisable. Utilizing a reputable water damage clean-up company at the onset of a water-related loss is the best way to ensure that the overall duration of water damage restoration activities is minimized and the work is performed correctly. In the long run, this will also help to ensure that you will not suffer ongoing structural damage or possible health and safety threats from work that was performed improperly.