You never know when a pipe will burst in your home and damage your home. Knowing what to do immediately will help you minimise the damage and protect your valuables from further destruction. Instead of panicking during an emergency, having enough knowledge about the handling the situation will make you proactive.
Water damage will happen for reasons like pipe bursts, storm floods or excess water coming from any hidden leaks. If you are facing such situations unexpectedly, your mind goes blank and you may begin to panic. So having a list of immediate chores in your mind will help you navigate the situation properly, enabling you to minimize the damage.
Here is the list of immediate chores you need to do when your home is flooded with water:
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Find out the location of the water leak
Tracing the location of the water leak will help you take proper action methods. If the leak is from a burst pipe, you can call a plumbing company to seek immediate assistance. If the water is seeping from a gap in the roof or foundation, then calling a professional will do the trick.
The action method also depends on the cleanliness of water leaked into your home. If it’s from a burst pipe that’s under the sink, even though the water is leaking at least it will be clean. And you can’t say the same for a flooded water which comes from outside.
So, pinpointing the location of the water leak will help seek the right service during emergencies.
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Turn the main power switch off
It’s an obvious thing to do when your home is flooded. You never know when the loose wiring comes in contact with the water. So immediately turn the main switch off and make sure there are torch lights and charging lamps with you to navigate through your home.
If you have any family, especially children or the elderly, evacuate them to a safe area, probably to the roof or a safe room until the situation is under control.
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Call your insurance company
It may not be the first thing that strikes your mind after seeing your home filled with water. However, you may want to do it on priority. Insurance not only covers situations like hurricanes, floods, etc. but also covers emergencies like pipe bursts and other severe plumbing issues. You should also document the situation by clicking pictures and videos to have proof of what happened to your home.
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Remove foggy items that can be salvaged
You need to remove any foggy items that can be salvaged in your home so that you can restore them to their former glory. Things like rugs, carpets, window treatments, blankets, clothes, etc., can be used again once you clean them properly. For instance, you can restore water-damaged carpets by pressure washing and steam cleaning. Learn here why you need to steam clean your carpets especially those that are water-damaged.
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Contact a water restoration professional
If you have water in your home that’s more or below the knee, then it’s time to call in a water restoration professional. They have the necessary equipment and tools to pump the water and make your place dry again. They also do it efficiently and quickly so that the water does not damage more parts of your home. Don’t hesitate to rely on professionals, especially when it’s time to preserve the integrity of the home’s foundation and structure.
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Also book a mould specialist
Even though the water is pumped out and your place looks dry, some of the moisture gets seeped into the walls and floors. If it’s not dried out, it can develop mould and mildew and cause damage to your walls. So, after pumping out the flood water, call in a mould specialist to inspect the presence of mould. Accordingly, you can take action to make your home healthy and safe. It’s also one of the tips to create a hypoallergenic home to make your home a better space for your family.
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Clean the entire home thoroughly
After the flood water is pumped out, clean the entire home properly so that the place is fresh and neat. Make sure there is no presence of moisture in the floors, ceilings and walls as it could help breed disease-causing germs. You can either deep clean your home or call in home cleaning experts to do the job. It’s an essential task that you should not miss doing for the betterment of your health.
Final thoughts
If you want to make your home clean and dry again after it’s affected by the flood water, then you need to do this immediate chore list. From simple tasks like carpet cleaning to huge things like restoration and repair, you have to give the best care to your home so that it becomes habitable again.
