Water Damage Los Angeles is one of the most common problems home and business owners face. Broken pipes, flooding, and clogged toilets often cause it.
Learn how to spot these common issues and take preventative steps to avoid them in the future! Identifying water damage early on can save you time, money, and headaches.
Flooding can be devastating for homes and businesses, destroying treasured possessions and disrupting daily life. It can also damage infrastructure, such as the breakdown of wastewater, electricity, and telecommunication systems. This can lead to loss of vital services and hamper recovery efforts following the flood event. In addition, floods can have long-term impacts on health and well-being, including psychological distress.
A flood is a general inundation of normally dry land areas, usually caused by rising water in an existing body of water such as a river, lake, stream, drainage ditch or ocean. The water may be moving or stationary, and may be shallow or deep. The resulting inundation is sometimes referred to as a “floodplain”.
Floods are generally caused by the accumulation of too much rainfall over a large area, but can be also be caused by a tsunami, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, or failure of dams and levees. The accumulation of rainwater can be accelerated by heavy winds, overflowing rivers or streams, extremely high tides and other natural events such as glacier retreat.
During a flood, it is essential to leave the area quickly if you think your safety might be threatened. You should never attempt to walk or drive through flood waters, especially swift moving ones. This can lead to severe or fatal injuries. Flood waters can also contain raw sewage, pesticides, industrial waste, and other contaminants, making them dangerous to touch or breathe.
The depth of floodwater will have a significant impact on the type and severity of water damage that can occur. For example, if 1 foot of floodwater enters your home, electrical outlets, furnaces, and HVAC systems can all be affected. However, if 3 feet of floodwater enters your home, you may experience more extensive and expensive damage to plumbing, sewage, and other building systems.
It is crucial to call a professional immediately after experiencing any flooding in your home. Using the right techniques and equipment, our experts can help you restore and repair any water damage that has occurred. They can also help you determine whether contaminated belongings can be salvaged.
Appliance Leaks
If you’ve walked across a wet patch of carpet or discovered a musty smell in the air, these may be signs that you have appliance leaks. These can lead to severe water damage if not addressed right away. The first step is to shut off the appliance that is leaking. If that isn’t possible, you should turn off your home’s water supply so that the leaking water doesn’t affect other areas of your house. After doing this, it’s time to call your local appliance leak specialists and an electrician to repair the problem.
Appliances like washing machines, dishwashers and refrigerators use water to work. These appliances often come with flexible plastic water supply tubing, which can easily crack or burst from wear and tear. The resulting water leaks can wreak havoc on homes and businesses. They can ruin hardwood floors and carpeting, rot drywall and promote the growth of mold and mildew.
The most common sign of a leaking appliance is a musty smell, but you can also see puddles or spots of water on the floor. The leaking water can also damage electrical wiring and cause a short circuit, which can be dangerous. If you suspect that one of your appliances is leaking, you should turn off the power to the appliance, and then contact a water damage restoration company as soon as possible.
Commercial and residential building owners should keep an eye out for puddles or wet patches of carpeting around their appliances. If they catch these issues before they become a major disaster, it can save them money and hassle in the long run. It’s also a good idea to inspect these areas periodically to ensure that there are no problems.
While flooding and water damage can occur from severe weather events, it’s also a common occurrence for residential and commercial buildings to experience damage from broken or leaking appliances. These can lead to costly repairs and the deterioration of property value. The resulting losses can include loss of revenue, production delays and re-occupancy costs, reputational risks and increased insurance costs.
Sewage Backups
Sewage is a dangerous, bacteria-laden substance that you don’t want anywhere near your family. It can also damage your home’s floors, walls, and furniture. If you notice sewage backing up into your house, you have an emergency situation on your hands that should be handled by qualified professionals as soon as possible. Before you call for help, make sure that you and your family are safe by wearing protective clothing like gloves, face masks, and waterproof shoes or clothes. Also, be sure to turn off electricity and water lines if you can in the affected area to prevent electrocution.
Many different things can cause a sewer backup, but most of them are out of your control. For example, the clay pipes that lead to your sewer main from your home may be prone to clogs caused by shrub twigs, tree roots, and other natural growths. If these items get caught on minor obstructions as they’re passing through your home’s plumbing and toward the sewer line, it’s only a matter of time before black water starts flowing back into your house.
Heavy rains can also contribute to a sewage backup. If the municipal sewer system gets overwhelmed during a storm, it can cause a backup in the residential sewage pipes that connect to your home. This is why it’s important to clear debris from catch basins around your property to ensure that the municipal system can drain during a storm.
Semi-porous materials like cabinets, drywall, and Formica can often be saved if they are treated right away after a sewage backup. However, you should always have a professional restoration company inspect the affected areas to determine what is salvageable and what will need to be thrown away. If you try to handle the cleanup yourself, you could be exposed to harmful bacteria and viruses that can cause diseases like hepatitis and AIDS.
A sewage backup can be costly, especially if it damages your home’s furniture and other possessions. The good news is that many homeowners insurance providers offer extra endorsements to cover sewer and sewage backups.
Dehumidifiers
Water damage can be caused by storms, burst pipes, faulty appliances and much more. Whether it’s a small leak or a large flood, water restoration professionals rely on dehumidifiers to keep moisture at bay and expedite the drying process. Dehumidification is a way to pull excess moisture from the air and prevent permanent damage to walls, floors, furniture and other materials in a home or business.
Moisture isn’t just bad for wood; it can also cause structural problems that may not be obvious at first glance. As moisture is drawn from the air, it swells wood and pushes apart joints. This can weaken the structure of a building, warp drywall and make it difficult to remove screws or nails. In addition, mold and mildew thrive in moist environments. As a result, even minor water damage can quickly lead to unsightly mildew and mold that will require expensive restoration work to repair.
In the meantime, these organisms can continue to grow, resulting in unpleasant odors and a host of health issues for family members and employees who suffer from allergies. Dehumidifiers help to keep the environment dry enough to discourage mildew and mold growth, keeping rooms smelling clean and fresh and preventing respiratory problems for those with sensitive lungs.
There are a few different types of dehumidifiers that can be used to pull moisture out of the air in homes, offices and other buildings. Absorbent-based dehumidifiers are a popular choice, as they pass humid air over a chemically absorbent material that captures the water and releases it into waste air that’s ejected out of the room. These types of dehumidifiers are best for damp or humid conditions, but they don’t work well in extremely cold environments.
Other dehumidifiers work by blowing dry air into a room, trapping the excess moisture in the ductwork. These units are best for situations in which the water hasn’t had time to penetrate deep into materials like drywall, carpets and wood. They can be purchased in portable versions, or built into a whole-home ventilation system. They can be quite costly, but they will provide a long-term solution to water damage in a home or office.