What Does Water Damage Restoration Entail?

Hiring professional help to clean up water quickly is essential to avoiding more damage in the future. Many terms are used to describe the process of water damage cleaning from the first steps to the last repairs: water damage restoration, water remediation, water removal, water extraction, water mitigation, flood cleanup, etc.

Long-term flooding or wetness is likely to ruin many interior finishes and contents. It’s really frustrating when you want your things repaired but they are too damp to safely work on. You will need to aggressively control mold in the weeks and months after the flood.

Exploring What Water Damage Restoration Entails

Understanding the behavior of water on different materials is a combination of art and science. The experts at K-Tech Kleening know that certain areas of your home will need more attention in the restoration phase:

Subfloors

A subfloor is the structural floor beneath the decorative finish of a hardwood floor, commonly made of plywood. Damage to this subfloor can be seen from cupping, popping, or cracking boards. More importantly, a damp subfloor will harbor mold.

Layers of submerged plywood or OSB subfloors will likely separate or swell. Affected sections must be replaced to keep the new floor covering from buckling.

Wood Floors

Your wood floors are a huge investment; every attempt will be made to salvage them.  Treatment of mold growth often includes removing the wax finish and treating the floor with oxalic acid crystals and hot water to kill the mold. After the mold has been treated, the area must be stained and sealed. Cleaning and drying the floor thoroughly may take weeks before replacing boards and attempting repairs.

Tile And Sheet Flooring

Vinyl plank flooring seems like the perfect flooring solution for busy homes: basements, bathrooms, and even kitchens. Vinyl is theoretically impervious to water. If there is several inches of standing water on the floor, however, you need professional help.  

If your vinyl has attached underlayment, most can also dry completely and be re-installed. If you have a closed-cell underlayment, it can be re-installed after completely dried. If you have a cork underlayment, then there is a risk for mold and mildew to grow, so those are not recommended to be re-installed.

Wall Finishes And Woodwork 

As you look around your home, you will see the time of handicraft and your financial investment in all the finished wood cabinetry and millwork. For example, kitchen cabinets range anywhere from $100 to $1,200 per linear foot. Solid wood is more durable than pressed wood and is usually easier to salvage. When dealing with antique or specialty cabinets, it’s especially important to have an expert come in and evaluate the situation. Engage a team with a comprehensive suite of water damaged furniture restoration services; some wooden finishes and types of wood may be more difficult to repair but are often worth salvaging.

If there isn’t any structural damage, refacing the cabinets is often the most economical option. 

Upholstered Furniture

When faced with soaked upholstered furniture, your options are limited. If the water reached the upholstery, the fabric may be stained or watermarked. Worse, padding holds the water, allowing mildew to grow. The biggest danger is from contamination from sewage, pesticides, or industrial chemicals that were in the floodwaters. But before you discard the upholstered piece, have K-Tech assess the damage. 

K-tech Kleening Can Handle It All

After any water damage in your home, K-tech Kleening can help. The team of highly trained and certified technicians can handle any job, big or small. Whether you are in need of a bio-wash antimicrobial cleaning in one room or an entire remediation of your home or business, K-tech has the equipment and the staff to put your worries at ease.

At K-tech Kleening, we understand how important it is to extract the water as quickly as possible to prevent further damage to your property and your belongings. We will remove it using specialized, high-powered drying equipment. We will do everything we can to return your life to normal as soon as possible. K-tech serves customers in Wausau and Central Wisconsin. Multiple offices and 45-plus fleet of vehicles provide an extensive reach to outlying rural and metropolitan locations.