Flooding is one of the worst natural disasters that could hit your home. However, an estimated 15 million American homes are at risk of flooding. If your family experiences this situation, it’s imperative that you implement a rapid response.
First and foremost, you must focus on ensuring that your loved ones are safe. After doing this, the following steps will lead you to success.
Clear Up
Floods will bring havoc to your home. Aside from ruining several items within your home, the water allows harmful bacteria to enter your property. Mold and dampness could cause major problems for your family’s health unless you take quick action.
Therefore, it’s imperative that you contact a water damage restoration team ASAP. They can extract the moisture, salvage the appropriate home items, and remove whatever is beyond repair. Their experience and equipment will ensure that the job is completed to professional standards. It will also save you time and money.
Crucially, you may need an itinerary of damaged items if you plan to make an insurance claim.
Complete Home Repairs
While the damage restoration teams can remove water and dry the home, you also need to consider repairs. The harsh reality is that you may need to replace several items including furnishings and furniture.
Furthermore, you may find that the flood has caused structural damage. This is a time to check the foundation, walls, door seals, and other key features. Similarly, all pipework should be inspected. If the flood came through the roof, you must ensure that this structure has been restored to full health.
This is a key step to restoring function to the home. This transcends directly affected rooms to influence every part of the property.
Prevent Future Damage
The fact that your home has flooded once shows that it is potentially prone to another. This is especially true if it occurred due to natural disasters rather than an internal home leak or damaged roof. Either way, you must take action to prevent repeat damage.
Several steps can be taken to improve your chances. Basement waterproofing is often the most important issue as this is where the biggest risks are found. Additional steps may include using flood barriers or improving your backyard drainage. While you can find plenty of advice online, speaking to an expert is advised.
Otherwise, you may be faced with a similar situation when the next downpour of bad weather strikes.
Update The Home
Ideally, you will want to turn this negative situation into a positive one. This can be achieved by redecorating a room or adding a luxury time that you’ve already wanted. This has already been a disruptive time, so you might as well make the most of it.
Even something as simple as painting the walls a new color can transform the look and feel of the home. It doesn’t suddenly remove the problems that you experienced during this time. However, it does at least allow you to draw a line under the situation in a more positive fashion.
Finally, you should count yourself lucky that the situation did not cause any major harm to your family’s health. That is the most important thing by far.
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