Water Damage and Protecting Your Home After a Flood

When people pose the old, "What would you grab from your house in case of disaster?" question, the disaster imagined is inevitably a fire. And while a fire may present the more immediate threat, flooding can cause destruction in just as insidious a way. True, once something has been burned to a crisp, there's no recovery. But something that has been sufficiently victimized by water damage isn't going to be of much use, either. Your best bet is always to protect your home before the flood, but what if it's too late for that? Here's what you should do afterwards.

Remember Caution

You would never stand in the middle of a drawn bath with a live wire, but people have a way of getting complacent when the water damage is all around them. Remember, it doesn't take a puddle to put you in danger of electric shock. Even damp carpets can be enough to conduct electricity in such a way that you could court danger. Wear rubber boots when examining your home. Turn off the electricity to any of the rooms that have been affected by the flooding. You may even want to have your local authorities do a walkthrough and ensure that it's even safe to be in your home at all.

Rescue Important Belongings

It's that old questions again, except this time it's not just an idle thought exercise. Now you have to really decide what's important. With any luck, you can rescue everything irreplaceable, but that's not always realistic. Do what you can. Go in order of importance, but also rescue those items that will be in the most danger of being destroyed. Any papers or documents you have that need to be saved should be the items of first priority. Same goes for picture albums and things of that nature. These days, of course, many people use their computers as their virtual photo albums. Electronics don't do well with water damage, so you may want to get them out as soon as possible.

Hire Professionals

Homeowners who want to recover from water damage often look at the task as impossibly Herculean. This is not only because of all the hard work that needs to be done, but because it's difficult to even know how to begin. They don't offer classes in high school that prepare you for such a situation, after all. Thankfully, there are companies out there ready to help. You may want to call one of these companies. The professionals working there will be your best shot at making a full and complete recovery.