Are you a homeowner or business owner faced with recent water damage? Then you need to act immediately. It’s important to know how quickly water damage can ruin your home or property. If water damage is left unaddressed, the excess moisture can become destructive. Understanding how water damage begins and progresses over time helps you address the problem sooner rather than later.
Moisture causes problems to any belongings and structure it affects.
The extent of destruction depends on the length of time the property is exposed to water. Unfortunately, water damage can happen very quickly, even within the first 24 hours. Some damage can happen as soon as you notice the water damage. It only takes a few minutes for porous materials to absorb water, thus ruining them. A property that has been saturated with standing water for over a week can face serious structural damage.
Here’s a timeline to help you understand how water damage takes pace:
Water damage that can occur within minutes.
When a hose breaks from household appliances like a washing machine or dishwasher, water spreads rapidly. Water damage can start within minutes when this happens.
Any furniture or belongings in close proximity also get affected. Finishings on furniture can start to bleed. This in turn leads to permanent stains on carpets and area rugs. Even the floor and surrounding walls become saturated with excess moisture.
Items like books, newspapers, magazines, photographs or any porous material on the floor nearby these broken appliances will get soaked with water immediately.
Water damage that happens within the first 24 hours.
Imagine the shock of coming home at the end of a busy day and finding your place water logged! Once a leak or flood spreads, various types of water damage will occur. The moisture in everything also leads to mould growth during this period.
Wooden legs of tables, sofas and cabinets affected by water will bulge and get warped. Surrounding walls, dry walls, window frames and wooden doors begin to absorb the water. Blisters form on the paint and wallpaper and they start to peel away slowly.
Water gets absorbed into soft furnishings and upholstery quite easily. Dyes on any decorative items will run and stain surrounding surfaces. If there’s leakage from your roof, water can come in through the ceiling. This causes water damage to wooden beams and insulation. It can be extremely dangerous when water has impacted electrical systems.
Water damage that takes place within a week.
If you’re water damage is more than a day old, you’re not in the clear yet. Water damage continues to develop. The water-affected site now becomes a biohazard.
Mould growth in moist spaces is the main concern as mould can spread rapidly. Mould spores colonise within 48 hours to a week. Everything begins to smell of mould. Wooden items like doors and windows that are swollen and warped by the water become difficult to open or close. Wooden floorboards begin to rot and crack open. Metal surfaces, objects and appliances begin to rust even if they have not been in direct contact with water. The place starts to look like a mess with the wall paint blistering or peeling off and mould fungi spreading.
Also Read: Mould Growth at Home: How Can You Prevent It?
Water damage and destruction beyond a week.
If a property is unoccupied or left unattended for a week after torrential rains, a flood or any form of water accident, then severe water damage can occur. The restoration costs can soar when everything is severely affected. The time and effort involved in water damage restoration work also increases significantly. In these cases, it is important to discard and replace any contaminated items. The property will also need major structural rebuilding.
An extensively water-damaged property is unsafe to occupy. As the walls and wood frame components are oversaturated with water, the building is structurally unsound. Mould growth makes the environment unhealthy for its inhabitants.
Call Biosite Cleanup when there is water damage.
Ideally, the process of restoring your property should begin within 24 to 48 hours. This will minimise most of the water damage caused by a major leak, rain or flood.
As a water damage restoration company, Biosite Cleanup responds quickly to emergency water damage situations. Our areas of operation are Goulburn, Canberra, Batemans Bay and surrounding areas of NSW.
Our team of certified technicians will arrive onsite to deal with your water damage issues. They will assess the damage and work out a restoration plan. Once the water damage restoration is done, you can be assured that the water damage will not ruin your property in the long run.
Get in touch with us at Biosite Cleanup on 0409037634 or email us at bryan@biositecleanup.com.au to begin the water damage restoration.