Disaster Recovery News

As you prepare your spring cleaning checklist, add to it tasks that can help prevent water and mold damage. Taking the extra time to complete these extra items can help save you time and money. These spring cleaning tips work well for the home and office alike.

Getting Ready for Spring

• Take the time to fix your windows if the winter weather took its toll on them. This could include adding new weather stripping to them. Windows in good working condition help prevent water damage in a home.
• Caulk the windows in your home. This will help maintain the temperature of your home while minimizing energy losses. Additionally, caulking can help prevent water damage and the growth of mold.
• Clean and setup dehumidifiers in your home. Humidity encourages the growth of mold spores you cannot see, which can cause you to feel sick.
• Clean all your fans well, including your ceiling fans. If any mold grew on the blades of a fan, you could risk spreading the spores throughout your home or office when used.
• Test all of your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to make sure they work. If you cannot remember the last time you replaced the batteries in the alarms, replace them ASAP.
• If you have a sump pump, make sure it works well before the spring rains begin to pour. Failures in sump pumps are one of the most common causes of basement flooding when the weather begins to warm.
• If you already have experienced a minimal amount of mold growth in your home, clean it right away with a household bleach product. If you are sensitive to bleach, you can make a natural mold cleaner by combining 2 cups of water with 2 teaspoons of tea tree oil in a spray bottle. Spray the mix on the affected area and wipe it away with a towel. The tea tree mixture is also a good solution to prevent mold growth in damp areas such as windows and bathrooms.

If your mold problem covers a large area or has affected your ceiling, walls, books or wet papers, call a mold restoration specialist soon. These professionals can help kill the mold, prevent it from returning and restore mold-damaged books, photographs and documents.

Learn more about mold prevention.

[Photo: Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection]

If residents and business owners near the Mississippi River do not have flood insurance, now is the time to get it. The” Winona Daily News” reports the National Weather Service predicts the famous river will reach “moderate flood stage.” However, record-breaking floods are cautiously predicted.

The article states:

“Periods of mild weather in the past few weeks released some of the liquid trapped in the snow cover, but additional snowfall has kept the snow cover equal to or higher than it was Feb. 17, according to the flood outlook issued Thursday.

“What’s worse, western Minnesota has the highest snow and water content on record… And all that water drains into the Mississippi.”

The cool March weather mixed with above-normal precipitation is feared to cause a rapid melting of the lingering snow once the weather begins to warm. The report reminds readers that flood insurance benefits do not kick-in until 30 days after the policy begins.

What to Do if You Experience Water Damage

If you experience flooding of any kind in your home or business, the following can help minimize water damage and mold growth:

• Unplug electrical equipment and shut off the circuit breaker.
• Take pictures of the water damage.
• Call your insurance company.
• Call a flood restoration company.
• Begin removing water while you wait to hear a response from the insurance company and restoration company. Use a mop, waterproof shop vacuum or pump to remove the water.
• Remove wet materials from the building. Throw away any items that do not dry within 24 hours, like mattresses, toys or padded office furniture as they may harbor dangerous mold.

Learn about recovering from a flood.

[photo: Kevin Jack]

Librarians started work on February 16, 2011 only to discover a major leak flowing from the ceiling of the Carrier Library’s special collections room, which contains historical documents, manuscripts and archived records, along with other special collections. Although the cause of the leak is still unknown, librarians were able to salvage or preserve all of the water-damaged documents from the Virginia library.

A Prepared Disaster Plan

Ralph Alberico, dean of the libraries, told the “The Breeze” in an interview: “We immediately implemented our disaster plan. It goes into great detail about how to respond to these types of disasters.”

The library’s disaster plan included removing all the materials from the special collections room and laying out plastic tarps in an effort to prevent further water damage. A different room of the library was then used to keep the materials in until the completion of the water damage restoration process.

One of the preparation plans that helped save some of the historical documents is their placement in special acid-free containers called phase boxes.

Freezing Documents

Library staff took the wet documents to the old Rockingham Memorial Hospital, now North Campus, and placed them in an industrial freezer. Alberico stated, “The way to treat water damaged archived materials is to immediately freeze them to prevent mold from happening.” However, the frozen documents must be unfrozen in a controlled environment.

A Better Option for Restoring Historical Documents

Rapid Refile has the most sophisticated document restoration technology of its kind in the U.S. in the form of a vacuum freeze dryer. The new vacuum freeze dryer has a capacity of up to 2,000-cubic-feet per month, a controlled drying  and monitoring system to prevent over-drying and the ability to restore water damaged books and documents without any distortion or warping.

When books and documents fall victim to water damage, the recovery process involves blast freezing the items to preserve them. The new technology in the Rapid Refile’s vacuum freeze dryer does not allow the ice in that paper to melt. Instead, the ice turns into a gas via the manipulation of pressure and temperatures within the chamber. This system is great for libraries who seek to preserve wet documents and rare books in order to prevent further damage and mold growth.

Learn more about water damage book restoration.

[photo: Taber Andrew Dain]

“The New York Times” recently reported that the Department of Housing Preservation and Development issued over 14,000 violations for mold infestations in residential buildings in 2010. Not just found in NYC’s older buildings, the Stachybotrys chartarum strain of mold was found along with other molds linked to respiratory tract illnesses in buildings that are not even five years old. New York City investigates approximately 500 cases of mold each year.

The cause of the mold infestations in newer buildings in the city is linked to water damage caused by poorly installed plumbing or insulation. While one may think that the mold problems are isolated to low-income neighborhoods, the “Times” states that spores were recently found in brand-new, multimillion-dollar condos.

Mold-Resistant Drywall

To help prevent the growth of mold, some contractors are looking to mold-resistant drywall, which they install in kitchens, bathrooms or near HVAC units. These areas tend to have the most water damage or are more prone to leaks. Mold-resistant drywall is a little more expensive than its, gypsum board counterpart, but its use can save thousands of dollars in mold remediation in the future.

In 2010, the Green Codes Task Force proposed requiring contractors to use mold-resistant drywall in new buildings. The city council is still considering the proposal. “The New York Times” adds:

“The use of mold-resistant drywall alone is not enough to ensure that a home will be mold-free. The exterior needs to be impermeable; all the building materials need to remain dry during the construction process; and condensation should not form inside the walls.”

Many mold problems in a home are out of sight as the family within it blames their coughs and breathing problems on allergies, viruses and unexplained asthma. If you see mold in your home, call a mold remediation specialist in the near future for mold removal services. Chances are that the visible mold is only the introduction of a widespread mold infestation.

Learn about mold prevention.

[photo: Angela Schmeidel Randall]

In the United States, floods are one of the most common and deadliest natural disasters. While some natural disasters occur more in certain regions of the country, such as earthquakes in the areas surrounding a fault line, floods can occur anywhere rain falls and can impact large areas of land. Because the weather cannot be controlled, there are only a few ways humans can prevent flooding. However, knowledge and preparation for a flood can help all homeowners stay safe and limit the amount of damage to personal property.

Before a Flood

One of the first steps to being ready for a flood is to know your risk for a flood. Then, create an emergency disaster plan that lists other natural disaster risks in your area. Develop a plan that includes a safe place for a family to stay if there is a flood, maps that show possible evacuation routes and road closures during a flood and directions that describe what to do if your family gets separated. Your emergency disaster plan should also include a kit with a list of important phone numbers, a first aid kit, medications, food, water and a document that lists the location of your valuables. If possible, store any valuables in the home on the upper floor of a home, off the floor.

During a Flood

During a flood, stay up-to-date on the latest information by listening to a battery-operated radio, which many MP3 players now include. Radio announcers typically broadcast the latest news about natural disasters, the locations of emergency shelters, road closures and safety instructions. Additionally, if you must drive during a flood, do not drive through moving water.

After a Flood

After the rains have stopped, it is best to continue to pay attention to the local to news to learn when it is safe to go home after a flood. Families should exercise caution as standing water in a home can contain mold, viruses and bacteria. If your home experienced any water damage, it is best to have a professional examine it to make sure the home is safe to enter. Moreover, if your home did suffer water damage from a flood, call a flood restoration specialist to help you examine the contents within it to see what you can salvage and what you need to throw away. For example, a restoration specialist can remediate wet documents, but may recommend throwing away old carpet to prevent mold growth.

Although a flood may be hard to predict and prevent, a family can easily prepare for one. Creating an emergency disaster plan and kit is a great activity for families to do together as it gets everyone involved and on the same page regarding important safety issues.

Learn more about preparing for a flood.

We would like to extend a special thanks to Drew, who is learning about flood safety in his science class. He found a great site, HomeownersInsurance.org, which has additional information about staying safe during a flood. Good find, Drew!

[photo: Wikimedia Commons]