Renovation of a Derelict House in Brittany, France: Recovering From a Flood

Recovering From a Flood

Life imitates art often enough, with civilization’s homebuilding efforts mirroring tales like the Three Little Pigs. Only instead of a big, bad wolf, it’s mother nature blowing our homes down whether they’re built out of straw, wood or brick. Mother nature is undefeated, and a flood can quickly cripple any home.

When levees burst, when waterways rise, or when the rains fall relentlessly, the average home is at risk of flooding. This is especially true if you live in a high-risk area or have a basement. If your home does flood, it’s up to you to spring into action before the water can do irreversible damage.

Important Steps to Take in Flood Recovery

1: Kill the Power Immediately

The only thing more dangerous than a flooded home is a flooded home with live electricity. Though you may think that the power is out or that the local utility has shut it off, you simply never know if that is the case. Make sure the first thing you do is eliminate all power to the home and check to see if every source of power is off before entering the home or the home’s flooded zone(s).

2: Quickly Assess All Damages

The second thing you need to do is to quickly check out all areas that have been affected by the flood. Now, you’re not looking to do a professional assessment here; that comes in a later step. For right now, you need to see what has been affected and get a sense of what you’re in store for. You can’t start the cleanup process unless you know the actual scope of the event. So check out which areas are flooded, if there’s still any standing water, if there’s a way you can get rid of the water, etc.

3: Save What Needs Saving

Now that you have shut off the electricity and have assessed the immediate surroundings, it should be safe to go through your home on a saving mission. Any trapped pets, those old photo albums, your financial information, other important keepsakes – you need to get these things out of harm’s way. The damage is done at this point, but quick action might save those important items from destruction.

4: Inspect the Structure

This is where you need to take a full scope of the damage that was caused. Start with your main doors and inspect them for serious structural damage. Move on to any windows that may have been covered, the home’s foundation, the walls of your basement, your floors, and every area that was affected. The goal is to have professionals come in to handle the water damage restoration, but finding out the areas of focus allows you to stay safe by avoiding compromised structures until repairs can be made.

5: Start the Repairs

When handling repairs on your home, it’s important that you don’t simply call in the first company you can locate. Although you may be in a hurry to have these repairs take place, you should never sacrifice quality for convenience. Take your time to find a company with years of experience, a great track record, and one that specialises in repairing water damage. After you locate the right company, make sure that you prep for the repairs to the best of your ability. Vacate the home if it’s not safe. Gather up your important items. And speak with the professionals about the repairs.

Floods displace millions of people around the globe every year, and no one can ever stay completely out of mother nature’s way. If you’re dealing with water damage from a flood, make sure you follow the tips listed above for your safety and for timely, effective repairs.