Unless your home is located next to a river whose waters quickly rise during a heavy storm and enter your house with the force of a tsunami, water damage usually occurs in a sneaky way.
No matter how nightmarish water damage is, such problems don’t happen like in the movies. After all, your home has a roof and a functional bathroom. You don’t stand under a half-broken roof witnessing the rain filling your living room with water! But don’t hurry to take a deep breath just yet.
The blessed element, called water, can become your worst enemy in just minutes.
But let us put our thoughts in order here to help you understand the seriousness of such problems and the importance of quick water damage restoration.
The sources of water damage are plenty
What’s the point of pinpointing the sources, you ask? It will help you understand how quickly water can damage the home. Sometimes, the source makes a difference. And since water often travels unseen, it’s good for you to know the possible water damage sources and the telltale signs there’s a problem.
The source of water damage may be a leaking faucet, overflowing toilets, sinks, tubs, appliances, or rivers, broken pipes, leaky roofs – you get the picture. Any failure with the plumbing system, any problem with the HVAC pipes, roof damage, and natural disasters all lead to flooded homes. And although toilet and sewage backups, and also overflowing rivers are the worst water damage scenarios due to the possibility of contamination, an emergency problem that started today may be apparent to you a month later. Or a week later.
In some cases, the water may cause serious damage in just minutes.
It all has to do with the extent of the damage, but also the effects of water damage. You see, your problem is not limited only to the actual water damage but extends to the effects of water damage.
Problems born when there’s water leakage
• When you put a bucket to collect water leaking from the roof, know that several structural elements in your home will be affected by the moisture & water.
• When plumbing pipes burst, you will most likely notice it. But when they are damaged and the water leaks, you don’t know until one of your home floors is flooded. What makes this problem even worse is that the flooded floor might be in the opposite side of the actual plumbing problem. That’s because the water travels behind walls or under floors without you noticing.
• When your carpet gets soaked due to water damage and you dry it, know that the floor under the carpet may be soaked too. This will gradually ruin the carpet, while mold will most likely grow.
Long term water damage
When the problem cannot be seen – like in the case of the leaking plumbing pipes, you won’t notice the effects before weeks go by.
When there’s roof damage, it might take weeks before you notice leakage. But in the meantime, all roof elements will most likely be saturated.
Short term water damage effects
If there’s water under your wooden floors, they can be damaged within days. That’s why immediate water damage remediation is needed the minute you notice drops of water on your floor and you cannot detect the source.
Mold usually takes 48 hours to grow. That’s when the water damage restoration service is delayed or there’s no inspection for mold. It’s not enough to have the water extracted from your home, but also to make sure the floor and all elements are entirely dry. This would include the furniture, all fabrics, and especially the carpet. It is always assumed that the source of the water damage is fixed.
Water takes days to destroy all wooden elements in the home. Eventually wood swells, warps, and may also split.
Water damage within a few hours
If the home is flooded, everything (fragile) in contact with the water will be ruined within hours. Such items include wooden and steel furniture, appliances, kitchen cabinets, etc. Colors fade, steel corrodes, and wood rots. Not only do you need immediate water extraction but also to elevate such items from the floor.
One of the worse effects of water damage is the bad odor. This occurs due to the stagnant water which is filled with contaminants (because it’s stagnant). The bacteria in the water and the bad odor may be harmful to your health. It’s urgent that you get water damage service quickly.
Water damage effects in only minutes
Your home can be ruined in just minutes when sinks, tubs, or toilets overflow. These are situations that you cannot control water from flooding your floors. And it will do so in just minutes.
If there’s water on the floor, expect immediate carpet damage.
The longer water stays on the floor, the worse the damage of everything – from furniture and drywall to floors. And don’t forget that it only takes hours before mold pays you a visit too. So, hurry to address such problems even if they seem innocent at first glance.
