7 Important Steps to Take Following a Flood

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A flood is one of the scariest natural disasters facing a home owner. Floods pose risks not only to structures but also your health if the effects are not dealt with swiftly. It is recommended to bring your home back into good repair as soon as possible to prevent any further damage or mould growth from occurring.

But how do you bring it back into good repair? In this article, we’ll dive into 7 things you should do following a flood affecting your home:

Take Pictures

Before you post any selfies with the water damage, it’s important to get some of all the damage around the home as these can be used by your insurance company when processing a claim. While it’s important to quickly get to the task of cleaning any water, you may risk losing out on some coverage if the initial damage isn’t properly documented.

Stay Healthy

The most important thing following any natural disaster is you and your family’s health. It’s recommended that you boil all water for drinking and cooking until local authorities deem your water supply is safe. Following a flood, any number of contaminates can be introduced into your water supply including sewage. So, make sure to properly treat any water before using it, or if you want to play it safe only use bottled water.

To protect your health, also make sure to avoid contact with any flood water – wear rubber boots and gloves if you do have to be near any of the flood water, but otherwise it is often safer to leave it to professionals that will have all the necessary protective equipment to safely deal with it.

Keep Power Off

If there’s any pools of sitting water ensure that the power stays off so you don’t run any risk of getting zapped by a live current.

Remove Wet Contents Immediately

Mould sets in fast, so ensure you get any wet belongings out of the house to avoid as much as possible, should you bring in professionals later they are trained to identify what belongings will still be salvageable. Unfortunately to completely remove any mould or risk of mould from floors you might have to tear it out and replace it. However, this is an important step to take as the mould that will likely grow will cause health problems later, on top of having to be replaced anyway.

File an Insurance Claim

If your insurance covers flood damage, make sure to call your insurer as soon as possible to ensure you can bring your home back to a liveable condition as quickly and with as little fuss as possible.

Remove Water

Unless you were planning on having an in-built swimming pool anyway, you’ll want to make sure you remove any flood water from your home. If buckets are all you have access to they can work, but a pump will be far more effective as well as a wet vac to dry up water and prevent mould. All the equipment you’ll need can be hired from Flood Repair specialists such as Kleen-Tech, and our professionals will be happy to help you figure out what you need.

Avoid Flooded Water

Again, you and your family’s health is paramount in the wake of a natural disaster, so avoid flooded water in the streets. Bodies of flood water can contain plenty of dangerous debris, and if you get cut while standing in water with dirty, deadly contaminants it’ll be a quick trip to the hospital at a time you’d really rather not have one. Additionally, bodies of flood water may continue to have a strong current and even ankle-deep water can cause you to lose your footing.

Floods are more common than you may think and can be very dangerous to you and your property. Make sure you know what to do following a flood before it happens, so that you’re well equipped when one comes.