Help we got flooded last night.

amother

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 4:55 pm

Last night it rained into our newly painted home. It seems our gutter was frozen solid and the water on our roof came pouring in. I'm overwhelmed with the thought that we might have to gut our house now in order to avoid mold. Any one go thru this? Any advice?

Dolly Welsh

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 5:16 pm

Take a lot of photos now, inside and out.

If you are going to make an insurance claim, do so quickly. Read the policy before calling.

Have pad, pen, and husband right there. No children nearby. Make notes of the call, with date, time, the rep's full name or personnel number.

Get insurance rep's email address. Email any relevant photos.

Also start a paper file for yourself. Print out photos in color and put them in the file, dated. Also emails.

Start a journal with dates and times of what happened, and whom you spoke to, their number and email, and what they said to you.

sara123456

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 5:34 pm

You can get something called a dehumidifier. It looks like a portable air conditioner and sucks the water in.

We had a flood and my parque floors literally picked up from the water and this helped immensely! It went for a week non-stop and did a perfect job. You can get it at home depot and major appliance stores

queen76

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 5:37 pm

Tnx for responding. Did you rip out any walls? How did you know that there wasn't water in between the walls?

Rutabaga

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 5:41 pm

If it looks like major damage, and especially if you are worried about mold, then you can hire a restoration service. They will come pump out the water, bring industrial-size dehumidifiers, spray stuff that will prevent mold from growing, and do whatever construction works needs to be done to fix things as good as new.

If you post you general area, then maybe imamothers can give you some referrals.

queen76

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 5:56 pm

I'm in Bklyn ny. There's no water that needs to be pumped out now, but there are yellow stains on my ceilings, and peeling of paint all over. So not sure if I can get my own dehumidifier or if I need a commercial one?

Dolly Welsh

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 5:58 pm

Right. And that dehumidifier thing might be available for rent, if you don't want to buy one.

It might be good to get a professional inspection right away, complete with an assessment of what went on inside the walls, meaning an engineering report. Make sure it is a real engineer who does it, not an appraiser.

queen76

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 6:06 pm

I just had some one come down a few minutes ago, he said that there's extensive damage and we need to do a major gut. My husband is wary and wants a second opinion. I was told you really need to be careful because you can be taken for a ride. Especially if they think you can file a claim, and they want a piece of the pie.
I'm very nervous about people taking advantage of me. I didn't have references for this guy, and I don't know any one who had this experience.

momX4

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 6:13 pm

you need to contact your insurance ASAP. They may want to send down specialist to try to dry out as much as possible. They may also send someone down to survey the damage and let you know what they will pay for.
Don't do any work until you get the go ahead from the insurance.

My water heater cracked and I had a flood. They sent someone down right away to dry the area out. We had machines on for afew days. They also gave us money to fix what got damaged.

greenfire

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 6:23 pm

before you gut anything - let it dry & fix the roofing/gutter issue ... unless it's just snow melting - then again you might need to get a heating cable installed at the edge of the roof so the snow/ice doesn't build up ...

run a dehumidifier or even a fan until it dries - chances are all you need is to touch up the painting in that area

FranticFrummie

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 7:06 pm

All the above advice is excellent. BTDT, unfortunately.

When it comes time for repair, get at LEAST 3 bids on the job. Go over them carefully after the people leave, and weight the pros and cons, the methods, and the prices.

I used to flip houses before the market crashed. Contractors can vary so widely, a second opinion is not enough to make an informed decision. I can't tell you how many times a third or fourth bid has saved me thousands of dollars and tons of heartache.

Huge hugs to you. I know how devastating it can feel after you've just put in so much hard work. It's OK to have a glass of wine and throw a pity party before you tackle the job.

Rutabaga

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 7:39 pm

Flood services to call:

Dr. Flood 800-592-5609
Home Serve 888-777-1126 (my parents were happy with them)
J&S Carpet Cleaning and Restoration 978-417-1577 (we used them for dehumidifiers and mold prevention and haven't had any mold issues at all)
ServPro 516-620-4579
Total Restoration 516-333-5333 (several neighbors were very happy with them)

Definitely contact your insurance company as soon as possible. Take multiple pictures of everything from every angle and then do whatever you can to minimize the damage before it gets worse.

You can also get moisture absorbers from a hardware type store that look like little crystals.

Hug

queen76

Sun, Dec 15 2013, 8:15 pm

Just wanted to thank all if you for some great tips. I have a lot of work ahead of me.........
Thanks again!

amother

Mon, Dec 16 2013, 12:00 pm

If it seems to be extensive damage, you should call a public adjuster. They take a percentage of what your claim settles for, but can often negotiate with your insurance carrier to give you much more than what the insurance initially offers. Please do this. Your insurance company wants to minimize the payout, the public adjuster will fight for you. They don't usually charge for a consultation and will tell you if it is worth your while.