Water Damage – Why You Shouldn’t Try to Handle It Yourself

Whether burst pipes, backed-up drains, or floodwater, the damage to your property or commercial building can be devastating. First, there is the issue of extracting the water, then drying, disinfecting, and deodorizing the areas that have been affected. The issues are not necessarily eliminated once the water has gone, either. Swelling and weakening of important structural elements can occur and bacteria and mold can wreak havoc for months after the disaster if not dealt with effectively the first time around.

For this reason, even shallow flooding should be dealt with by professionals. You may think that mopping the surface water and using domestic dehumidifiers will help, and you can get back to business quickly and cheaply. This method, however, can cause problems in the long term and end up costing you a lot more than you had originally bargained for. The other matter you may not be aware of is that the type of water damage will have a lot to do with the way in which it must be remediated.

Types of Water Damage

There are three types of water that we consider in a water damage remediation call. They are white water, gray water, and black water. They are separated into these categories so as to be able to treat them in specific ways, as white water is not considered hazardous in and of itself, but we have to be wary about the damage it can cause anyway. Gray water needs special consideration and black water needs to be handled very carefully.

White Water

White water damage is the least problematic of the three, but that is not to say there are health and safety concerns. The water itself comes from clean sources and is generally potable. Water supply lines leading to kitchen and restroom facilities are obvious examples of white water.

When these pipes burst, the water itself is not the concern. Water damage caused by white water is problematic in as much as it can affect the structural elements of your commercial building and potentially incubate mold, which can cause problems later down the line if not dealt with professionally at the time of the disaster.

Gray Water

Gray water is wastewater from sinks, washing machines, and other sources of ‘used’ water that does not contain human waste. However, wastewater, or gray water, generally contains chemical soaps and detergents. While it generally contains fewer pathogens than black water, if is not remediated correctly, there is the potential for these to contaminate further down the line.

Of course, with any type of water damage, you will need to have a structural assessment of the damage to ensure the building is safe to re-enter. At Superdry, we use infrared tools to detect any issues that may have arisen from water damage, as the problems are often more than meets the eye.

Black Water

Black water is water that is infected with human waste, but also river water and seawater. With the current climate crisis, flooding is becoming more and more frequent and it is wise to be alert to the dangers, as well as protect your property from flooding where possible.

The issue with black water is that as it contains human waste, it can be extremely nocive to human health, and cannot be remediated with domestic driers and products. The area affected should be professionally dried, disinfected, deodorized, and assessed for hazardous by-products as well as structural damage. Don’t put the users of your facility at risk.

Who Can Help?

Superdry is your first choice for water damage remediation, as we have over 20 years in the industry and have seen and cleaned it all when it comes to water damage. Not only can you rest easy knowing the job is being done professionally, but we are also available at any time of day or night, 365 days a year. One call solves it all!