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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration

Archived Water Damage Blog Posts

Water removal needs for your home, following a main line break.

5/31/2023 (Permalink)

Significant water incidents which require extraction services and restoration in your Farmington home can happen with little warning. While many might attribute this kind of situation to flooding or some other natural disaster, the truth is, something as simple as a water break on the main line running near your property could leave you with much water to contend with in your home.

Many homeowners do not think about the water line intended to distribute potable water throughout the community. This buried line is just a connection between a water treatment facility and your residence, though when there is a break on this line, it could cause significant problems with homes near the issue.

The first problem that is possible would be a backflow incident from backpressure forcing through your service lines and the plumbing can't keep up.

Another possibility could be due to flood-like incidents from the main line outside causing water to flood through the foundation.

After the source has been stopped our SERVPRO technicians respond quickly to help mitigate the damages your residence might experience. Give SERVPRO of Burnsville/Lakeville a call today at (952) 846-4400.

Concealed water causes big concerns for Burnsville

5/11/2022 (Permalink)

It is surprising how many places water finds to hide in a high-end kitchen. Custom cabinets, built in appliances, and tiled floors extending under all fixtures contain water that drips or leaks. You need a professional team and clever plan to eliminate hidden pockets of water. SERVPRO technicians have the curiosity, experience, and training to locate and rid your home of water lurking where it should not be.

Hoses and pipes snake through your kitchen, and a crack or poorly fitting connector means water removal is in the future of your Burnsville home. You expect plumbing in the walls, but todays ice makers, dishwashers, built-in water dispensers, and main floor laundries cause water to be routed everywhere, often behind or through storage areas. Tight seals between the bases of cabinets and floors hold in water that leaks, seeps, or condenses. Your first clue that you have water pooling under cabinets or appliances might be tell-tale growing dark marks on the ceiling tiles below your kitchen. An "off" smell also warns of water that needs removal, particularly if mold or mildew takes hold. If you cannot find the water causing problems in your home, give the skilled technicians at SERVPRO a try. Trained to detect where water moves from the initial leak, our staff finds the source and devises a plan to remove the water and dry out your structure and fixtures.

Expect our team to pry the kick-plates off the bottom of your cabinetry, locating areas where water collects. Water extractors pull the moisture out, followed by scientifically arranged air movers and dehumidifiers to complete the drying process. We also consider aiming the movers under the subfloor of the kitchen, staging them a level down in your home aiming up. If ceiling tiles are removable, we pop them out to get more air in the proper areas.

The flooring, including the subfloor, needs evaluation as well. Our crew measures moisture levels as well to determine whether drying mats might be appropriate to extract more moisture from above and below the surface. SERVPRO professionals set drying targets to ensure no lingering dampness causes rot or mold damage.

Water removal is a core service offered by SERVPRO of Burnsville/Lakeville. Call for an inspection at (952) 846-4400 if you suspect hidden water damages in your kitchen.

Water removal needs for your home, following a main line break.

5/10/2022 (Permalink)

Significant water incidents which require extraction services and restoration in your Farmington home can happen with little warning. While many might attribute this kind of situation to flooding or some other natural disaster, the truth is, something as simple as a water break on the main line running near your property could leave you with much water to contend with in your home.

Many homeowners do not think about the water line intended to distribute potable water throughout the community. This buried line is just a connection between a water treatment facility and your residence, though when there is a break on this line, it could cause significant problems with homes near the issue.

The first problem that is possible would be a backflow incident from backpressure forcing through your service lines and the plumbing can't keep up.

Another possibility could be due to flood-like incidents from the main line outside causing water to flood through the foundation.

After the source has been stopped our SERVPRO technicians respond quickly to help mitigate the damages your residence might experience. Give SERVPRO of Burnsville/Lakeville a call today at (952) 846-4400.

Unusual weather and water damage

4/26/2022 (Permalink)

In Minnesota, a homeowner expects winter snows and spring showers, but recent weather patterns mixed up the precipitation patterns. When iced up gutters are then filled with torrential rainwater the moisture backs up into your attic and seeps down the walls and through the ceiling into your living areas. SERVPRO has vast experience with ice dams and stands ready to restore the water damage.

The winter months have many challenges, but water damage to your Burnsville townhouse is unexpected. Unusually warm temperatures melt the snowy cap on your roof, but stubborn deposits of ice remain, forcing the water under the shingles and into your unfinished overhead storage space. Unanticipated rain and sleet during times when we usually see below zero lows exacerbate the problem. Your first notice of the problem will be a bulging ceiling and some dark staining on the master suite walls.

Do not ignore the problem until the weather warms or try to manage the damage by yourself. Ice dams, as these phenomena are called, require the assistance of SERVPRO Professionals. We investigate the tiny gaps where warm air, augmented by the rains, melt the snow on your roof. These breaches and the accumulation of icy water leaking into them need repair before restoring the water damage. We work with your roofing contractor to ensure the water source is eliminated.

Then we focus on the water damage. Our goal is always to restore rather than remove and replace. The condition of the ceiling and walls dictates if some or all of the drywall or tiles need to be replaced. Areas showing warping may need to be torn out, and fresh material installed. If we see evidence of mold, the colony needs removal as does the wallboard or ceiling section infested with the fungus. Mold remediation is a job for experts. Dampness without distortion or microbial activity responds to our drying techniques, including air movers, dehumidifiers, and heat. After the affected areas reach their drying target, as determined by our precise moisture measuring devices, touch up painting completes the job. SERVPRO sends only highly trained and qualified technicians to restore your home and works with you in a fully transparent way throughout the process. We help with insurance claims, too.

Call on SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville to manage a tough ice dam issue atop your home. Our friendly operators answer round the clock at (952) 846-4400.

What to do when failed Plumbing causes water damage in Farmington

2/11/2022 (Permalink)

Having water leaks in your home is a nightmare all on its own, but when it comes from a source that seems to be pumping endless volumes into your home, it is even worse. In Farmington, the weather is dramatically cold in the winter and hot in the summer. The unique location of the state causes the spring thaw to have rapidly changing temperatures, from snowstorms to warm and breezy days. This rapid change of temperature can cause intense effects on the structure of your home, but especially to the plumbing. Burst pipes are often the result of stress brought about by the water expanding as it ices up within the conduits.

Fortunately, SERVPRO is close by and quick to get on the scene. We can send our technicians quickly to address the damaging water event to your Farmington property before it gets out of control. So, when a pipe bursts, do not wait. The sooner the ruptured pipe is addressed, the less water can flood your home. Flooding is a type of water damage that is very rough on the house as it can impact the overall structure. This fact is especially true when the water has no other place to go but into your floors, carpets, walls, and furniture.

So how can SERVPRO help you in this situation? First, it is necessary to establish the danger of the water that has flooded your home. We can separate standing water into three categories: clean water, grey water, or black water. The three categories are progressively worse than the last and indicate how sanitary the water is for human contact. Once it is determined, we can go about draining the water and drying out your home and the items within it safely. Typically, most burst pipes spill out clean water, potable drinking water.

If a water pipe in your home has burst, do not wait. Call SERVPRO of the Burnsville/Lakeville area at (952) 846-4400. We always get to the scene fast also in the Burnsville and Lakeville areas and quickly dry out your home to make you feel "Like it never even happened."

Deodorizing Your Bathroom in Burnsville After Water Damage

12/22/2021 (Permalink)

Deodorization is One of the Most Important Steps of Water Damage Cleanup
If it goes untreated for too long, a water leak in your Burnsville bathroom can be very costly, especially if it causes significant damage to the flooring, walls, and paint. You can check for some small issues to decide if you need the help of professionals before things get worse. These include mold or mildew growth, damaged paint or wallpaper, damaged walls, and damaged flooring. You also want to keep an eye out for stains on the ceiling or smells from old, accumulated water.

Water damage in your Burnsville home’s bathroom is never a welcome thing. SERVPRO professionals can help you get the issue fixed that is creating the damage in the first place, dry your bathroom back out and get it clean and safe again for you and your family.

Once we have extracted any standing water and taken care of the issue causing the water damage, we must deodorize your bathroom to combat any smells. To do so, we have to remove the cause of the odor in the first place. Odor problems from water damage happen because wet materials have not dried completely. As the level of moisture returns to normal, a lot of the odor problems also go away, but some might remain.

In most situations for deodorization, the odors are coming from various sources. To find all the sources and figure which methods are best to fight all of them, SERVPRO staff use technical equipment and our knowledge and training. Most of the time, we use multiple methods of deodorizing to ensure that we entirely combat all the smells.

Chemical odors might mask the smells at first, but later when the structure adjusts to its normal condition, odors can return, so using the various methods that we do keeps the odors from coming back. We also realize that sometimes what we use to deodorize the bad smells can be more offensive than the original ones, so we ensure that you like the smell of the professional products we are planning on applying before we use them.

SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville knows that getting the odors entirely out of your bathroom once we have dried it up is just as important as cleaning up the damage. Your home in Orchard Garden, Farmington, or Argonne is in good hands when you contact us at (952) 846-4400 to help you with a leak in your bathroom.

Click here for more information on Burnsville.

Avoid Water Damage In Your Farmington Residence By Maintaining Your Toilet

12/22/2021 (Permalink)

Maintenance Helps Prevent Toilet Overflows in Your Farmington Home
It is not difficult to come up with several possible ways that your Farmington home might become damaged by unexpected water. With so many potential hazards that you face as a homeowner, you should always be on the lookout for anything that appears to be running differently than it usually would. An excellent example of this would be your toilet, as by now you should be very familiar with the sound and consistency of a standard flush cycle.

So, what are you trying to listen for or see that might be out of the ordinary? The most immediate threat beyond a pipe break would be sluggish flushing cycles. A compromised cycle might present itself with less water than usual when you attempt to pull the lever, the bowl might take longer than normal to empty, or your tank could take a long time to refill. These could be warning signs. If you do not heed them, you might be soon seeking water removal services for your Farmington residence.

Sluggish flushing can be the result of some potential plumbing problems, but most often it falls into one of two primary reasons. The first of these is freezing water in your pipes. A slow response of water when you go to flush the toilet might indicate that while it is not entirely frozen, portions of your plumbing from your service line to your toilet have been slowed by the creation of ice. Proper insulation of these pipes can prevent this through the coldest months of the year.

Another reason your toilet might be running sluggishly is a blockage in your indoor plumbing or septic system. Blockages in either one of these systems can provide unhealthy pressure in the lines, let alone the probability of backfilling and overflowing the septic system. While noticing a toilet behaving strangely might not be a reason yet to call us at SERVPRO, we can help to diagnose problems with your water system before they require restoration efforts.

Unfortunately, toilets do come with many potential problems. Direct breaks, overflowing and ruptured plumbing are just a small glimpse into the damage they could do to your home. If you are dealing with a water emergency, our certified SERVPRO staff can help remove the water and fix the problem that caused it.

Locally Owned Company with National Resources

The important thing is not to wait, even if what you are currently experiencing is minor. Water damage might seem insignificant at first, but with the right circumstances, a literal flood of problems could arise. Call our rapid response team here at SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville anytime at (952) 846-4400.

Our Customized Plan Deals Quickly with Flooding on Your Property

4/29/2021 (Permalink)

Early summer rains over several days saturate the ground, forcing moisture into basements and walkout lower levels. Even if your home has a sump pump, it may not be up to the task of removing relentless incursions of water. Rely upon SERVPRO to take over the water extraction tasks, and then move on to restore the damage done by the moisture.

Recent storms dumped many inches of rain south of the Minnesota River, causing flood damage to your Lakeville home. The sump pump system installed became clogged with debris and then failed when high winds knocked down power lines nearby. We step in when your best-laid plans go awry, offering solutions that only a full-service disaster restoration company delivers.

Fast moving storms race in from the Dakotas, bringing rain and winds that challenge the power grid. SERVPRO begins pumping and extracting water using truck-mounted equipment not dependent upon local electrical services, a great relief to you and your family. Once the water exits your basement or walkout lower level, our crew changes up the equipment, positioning air movers and dehumidifiers to reduce the moisture content of your home’s structure and interior air fast.

The trained technicians at SERVPRO assess the walls and floors of your basement, looking for areas where building materials show signs of failing. Cinderblock usually dries out well, but we search for areas within where pockets of water collect and use strategies to release that water, including drilling holes for drainage or extracting from the top. Carpeting responds well to drying in place if done as soon as possible after the flood. Padding fares less well, but we remove and replace it at a reasonable cost, and pulling it up allows us to direct air under the carpet for faster drying. If wet for a brief period, drywall survives using moisture reduction techniques, but replacement is standard if the fibers begin to crumble.

SERVPRO helps you inventory and evaluate the condition of items stored in the basement. We use a staging area on your property, often a garage or covered porch, to determine whether any documents, pictures, or other keepsakes need special attention. It is essential to successful drying of this type of property that the contents of boxes and storage boxes be reviewed quickly. You work with the team to decide what items receive freeze drying or other treatments our staff provides for papers and photos.

Flood damage takes you by surprise, but SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville has the certified staff to manage all aspects of recovery. Call us immediately after the water rushes in at (952) 846-4400 to schedule an assessment.

Inadequate Backflow Prevention Measures Could Cause Water Damage In Your Farmington Residence

9/28/2020 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Can Extract Water and Usually Restore Your Home to Its Pre-loss Condition "Like it never even happened."

While you might be aware that you appliances could create damaging disasters in your Farmington residence, you might not be aware that some of these occurrences do not get attributed to age or general malfunction. Sometimes there are circumstances which cause unforeseen pressure to the appliances themselves, forcing them to rupture or break at their weakest components along the water supply line.

Backflow preventers might be commonplace in the construction of homes, but this does not guarantee that your home has one or that it functions as it should. These devices keep pressure from outside sources from finding their way into the service line supplying your house and rupturing your plumbing. Without warning, an influx of pressure (often attributed to events like main line breaks and the demand from a fire hydrant elsewhere on the line) causes a sharp difference between supply and demand, forcing highly pressurized backflow into your Farmington home and causing water damage.

Our SERVPRO professionals can quickly determine the full extent of this damage, and shut off the supply of water coming into your home that has ruptured weak points in water-fed appliances like your water heater or washing machine. The next step is to address the best methods of cleaning up the mess and restoring the damage. This process begins with extraction if the water damage is severe enough to warrant the use of pumps and wet-vacs.

Drying is the next step to follow the extraction, and this process typically utilizes both industrial strength air movers and dehumidification equipment. These tools pull moisture from the environment and affected surfaces, ideally to restore the damage that exists and to prevent worse conditions like mold growth. Structural damage can get assessed at this point by our SERVPRO technicians to determine if portions of these materials require replacement.

Water damage does not have to be a dramatic event for your house, but it can leave you wondering how to fix the damage and get things back to the way they used to be. When situations are out of your control, like a backflow incident on your waterline, damage can mount up in a hurry.

Trust SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville to help you clean up the mess and restore your home. Give us a call anytime you need us at (952) 846-4400.

Water Removal Needs For Your Farmington Home Following A Main Line Break

12/30/2019 (Permalink)

Significant water incidents which require extraction services and restoration in your Farmington home can happen with little warning. While many might attribute this kind of situation to flooding or some other natural disaster, the truth is, something as simple as a water break on the main line running near your property could leave you with much water to contend with in your home. 

Many homeowners do not think about the water line intended to distribute potable water throughout the community. This buried line is just a connection between a water treatment facility and your residence, though when there is a break on this line, it could cause significant problems with homes near the issue. 

The first problem that is possible would be a backflow incident from backpressure forcing through your service lines and the plumbing cant keep up. 

Another possibility could be due to flood-like incidents from the main line outside causing water to flood through the foundation.

After the source has been stopped our SERVPRO technicians respond quickly to help mitigate the damages your residence might experience. Give SERVPRO of Burnsville/Lakeville a call today at (952) 846-4400.

Water Damage Affects Floors in Farmington Residences, Creating Unnecessary Hazards in the Home

6/5/2018 (Permalink)

Fans like this can be used to dry the remaining water after pumps and extraction wands are used.

SERVPRO can help with water damaged flooring

The lowest section of a room in any Farmington home, the floor, receives the majority of wear and tear under normal conditions. When water seeps through your house's exterior because of misaligned siding, clogged gutters, or other such problems, your floors often pay the price.

A home in Farmington can suffer water damage in many ways, including stained ceilings and deteriorated, crumbling walls under leaky windows. Flooring under affected windows and doorways can also suffer the effects of rainwater. Warping, curling, and splintered pieces, as well as dry-rotted carpeting, can indicate long-term water damage took place. While this may not seem as if it would cause problems, over time, it can eventually create weak spots in floors, even if the underlay consists of a concrete slab.

When the floor in your home suffers from water damage, safety can become a concern. Toddlers already walk quite unsteadily, as do many younger children. A floor full of uneven boards can not only cause falls, but injuries become much more likely to happen. Guests visiting can create embarrassing situations for homeowners, as well as possible medical costs and even lawsuits. Preventable accidents involving others in your home can give insurance companies reason to increase rates.

When water damaged floors have carpeting, the fibers backing the carpet can become dry rotted and start fraying. This fraying worsens every time you use your vacuum cleaner. However, allowing dirt to pile up can lead to the same problems. Wooden underlay, including particle board sheets, can become significantly impacted by water, swelling and even falling apart as the glue disintegrates. SERVPRO technicians can help mitigate the problem area before these adverse situations escalate.

Flooring in kitchens and bathrooms that include tile or linoleum can still experience problems. These surfaces seem hardier than other flooring types, but they can still succumb to water. Grout and other sealants can crumble away when exposed to water for too long, and linoleum can bubble in areas where seams allow water to penetrate underneath. Repairing such issues before increased damages happen saves money because repairs remain smaller and more manageable, as well as the presence of a more significant amount of as-of-yet undamaged materials.

SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville can help your family whenever water damage happens by stopping it from progressing and mitigating any existing problems. We want to return your home's floors to a safe condition like it was before. Call us at (952) 846-4400, at any hour of the day or night. We work within Orchard Garden and Deer Park, also, as well as surrounding areas.

Click here to learn about the history of Farmington, MN.

Inadequate Backflow Prevention Measures Could Cause Water Damage In Your Farmington Residence

4/13/2018 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Can Extract Water and Usually Restore Your Home to Its Pre-loss Condition "Like it never even happened."

While you might be aware that you appliances could create damaging disasters in your Farmington residence, you might not be aware that some of these occurrences do not get attributed to age or general malfunction. Sometimes there are circumstances which cause unforeseen pressure to the appliances themselves, forcing them to rupture or break at their weakest components along the water supply line.

Backflow preventers might be commonplace in the construction of homes, but this does not guarantee that your home has one or that it functions as it should. These devices keep pressure from outside sources from finding their way into the service line supplying your house and rupturing your plumbing. Without warning, an influx of pressure (often attributed to events like main line breaks and the demand from a fire hydrant elsewhere on the line) causes a sharp difference between supply and demand, forcing highly pressurized backflow into your Farmington home and causing water damage.

Our SERVPRO professionals can quickly determine the full extent of this damage, and shut off the supply of water coming into your home that has ruptured weak points in water-fed appliances like your water heater or washing machine. The next step is to address the best methods of cleaning up the mess and restoring the damage. This process begins with extraction if the water damage is severe enough to warrant the use of pumps and wet-vacs.

Drying is the next step to follow the extraction, and this process typically utilizes both industrial strength air movers and dehumidification equipment. These tools pull moisture from the environment and affected surfaces, ideally to restore the damage that exists and to prevent worse conditions like mold growth. Structural damage can get assessed at this point by our SERVPRO technicians to determine if portions of these materials require replacement.

Water damage does not have to be a dramatic event for your house, but it can leave you wondering how to fix the damage and get things back to the way they used to be. When situations are out of your control, like a backflow incident on your waterline, damage can mount up in a hurry.

Trust SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville to help you clean up the mess and restore your home. Give us a call anytime you need us at (952) 846-4400.

Burnsville Water Damage Has Odor Effects

7/2/2017 (Permalink)

Sewage Backup in Burnsville Uses SERVPRO for Water Extraction and Deodorization

After Removal of the Water, Odor Control Is Often Needed to Finish the Restoration

Removing water with pumps and extractors is the lion’s share of the work with lowering humidity taking most of the remaining time. Even when the personal and structural property is dry to normal levels, there is still the issue of odors.

Although this is usually a minor point, odors left untreated, result in a permanent loss just like any other aspect of water damage in a Burnsville home. When it comes to this final step, SERVPRO is ready with a series of methods designed to handle whatever is in the air or the couch.

The Injection Method works well on spots in the carpet or on upholstered furniture. Technicians use a needle with either a syringe or a pump to inject small amounts of a deodorant chemical directly in the contamination. It is especially effective for removing pet odors.

Direct Spraying utilizes a hand pump or a powered sprayer on larger areas. It is the method we use most when cleaning up after a water disaster. Since this approach soaks the surface, we prefer using it where discoloration of the material is unlikely or is not a concern to the homeowner.

Wet Fogging dispenses a deodorizing agent using a ULV or ultra-low volume fogger. This machine generates tiny particles that penetrate most areas where there is an odor particle. The deodorant particles bind with the odors and neutralize them. Technicians carefully watch the surface they are ‘fogging’ to make certain they do not oversaturate the surface and cause secondary damage.

Our SERVPRO IICRC certified technicians also utilize a Dry Fogging method, dispensing deodorants with a device that forces the chemical through a heating coil. It vaporizes the solution, so it penetrates further into an affected item. Dry Fogging is usually a method used where there are smoke odors, but it is effective on water-borne odors that resist other methods of cleaning.

To augment these methods, technicians use air scrubbers that remove airborne odors by forcing them through special HEPA filters. We also place venting box fans at entry and exit points to bring in cleaner, outside air and force the inside odors out of the home.

Removing water-borne odors from your home is a complicated process, but SERVPRO of Burnsville / Lakeville is here to help our fellow Minnesotans return to their homes as quickly as possible.  If you need us, call today at (952) 846-4400 to get started.

Learn more about Burnsville here.