Cleaning & Restoration, in plain English.
Water, fire, smoke and mold, and what restoration actually does.
The lingo.
- Air mover and dehumidifier
- The fans and dehumidifiers left running for days after a water loss. Moisture readings, not the calendar, decide when they come out.
- Biohazard cleanup
- Cleaning after sewage, trauma or hoarding, with protective gear, disinfection and regulated disposal.
- Class of water loss
- How much of the room and its materials are wet, Class 1 (least) to Class 4 (deeply bound in materials). Sets the drying equipment and time.
- Containment
- Plastic barriers and negative air pressure that keep mold spores or smoke soot from spreading to the rest of the house during the work.
- Contents pack-out
- Moving furnishings and belongings out to be cleaned and stored while the house is restored.
- Deep clean
- A top-to-bottom cleaning beyond a regular service: inside appliances, baseboards, fixtures, windows. Common before a move or after construction.
- Extraction
- Pulling standing water out with pumps and vacuums before drying begins.
- HEPA
- High-efficiency particulate air filtration, used in vacuums and air scrubbers to capture mold spores, soot and fine dust.
- IICRC
- The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification, whose standards (S500 water, S520 mold) define how restoration is done. Ask whether the technicians are certified.
- Mitigation
- The emergency work that stops damage from getting worse: extraction, drying, board-up, tarp. It comes before repairs, and insurers expect you to start it promptly.
- Moisture mapping
- Meter readings marked on a floor plan to show what is wet and to prove when it is dry.
- Mold remediation
- Containing the area, removing moldy materials, cleaning and drying the rest. Anything over about 10 square feet is beyond a DIY job; the moisture source has to be fixed or it returns.
- Soot and smoke odor
- Fire residue that keeps smelling until surfaces are cleaned or sealed and the air is treated. Thermal fogging, ozone and hydroxyl generators are the usual tools.
- Water damage category
- Category 1 is clean water (a supply line), Category 2 is gray water (a washer or dishwasher), Category 3 is black water (sewage, flood). The category decides what can be dried and what must be removed.
- Xactimate
- The estimating software most insurers and restoration contractors use, so line items and prices line up with the claim.
Guides.
- The first 24 hours after water, fire or mold
What to do right away, what your insurer expects and what a restoration Pro actually does.
- Paying for the work: deposits, draws and financing
How much to pay up front, when progress payments are fair and what to watch in a financing offer.
- Hiring a Pro: five questions before you sign
License, insurance, references, a written scope, and who is actually showing up.
- What a written warranty should say
Workmanship, materials and the difference between them. What to ask for and how to make a claim.
- How to read a contractor's estimate
Compare scopes, not prices. What every line on a good estimate means and the questions to ask before you sign.
Reading list.
Articles from around the internet that our Pros trust. They open on the source's site.
- IICRC · Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification
The standards body for water, fire and mold restoration, with a directory of certified firms.
- Mold · U.S. EPA
Mold basics, cleanup guidance and when to bring in a professional.
- Prepare for disasters · Ready.gov (FEMA)
Preparing for floods, storms and fires, and the first steps after one.
Articles from HomeMaxx.
All articlesStorm season: the week before, the day of and the day after
Hurricanes, derechos and hail all give some warning. What to do with it, how to document the house, and what to do when the storm chasers knock.
3 min readSafetyDryer vents, extension cords and space heaters: the three fire starters in most homes
Most house fires are not electrical faults inside the walls. They start with three ordinary things that get used wrong. Here is what wrong looks like.
3 min readMaintenanceHumidity, mold and the musty basement
Mold does not need a leak. It needs air over 60 percent humidity and a cool surface, and every basement in summer has both. What the number should be, how to get it there and when a musty smell is a bigger problem.
3 min readSeasonsHurricane season: the house, the plan and the paperwork
June first is the start, and the preparation that matters is done by then, not the week a storm is named. The roof, the openings, the water, the paper and the thirty-day rule on flood insurance.
3 min readSafetyWildfire smoke and the house: keeping the air inside clean
Smoke from a fire hundreds of miles away now reaches most of the country some summer weeks. How to seal up, filter and clear the air inside, and what the numbers on a filter mean.
3 min readMaintenanceSmall leaks, big bills: finding water where it should not be
The leak that ruins a house is rarely a burst pipe. It is a drip nobody noticed for a year. Eight places to look, once a season, and what each one is telling you.
3 min readMaintenanceDrainage and grading: the yard's job is to move water away
Wet basements, cracked foundations and soggy lawns usually trace back to the same thing: the ground slopes the wrong way. What to look for after a spring rain, and the fixes from cheapest to most.
3 min readMaintenanceGutters: the cheapest maintenance that saves the most
A clogged gutter is behind more foundation cracks, rotten fascia and wet basements than any other single thing. Twice a year, and here is how.
2 min readSeasonsFrozen pipes: keeping them from freezing, and what to do when one does
A pipe does not burst when it freezes. It bursts when it thaws, or when the ice blocks the line and the pressure builds behind it. Which pipes are at risk, how to protect them and the right way to thaw one.
3 min readSeasonsIce dams: why the ceiling leaks in February, and what actually fixes it
The icicles are the symptom. The cause is warm air in the attic, and the fix is insulation and ventilation, not a new roof. How ice dams form, how to stop one, and how to stop the next.
3 min readFrom the Pros.
Written by the people who do this work every day, in your area.
The first posts from Cleaning & Restoration Pros are on their way.
Questions from homeowners.
Ask the ProsNo questions yet for Cleaning & Restoration. Yours would be the first, and a Pro will answer it.