Manteca: Business Flood Situations Are Not Just From Weather

4/11/2018 (Permalink)

The rain was needed, but it surprised many of them. Fortunately, weather-related floods are rare in this part of California. What is not so rare for area businesses is when the water comes in from damaged plumbing.

Commercial water damage surprises Manteca business owners every time it happens. Everyone knows that the sprinkler system is there to stop fire damage, but no one understands the damage that happens when it engages. Fortunately, SERVPRO has the experience, training, and equipment to restore an office or a kitchen back to their original state.

Sprinklers soak everything, that is what they are supposed to do to prevent the spread of fire. Paper products, like documents, cardboard storage boxes, and books quickly turn to a pulpy mush and must be thrown out. If the business owner needs to keep original contracts, we can preserve the legibility by can spreading them out on a dry surface. We use air movers to blow warm, dry air over the paper gently and while we cannot return the items to their original condition or look, we can sometimes preserve the image

The item that usually catches the most damage next is the carpet. SERVPRO technicians use extraction wands to draw out water without damaging the nape of the carpet. If there is a carpet pad, we remove and dispose of it. Pads quickly deteriorate when they become wet, and they are cheaper to replace rather than attempt to restore. Once we remove the water, crew members use the air movers again to force warm, dry air across the surface to dry it out while preventing further damage.

In a commercial kitchen, sprinklers do not usually cause much damage to the equipment. Here, our technicians concentrate on removing water from inside equipment like fryers to safely use them again. They also dry out behind and under everything to prevent mold growth and to make the room safe to walk in again.

To accomplish this, we set up fans at exits to blow the damp air out of the kitchen as we use long-handled squeegees to push water across the floor and out of the building. Once we have the majority of the water out, we set up air movers to finish drying the floors so we can return the kitchen to the owner as soon and safely as possible.

Restoring businesses to a safe, dry condition is not something you can do with a mop and a water-vac.