Protecting Your Home: Tips to Prevent Water Damage While on Vacation

7/13/2023 (Permalink)

Protect your property while your away on vacation.

Planning a vacation is an exciting time, but it's important not to overlook the safety and well-being of your home while you're away. Water damage can be a costly and disruptive issue that can occur in your absence. To ensure peace of mind during your vacation, it's crucial to take preventive measures to protect your home from potential water damage. In this blog post, we will provide you with practical tips to help prevent water damage while you're on vacation, allowing you to relax and enjoy your trip without worrying about the safety of your property.

Inspect and Repair Plumbing

Before leaving for vacation, inspect your plumbing system for any leaks, drips, or signs of damage. Repair or replace any faulty components, such as faucets, valves, or pipes. It's advisable to hire a professional plumber to conduct a thorough inspection and address any issues that may increase the risk of water damage.

Shut Off the Main Water Supply

One of the most effective ways to prevent water damage is to shut off the main water supply to your home. Locate the main shut-off valve and turn it off before leaving for vacation. This will cut off the water supply to your entire home, minimizing the risk of leaks or burst pipes while you're away.

Drain and Insulate Pipes

In colder climates, freezing temperatures can cause pipes to burst. To prevent this, drain and insulate exposed pipes in unheated areas such as basements, crawl spaces, or attics. Use pipe insulation sleeves or wrapping to protect pipes from freezing. Additionally, open cabinet doors under sinks to allow warm air to circulate around the pipes.

Check and Clean Gutters and Downspouts

Ensure that your gutters and downspouts are clear of debris before your vacation. This will prevent water from backing up and overflowing, which can lead to water damage around your home's foundation. Clean out any leaves, twigs, or other obstructions and ensure that water can flow freely through the gutters and downspouts.

Test Sump Pump and Backup Systems

If your home has a sump pump or other water drainage systems, test them before leaving for vacation. Ensure that they are in proper working condition and have a backup power source in case of a power outage. This will help prevent basement flooding during heavy rains or sudden water accumulation.

Set Up Leak Detection Devices

Consider installing leak detection devices in areas prone to water damage, such as the basement, laundry room, or near appliances like the dishwasher and water heater. These devices can detect leaks or excessive moisture and alert you through a smartphone app, allowing you to take action even when you're away from home.

Enlist the Help of a Trusted Neighbor or Friend

Ask a trusted neighbor, friend, or family member to check on your home periodically while you're on vacation. Provide them with your contact information and instructions on what to do in case of an emergency. They can keep an eye out for any signs of water damage and address issues promptly on your behalf.

Consider Smart Home Technology

Investing in smart home technology can provide additional protection and peace of mind while you're away. Smart water leak detectors, smart thermostats, and security systems can help monitor your home remotely and send alerts in case of water leaks or unexpected environmental changes.

Preventing water damage while you're on vacation requires careful preparation and proactive measures. By inspecting and repairing your plumbing, shutting off the main water supply, draining and insulating pipes, cleaning gutters, testing sump pumps, setting up leak detection devices, enlisting the help of a trusted neighbor, and considering smart home technology, you can significantly reduce the risk of water damage and enjoy your vacation with peace of mind. Remember, a little prevention can go a long way in safeguarding your home and belongings from potential water-related disasters.

How much time do I have to File a Water Claim?

3/10/2023 (Permalink)

Filing an insurance claim for your residential water damage can help return your home back to pre loss conditions.

Water damage can be devastating. It's a stressful time for everyone involved, including you and your insurance company. With the right information and support, however, you can get through this quickly and easily. Here are some tips to help recover water damage and claim to get the most from your insurance claim.

1. Call in the experts

At the first sign of damage give the experts at SERVPRO a call. Our qualified technicians respond to the call immediately to begin assessing your damages. They will begin by taking photos of affected areas so that they can be used as evidence later on when filing a claim with insurance companies. Next they will begin removing standing water from flooring and hard surfaces using portable extraction units that produce powerful suction forces capable of pulling up even heavy amounts of moisture within minutes.

2. Document the damages

Document the damages Once you have a good idea of what was damaged, it's time to document and photograph the damage. You'll want to take multiple pictures from different angles so that you can show how much of your stuff was affected by water. Keep track of what was damaged, including receipts for any cleaning or repairs (if possible). You may also want to write down where each item came from and its value in case there are any disputes down the line about coverage limits or replacement costs. Lastly, keep a list of all contact information for anyone who has been helping out with the process.

3. Cause of your water loss

Once you have determined the cause of loss, its time to file a claim with your insurance company. There are many ways that water can get into your home, pipes may burst from age or pressure and plumbing fixtures (such as sinks) may leak due to poor installation or damage. Rainwater can seep through cracks in roofs or walls after heavy rain fall.

To determine whether or not filing an insurance claim is right for you, take some time first by asking yourself these questions: How much time do I have before things start getting worse? What type of coverage do I have?

Call the Professionals

If you have water damage at your home or business, call SERVPRO 24/7. When you call us after a flooding event, we will send over a professional technician who will assess how much work needs to be done onsite before beginning any cleanup process. Our team has advanced equipment and techniques to extract all standing water from your property. 

5 Steps to Take After Finding Water Damage in Your Home

12/23/2022 (Permalink)

If you have water damage in your Yucaipa, CA home call your local SERVPRO.

5 Steps to Take After Finding Water Damage in Your Home

Water damage is an unfortunate reality in many homes. It can happen through a number of sources, such as a broken pipe in the wall or roof or even from flooding or heavy rains. If you've found water damage in your home, it's important that you act quickly to prevent further damage and minimize the long-term cost of restoring your house to its former condition.

1. Stop the Water

As soon as you notice water damage, you should immediately shut off the water supply to your home. This will prevent further damage and make it easier to clean up after the flood has been contained.

If you aren't sure how to shut off the water supply in your house, contact SERVPRO of South Redlands/Yucaipa to help you with this step. 

If you can't find where the leak is coming from (and this is especially true if it's happening in an area that isn't visible), call a professional! They'll have equipment that can detect even tiny leaks from pipes that weren't visible before they got wet.

2. Call Your Insurance Company

Call your insurance company as soon as you notice water damage in your home. You may need to file a claim and submit the necessary paperwork, which will be handled by your insurance company. If you do not file a claim, you could be liable for the damages if it turns out that there was a leaky pipe or faucet in your home.

Your insurance company will guide you through the process of filing an insurance claim and help mitigate any costs incurred from repairing or replacing damaged property items such as carpeting, walls, countertops, and appliances.

3. Protect Yourself and Your Family

Water damage can be devastating to your home and family. Here are some tips on how to protect your family after a water damage event:

First, turn off the power. If you have any appliances that use electricity, such as your dishwasher or washing machine, be sure to turn them off at the wall. Next, wear protective gear. Water damage can cause harmful mold to grow on your walls and floors if it's left untreated. To prevent this, wear a mask and gloves when cleaning up the mess. Protect your valuables by moving them out of the affected area and into a clean spot in your home. Don’t disturb visible mold until you know what kind of mold it is! If you’re not sure whether or not it’s harmful, check with an expert before touching it or removing it from your home.

4. Assess the Damage

Assessing the damage is the next step in determining how to proceed with repairs. The following are some general guidelines for assessing damages:

• Determine if there is standing water or a full-scale flood
• Check for mold growth and mildew
• Check for structural damage such as cracked drywall or floors buckling upwards

5. Call a Professional Water Damage Restoration Company

After you have found the source of water damage in your home, it is time to call a professional water damage restoration company. The main reason that you should call a professional to handle this kind of job is because they have the equipment and training necessary to do the job right. They can also get your home dried out much faster than you could do it yourself, and this will help prevent mold from forming.

A professional company will be able to help with insurance claims as well.

If you’ve found water damage in your Yucaipa, CA home, don’t panic! With these five steps, you can take care of the problem and prevent further damage. Following them will make the process easier for everyone involved. Our SERVPRO team is always on standby and ready to assist you with your water mitigation and restoration needs!

How Do You Tell if Your Shower is Leaking?

11/10/2022 (Permalink)

If you have any concerns about your shower at all, or even just want some peace of mind, give Our SERVPRO of South Redlands/Yucaipa team a call!

How Do You Tell if Your Shower is Leaking?

If you're a homeowner, you've might have spent a good amount of time inspecting the home's plumbing. But it's important to know that your shower is also at risk for water damage and leaks. As with any kind of plumbing work, there are warning signs that indicate you need to act immediately. In this post, we'll go over how to tell if your shower is leaking and what steps to take if it is!

Things to look for in a leaking shower

To determine if your shower is leaking, you'll need to look for some telltale signs. First, look for water damage around the base of the walls and ceiling of your bathroom. If there's a substantial amount of mold or mildew, that could be an indication that there's a leak somewhere nearby. Next, check for damp spots on the ceiling—this can mean that water is coming through from above.

If you notice cracks in your wall or flooring, this may indicate that something has shifted internally due to excess moisture in your home. Mold isn't just unsightly; it can also cause a ton of structural damage.

How to inspect a shower pan

To check whether your shower is leaking, you’ll want to inspect it from above and below.

If you can see any evidence of water damage around the drain or elsewhere on the floor, then there’s a good chance that your shower is leaking. This type of damage often looks like discoloration in tiles or grout. Check for mold or mildew, as well and stains on walls that may indicate that there was some leakage. Inspect caulking around your drain trap (the U-shaped piece that connects your drainpipe to your waste pipe) and make sure it hasn't started to wear away. If you see anything like this in your bathroom, contact a plumber immediately before more serious damage occurs!

Also, make sure that all pipes leading into and out of the bathtub are intact and connected properly. If any are loose or disconnected, then there may be a leak somewhere along those lines as well!

Inspecting a shower base from below

To do this, remove the pan and inspect it thoroughly. Look for any cracks or discolorations in the concrete floor and make sure there's no mold growing anywhere. Check around where water drains out of your tub as well to see if anything looks abnormal.

Now that you know how to spot a leak and the warning signs of water damage, what can you do to avoid it? The best way is to keep an eye on your shower. If something looks off or unusual, there’s probably a problem with it—and knowing this early could save you from thousands of dollars in damages later down the road. If you have any concerns about your shower at all, or even just want some peace of mind, give Our SERVPRO of South Redlands/Yucaipa team a call!

4 Steps To Take After a Pipe Bursts

7/26/2022 (Permalink)

Find the source of the problem in this case it was a pipe break.

Steps To Minimize Water Damage In Your Home

After a long day, you want to go back to your Mentone, CA, home and relax. If you open the door and are greeted with a flood from bursting pipes, immediate action needs to be taken. The longer the water sits, the more water damage your home and its belongings will incur. Below are four steps to help minimize the damage and get back to “Like it never even happened.”

1. Stop the Water
The sooner you find the source of the problem and stop it, the better. If the cause is a plumbing issue, turn off the main shutoff valve.

2. File a Claim
When faced with bursting pipes, it means potentially hundreds of gallons of water unleashed into your home. Since this situation is likely accidental, it’s important to immediately file a claim. Before the adjuster comes, be sure to document all the damage via photos and videos to help ensure a smoother process.

3. Start Extracting Water

While water may look like it is just sitting there, it is slowly spreading by wicking up walls and being absorbed into flooring. Extracting the water is the essential first step to avoiding bigger problems down the road, such as mold growth.

4. Call the Professionals

Along with calling a plumber to fix a broken pipe, this type of situation is often best left to a water damage restoration specialist. A certified provider will not only have the expertise and know-how to assess the damage but all the latest tools and techniques to handle every aspect of the cleanup, from industrial-grade fans for drying out the home to cleaning services to restore damaged belongings and structural components. As industry experts, the right help will also take the necessary measures to prevent future damage from happening.

Dealing with bursting pipes is an overwhelming mess. Quickly responding to the situation and following the above steps may help make it more manageable.

3 Flaws to Look for When Inspecting Your Home's Bathtub

4/18/2022 (Permalink)

If you have a shower pan leak, the leaked water will be added to your bill.

Three Flaws To Look For When Inspecting Your Bathtub At Home

Has your home in Redlands, CA, been having issues with the shower pan or tub? Even if not, it's best to perform regular inspections to prevent a bathtub leak or other problems. There are a few flaws that indicate bigger issues.

1. Water Stains

This one is an obvious but serious issue. If you see water stains anywhere near your bathtub, it's best to check it out. Be thorough and inspect the ceilings, floors, and walls both in your bathroom and in the adjacent rooms or hallways. This includes checking any rooms below and the surrounding carpets or rugs. If you spot any damages, you have a bathtub leak that must be taken care of as soon as possible. Call in a water damage and cleanup professional to give an estimate on the repair cost.

2. Loose Tiles

Shower tiles are great for a number of reasons. It looks nice, provides a barrier to water, and is a great indicator of other issues. If water happens to bypass the grout in the tiles or leak from the faucet, the tiles shift and sometimes crack. This happens because the water breaks the bond between the tile glue and the supporting wall. If you see this, you know for certain that you have a water leak.

3. High Water Bill

In some cases, the culprit of a high water bill isn't necessarily all those long, hot winter showers you've been taking. If you have a shower pan leak, the escaping water is charged to your bill. Of course, this is true of a leak anywhere in your home, so it's best to look for the other indicators to help narrow it down. To help keep track of your usage, keep an eye on your water meter and log the amounts in your phone or on a dedicated sticky note.

With some knowledge and the reassurance of a professional at your side, a bathtub leak is a worry of the past.

How To Prepare for an Adjuster’s Visit

2/7/2022 (Permalink)

Contact disaster mitigation services and building contractors to provide official estimates for the cost of cleaning up and restoring your home.

How To Prepare For A Visit From A Claims Adjuster

If you’re filing an insurance claim for damage to your home, your insurance company will require that a home adjuster, who is professionally trained to assess damage for insurance claims, review the domicile. While insurance companies are happy to send adjusters that work for them, you can also hire your own public adjuster in Redlands, CA, to do the assessment.

Either way, your claim will be most successful if you prepare for the adjuster’s visit in advance. In general, the more information and evidence of damage you can provide to the adjuster, the more likely your insurance company is to pay for damages. Follow these basic steps to get ready for an adjuster’s visit.

1. Make a Visual Record of All Damage

Take photographs or videos of all the damage in your home. This includes damage to possessions like electronics, furniture and carpets as well as structural damage to walls, floors, sheds and swimming pools. This provides irrefutable evidence of the damage. Make sure you don’t throw anything away or make any permanent repairs until after the adjuster’s visit.

2. Take a Complete Inventory of Damaged Items

At the least you’ll need to make a list of everything that was damaged. Information should include the make and model, the item's age and the condition it was in before it was damaged. If you have purchase receipts you should gather these together and give them to the home adjuster.

3. Get Estimates for Clean-Up and Repairs

Contact disaster mitigation services and building contractors in Redlands, CA, to provide official estimates for the cost of cleaning up and restoring your home. Give these estimates to the adjuster along with the inventory and visual record of damages. By providing evidence for how much everything will cost, you’re making it clear to your insurance company what needs to be paid for.

Before a home adjuster comes to assess damage to your home, make sure you have made detailed records of the damage. This means you can point it out to the adjuster and provide documentation of what everything is worth and how much it will cost to repair or replace.

3 Tips for Protecting Your Home’s Water Pipes During Cold Weather

1/21/2022 (Permalink)

If you plan to leave your home overnight allow warm water faucet to drip slightly.

Protect Your Property When Cold Weather Strikes

When frigid temperatures arrive, they can affect your Mentone, CA, home in many ways. However, one way they can be extremely damaging is when they cause frozen pipes both inside and outside. When water pipes become frozen, they can burst without warning and cause serious flooding that can ruin walls and flooring. Fortunately, there are several ways you can prevent this issue and safeguard your property when cold weather strikes.

1. Search for Air Leaks

When cold air is allowed to seep into your home, it can contribute to pipe freeze and flooding when pipes become cold enough to burst. You can reduce the risk by searching for air leaks inside your home and sealing them with fiber insulation or caulk. Air leaks can be commonly found around vents, loose electrical plating and near joists in unfinished areas, such as utility or mud rooms. If you find air leaks, take the opportunity to check any nearby pipes for signs of wear or damage.

2. Expose Hidden Pipes to Warm Air

Pipes hidden under cabinets, such as those in your kitchen and bathroom, can be more prone to freezing because they are rarely exposed to warm air. Opening your cabinets during freezing temperatures can prevent this and a pipe burst that could result in a serious flood. If you plan to leave your home overnight or for an extended winter holiday, leave the cabinet doors open and allow the warm water faucet to drip slightly, which can prevent these pipes from freezing over.

3. Winterize Your Pipes Before Cold Weather Hits

Taking time to winterize your home during the fall can lower the risk of frozen pipes later on. Have a flood damage and water removal company come in to inspect your water lines and ask technicians advice about steps you can take to protect your pipes now.

Frozen pipes can cause serious water damage to your Mentone, CA, home. Knowing how to prevent this problem could go a long way in helping you save the time and money it takes to make repairs in the aftermath.