>> You know, in our experience after floods,
many times people -- the flood waters will
recede and they'll just kind of
clean and they think that they can get by
without tearing into the walls, without removing
the drywall.
And then a few
months later, guess what?
Odors; mold growing in the walls; decay; and
rotten wood structure.
There are many potential
hazards associated with a flooding event.
Being aware of all of those are what's so
important before you tackle
restoring the home.
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>> After a flood, even though you feel very
desperate to quickly get back in your home
and you want to restore your life,
it can be very, very difficult to find a qualified
contractor.
It is so important to not delay the cleanup
process.
As soon as it is safe to return into the home,
begin right away.
Just say I'm in the capacity you have in your
own
household, do you have skills that can be
used?
Do you have a health condition where that
would make it to where you
should not be doing the cleanup and restoration
work?
There are many potential hazards associated
with a flooding event.
And if that was combined with wind or any
other kind of hazard, that adds to it.
Essentially flood water is considered
contaminated black water.
It probably has sewage in it; it may have
chemicals, fuels, pesticides -- a variety
of things
that can be dangerous on contact.
For the biological contaminant, such as from
sewage and kinds of exposures, clean first
and then disinfect.
But of course, you need to wear proper protection
to avoid skin contact and to minimize exposure
--
both to the disinfectant, as well as to the
contaminant.
Where flooding occurs, moisture wicks up drywall,
and wood,
and any porous material.
In about two or three days of wetness, you
are likely to have mold.
Mold is a hazard in high
exposure for just about anybody.
But it's especially hazardous to people with
asthma, allergies, other respiratory
conditions, or a suppressed immune system.
So these folks should not go anywhere near
a moldy home.
I'm going to outline
ten steps to a safe and effective do-it-yourself
mold cleanup: One is wear protective clothing,
including an N95 or
better respirator; two, isolate the moldy
area from clean areas and ventilate to the
outdoors with a fan in the window;
three, remove porous moldy materials because
you cannot properly clean them; four, clean
and disinfect if needed for
rising contaminated flood water; five, consider
applying a borate treatment to exposed wood
-- that will help deter
decay and as well as mold as well; six, flush
the air to get all these mold spores out of
the house as much as possible;
seven, speed the drying process with humidifiers,
heating and cooling systems -- get the air
dry to hasten the drying
of all the materials; eight, remain on mold
alert -- be alert to the scent and do visual
inspections frequently to find
any new growth of mold and deal with it promptly;
nine, do not restore the walls and the floors
or anything that's been
wet until it is really dry or you could have
hidden problems later; and ten, consider restoring
your home with flood-resistant
or flood-hardy materials instead of the same
kinds of materials that you had to discard
to begin with.
Carbon monoxide
occurs from burning any fuel.
And most people know that it is a deadly,
odorless gas that you cannot detect.
You may not
have any sign of it, other than the symptoms
that can occur.
And so high level carbon monoxide, of course,
is deadly.
But low level can create flu-like symptoms
where you have headaches and you just feel
lousy but then when you leave the
home, you feel better.
In that case, ventilate.
But be alert to the potential for the damage
that could have occurred to
your heating system.
Radon is a radioactive gas that comes from
the soil and it can build up in a home.
So it's not caused
by a natural hazard or damage to your home
but the restoration process.
That's an opportunity at that point to install
a
radon mitigation system while you're in the
process of putting in new materials.
And so it can reduce the total cost of
doing that at another time.
Asbestos is a material that, when some of
the fibers of it become airborne, it can get
into
lungs and long-term exposure to it can cause
lung cancer and other serious lung diseases.
Some older homes could have some
products containing asbestos including, you
know, the flooring which may have been flooded.
If the flooring is in good
condition, leave it alone.
If you can, leave it there and try to just
clean and dry.
And you can cover it with a new material.
If the asbestos is damaged, however, then
that is when you may need to hire a professional.
If you don't know whether or
not you have asbestos, the asbestos abatement
professionals can do the inspection or the
testing to determine that.
Any time a home has been damaged that is pre-1978,
unless you know there's no lead-based paint
in it by a qualified
inspector, assume that it's there.
Even very, very tiny amounts of lead ingestion
by a child from hand to mouth or by
breathing in from airborne dust can cause
irreversible damage to a child's developing
brain; it can damage hearing;
it can cause behavior disorders; reduce mental
abilities.
It is a serious concern everyone should always
keep in mind.
Lead can also create problems for adults,
particularly those with high blood pressure.
And then high exposure can damage
just about every organ.
So what that boils down to is anytime you
have a home that is damaged that could have
lead-based
paint, assume that there is lead-based paint
dust and use lead-safe work practices in the
cleanup process.
Of course,
wear protective gear and respirators.
But also, that means any contractor you hire
should be a lead-certified renovator.
That means that they have attended and completed
an EPA course, and they're registered as knowing
how to do restoration;
renovation; painting; anything that could
disturb lead-based paint.
Keep your family safe.
If a homeowner has flood
insurance, that's going to be the number one
resource.
But if they don't, then that's when disaster
programs and disaster
assistance programs often come into play.
But checking with the disaster recovery center
in the community that
generally is set up by FEMA is a good first
one-stop shop to find out what the local resources
are.
Take the time to
evaluate the credentials and the experience
of contractors.
Check with your state to make sure that they
are licensed,
make sure they have insurance.
And if your home is older than 1978, you really
should hire only lead-certified renovators
who have had special training to make sure
that they don't create a bigger hazard through
the renovation process.
There are eight principles to keep in mind
and to try to achieve to have a truly healthy
home now and in the future:
Keep it dry; clean; pest-free; safe; contaminant-free;
well-ventilated; well-maintained; and thermally-controlled.
Do more than just restore -- make your home
better.
It's also a great opportunity to improve the
energy efficiency of your home.
Make your home more resistant or more resilient
to natural hazards.
Keep your family safe.
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