Classification of Water Damage in your Home

12/4/2020 (Permalink)

In this post, we will be explaining some of the basics of water damage and how it can affect your home and health. Water damage is the leading culprit when it comes to property damage and restoration service needs.

Now, this actually surprises a lot of folks, when they hear water damage they usually imagine a flood from a nearby river, a natural disaster, etc. While events as such do occur, there are more common ways for water damage to affect your home, including:

• appliance leaks from your fridge, ice machine, washing machines, etc.
• toilet overflows
• sinks and bath/shower overflows or left running without attendance
• broken/leaky water pipes within walls and ceilings
• drainage issues around the property
• roof leaks and compromised exterior
• rain/wind storms

As you can see, water damage can originate from either internal or external sources and once it gets into your home it is important to know what kind of water you are dealing with.

What do we mean by what kind of water? Well in the restoration industry we recognize water in THREE different categories:

• CATEGORY 1 – Also referred to as “Clean Water”, this means that the water originated from a sanitary source and does not generally pose a risk to our health.
• CATEGORY 2 – This could also be referred to as “Grey Water”, meaning it contains some contamination and would not be sanitary enough for human consumption, posing a health risk if ingested.
• CATEGORY 3 – Commonly known as “Black Water”, this is water that is grossly contaminated and could contain disease-causing organisms, pathogens, and other harmful materials.

Now you know the 3 different categories of water and how it can enter into your home. Each of these different categories of water damage comes with their own do's and don'ts on how to deal with them. Restoration professionals like SERVPRO of Victor/Canandaigua have advanced training and expertise, not to mention a tremendous amount of hands-on experience to handle any water damage emergency