If something unforeseen has happened to your home or property, you may find yourself faced with disaster cleanup on the horizon. Unfortunately, there’s a first time for everything, and this may be your first experience with something like this. If so, don’t worry—we’ve got plenty of information here to help walk you through the process and learn a few important tips to keep in mind, too. Check out this information and you’ll be ready to face just about any disaster that may come your way.
1. Contact restoration services
As soon as something happens to your home—once you’re sure everyone inside is safe—you should contact a restoration service company to help you out. This is an important first step because you will be able to find out just what you’re dealing with in terms of damage, as well as whether or not you can go back into your home. A restoration service company should be available to help with any emergencies that might arise at any time of the day or night. It’s a good idea to have a company in mind for these kinds of situations before something happens, so you don’t have to spend time looking up who to contact in the middle of a crisis. Keep the name and contact information for the company of your choice written on a piece of paper along with other important numbers you can grab if you’re trying to evacuate your home in a hurry.
2. Contact your insurance company
Once you’ve gotten in touch with someone to help with your disaster repair needs, don’t forget to reach out to your insurance company as well. Even if you don’t end up filing a claim for the damage, you need to let the insurance company know what happened, and you may want to get a quote from them sooner rather than later. Keep in mind that the longer you wait to call the insurance company, the greater the cost may be, depending on the type of damage you’re dealing with. Your insurance company may recommend a restoration service to you, but you can always choose one on your own and submit the information to the insurance for compensation, too.
3. Choose a restoration service company instead of someone marketed as a handyman.
A restoration company will be much better equipped to take care of the problem than a handyman might be. While a handyman is fine for normal, everyday kinds of repairs, the types of damage you may be dealing with after a fire or flood require specialized knowledge as well as certain types of equipment that your restoration service company will have access to. The restoration company you choose will be able to keep an eye out for deeper problems than those that might be present just on the surface of your home. Also, the company you choose should be licensed and insured, so that if anything should go wrong throughout the repairs, there are procedures and rules in place to help take care of the situation.
4. Do not enter your home if it has suffered fire, smoke, water, or mold damage.
Regardless of the type of disaster you may be dealing with, once everyone is safely out of the home, do not go back inside until you’ve had a professional inspect the situation. It’s crucial to make sure a restoration company checks everything out before you potentially re-enter the home. You will probably need to wait until water clean up, fire repair, mold removal, or smoke damage repair has taken place before you can go back into the property. There are many hazards that could be present in a home that has suffered any of these types of damage. There’s a risk for injury due to flooring damage or structural collapse, and if mold is present, you may risk inhaling it and becoming sick from exposure to it, too. Stay out of the property and listen to the advice of the restoration service company regarding when to go back inside.
5. Do not try to clean the damage yourself.
It may be tempting to try to clean up the damage on your own, but you should not try to do this for a wide variety of reasons. Professionals will know more about what to look for in terms of hidden damages and deeper problems, and these are issues like this that you might miss if you try to clean up fire or water damage on your own. Also, it could be dangerous for you to go back into your home after the damage has occurred, so you should refrain from doing so and instead let the company you choose go in and start working on the cleanup as soon as possible. Getting a restoration service company to take care of this for you is the best and safest method of returning your home to its original state as soon as possible.
6. Give your restoration company time to complete the necessary repairs.
This is an important step to keep in mind. When you’ve spoken to a restoration company, gotten a quote, and chosen to move forward with the repairs, you may be antsy to get back into your home soon. Most people are, and this is normal. However, make sure you give your company time to take care of all the repairs your home may need before you can safely re-enter. It’s okay to check in on things and see how it’s going, but try to remain patient and wait until the restoration service company tells you it’s okay to go back into the property. It may take some time, depending on the extent of the damage, but it will be worth it in the long run to have your home back to normal.
If you’re looking for assistance with damage to your home in the Aurora, Illinois area, contact Restoration Techs. We are available for 24/7 emergency services and estimates at 800.600.3594.