Water damage is unfortunately all too common in homes, apartments, and other places of residence. It happens because of unchecked plumbing, improper maintenance, or just sheer bad luck.

Causes of Water Damage Often Begin with Pipes

One cause of water damage is damaged pipes. In older homes or apartments, plumbing systems are more likely to clog drains and damage. Always be looking for cracks, water spots, and or bulges containing water. Doing this will help inform you of potential issues with plumbing before they start. If you live in an apartment building and it is safe to do so, talk to your neighbors above and beneath you to see if they have any issues. If the person below you is having issues, it may be from the plumbing in your unit.

Asking your neighbor upstairs to double check his or her plumbing, too, as that could prevent an accident with the plumbing in their unit and potentially ruining your apartment. Talk to your neighbors about looking out for any signs of excessive moisture, too. If you see any potential water damage, call an expert plumber or cleaner to take care of it.

Weather Can Also Lead to Water Damage

In Long Island, New York, the winters are brutal. Ensuring your pipes are properly insulated before the winter can help to take care of any potential issues with pipes breaking during those harsh months. Not only could water start to spill out, but the pipes could also freeze and create more problems for you.

An example of outside water damage can come from natural disasters. Natural disasters can include heavy rain that leads to flooding, hurricanes and snowstorms. These three examples can potentially each bring large amounts of unwanted water into your place of residence and cause water damage. Because natural disasters can bring in devastating amounts of water at a time, water damage of some form is almost certain. This is due to the long nature of ensuring everything is cleaned and dried properly. At the end of this process, it is highly likely that water damage has either happened to any personal items or the home itself.

Appliances Can Lead to Many Types of Water Problems

Another type of water damage could come from household appliances. Pipes in older household appliances are more susceptible to rusting. Also, their hoses can start to go bad over time and break down. A main culprit of water damage is your dishwasher. Dishwashers can leak or even flood because of clogged drains, heavily used gaskets, and doors that are either broke or do not shut entirely to seal in the water. Flooding from dishwashers can damage floor tiles, hardwood floors, and or cause the adhesion under laminate flooring to become undone and result in loose and or sliding pieces. If the flooding caused by the dishwasher does not get taken care of, water damage could happen over time to your floors.

Flooding can also happen with washing machines. These floods can be caused by hoses that are leaky, dry gaskets, or rusty pipes. The leak in the hose and start off small but may increase over time. If you can catch a small leak before a much larger one, you will avoid the potential of gallons upon gallons of water or greywater spreading around on your floor. This will surely cause water damage in a short period of time.

Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning units may also be a source of water damage. For example, flooding can cause if these systems are cleaned, repaired, and inspected every now and then. Water can build up in air conditioners during the hot summertime in Long Island, New York. Always double check every component of your air conditioner is in tip top shape to ensure water does not leak and cause water damage.

Issues with your sump pump could cause devastating flooding to your basement. Cleaning up the bacteria and clearing the water before mold grows is a priority if this happens to you. In order to keep your sump pump is excellent working condition, ensure it is in an upright position. Always double check that the vent hole in discharge pipe has no instructions present. Also, the outlet pipes should be fastened together tightly and no fewer than six feet away from your location. If there are any leaks, even minor, call a professional to handle your sump pump right away.

Clogs Could Also Cause Water Damage

Clogged drains in the bathroom and sink can also cause water damage. If left unchecked, various things such as oils, dirt, hair, and grease can build up in your pipes. The breaking down of pipes is fairly common and this can result in damage to the structure of your apartment or home. If drains that become clogged do not get fixed, then it can cause other problems in your home. For example, toilets that are clogged could potentially back up into your kitchen sink. This can produce water damage and foul odor than can spread throughout your home.

Getting Help After Water Damage Takes Place

An individual fixing the problem at the source is the best solution. If you are a homeowner, you can call a professional to take a look at the issue and fix it. If you live in an apartment, you can call the maintenance worker and or the office and they can schedule it to be fixed for you.

Preventing Water Damage in the First Place

If the problem seems minor for the home or the apartment, you can try some basic home prevention steps. For example, try to run your dishwasher with vinegar once a month. This will help break down anything that has built up in the drain.

Another way to help prevent water damage to help is put in small screens on tope your drain to ensure things are caught up before going down the drain. Over time, this will decrease the likelihood of having clogged drains and the potential water damage associated with it.

Water damage, believe it or not, can cause structural damage to your home. Water dripping through your foundation and any crawl spaces you have can cause decay and mold to grow. Preventing moisture from entering your home has to be a top priority to ensure water damage does not take place. Floors can pop up and walls can begin to cave in because there is a lack of support.

The weight of the walls cannot be held up properly if there is a lot of water damage present.

Ways to Avoid Water Damage

There are many different steps to take to decrease the likelihood of water damage ever taking place in your place of residence. In order to minimize water damage, one should turn off the main water, identify the source of the water, and figure out the best possible repair. Turning off the water will keep the total damage from going up. Identifying the source of where the water is coming from is essential in providing information for the professional, individual, or team to help with the situation.
After this is done, fix your attention on valuables that are not covered in water and remove them to a safe location that is not having water problems, drying them off in the process. With damaged pipes, if you are a homeowner, you can have a plumber upgrade your pipes if they are dated. In the long run, it may be the best option you have for peace of mind in knowing that the new plumbing should not give you any future problems.
A different alternative to updating the old plumbing is pouring hot water down your pipes. In doing this, it will help break down anything that has built up over time. This could reduce the possibility of water damage from clogged drains and or pipes. However, understand that this is a temporary fix at best, and it is no substitution for having the pipes professionally cleaned or repaired.
A third option is to call a licensed plumber and have the individual inspect your plumbing system. If everything is all set and good to go, then the only thing necessary is routine cleaning and upkeep with your drains and pipes.
With appliances, such as dishwashers, sometimes the best solution is just to purchase a new one altogether. However, if this solution is not in the budget, you can purchase a new pipe, gasket, or hose to the appliance. The majority of leaks and water damage goes from these areas of the appliances.
If the appliance is only having issues with leaking, the first stepwould be to purchase the new parts your appliance needs. You can try to take the time and install it yourself. However, in some cases, there can be a peace of mind in knowing a professional has installed the part because you know they did a good job and know what they are doing.
Refrigerators generate a fairly large amount of excess water. This excess water assembles at the bottom of the refrigerator. There are drain lines in the refrigerator that can become clogged over time. Also, there is a water supply line that connects to your ice machine. If that line has a leak present, on any given day, you can return home and see a large amount of water on your kitchen floor. By having a handyman come and assess your refrigerator, one can heavily reduce the possibility of leaks and water damage to your home and appliances.
Leaks and flooding from washing machines can be prevented as well. Just like a refrigerator, all a washing machine may need is a replacement hose. Over time, hoses simply break down because of wear and tear. Replacing a new hose will most likely result in less leaks and flooding.
Another option is to get a valve shutoff kit. When this is installed, it will help prevent water from flooding your home. If you continue to have issues after replacing the hose and or installing a washing machine valve shutoff kit, it may be time to look for a new washing machine.
Structural damage can keep any homeowner up at night. However, there are ways to ensure you can keep your structure safe from water damage. For example, cleaning your gutters is a great way of minimizing water damage. Having clean and clear gutters allows for water to flow properly to its destination. This will decrease the chances of any potential leaks or flooding that could damage the home and cause water damage.
Another great way is to trim protruding branches, leaves, and other greenery near your home. Doing this will help water stay away from the walls and foundation of your home from potential water damage. This is something that you would want taken care of right away to prevent having potential foundation issues down the road.
There are alarms that can be installed that go off when moisture is detected. These alarms can be set up in locations that may be hard to access, such as parts of your attic, basement, and any crawl space your home may have.
Ensuring the water pressure of your home is where it should be, is important, too. Potential leaks and flooding can take place if the water pressure is too high. A water pressure gauge can be put in so you can always read what the pressure is. If the gauge says it is too high, then you can make necessary adjustments if need be. If the water pressure cannot be controlled, a water pressure regulator can be installed to help keep the water pressure under control.

Conclusion

Water damage can happen at any place at any given time. It can also happen to anyone. The predictability of water damage is always hard to gauge. You just never know when it will happen until it does. Thankfully, there are minor steps that can be done to ensure potential water damage does not happen to you. Getting common household appliances inspected regularly and making sure to inspect your pipes often is vital. There are steps that can be done outside the house, like trimming up trees and bushes to keep unwanted water away. Small steps can be taken every day to help beep water damage away. Want to find out more? Then reach out to us at Superior Home Restoration today!

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Water Damage