Water restoration expert outlines the various categories and classes of water damage.

4/8/2022 (Permalink)

Blog Summary: Explaining water damage to an expert is difficult for most people. The expert at SERVPRO explains the various classes and categories of water damage to simplify it for homeowners.

Water damage will only get worse if left unchecked. Every minute you delay, your rug, couch, tables, and even the structure of your home can be impacted by the water.

This is why it’s important to quickly hire a water damage restoration company like SERVPRO of Southeast El Paso/Butterfield to help with the cleaning and restoration of your properties.

However, when you call a professional water restoration service, they will ask you a few questions to help them determine the level of water damage over the phone.

Knowing the various classes and categories of water damage will enable you to quickly explain it to the expert and get the help you need.

SERVPRO of Southeast El Paso/Butterfield explains all you should know about water damage classes and categories.

Different Categories of Water Damage

There are three categories of water damage based on the type of water you’re dealing with. Is it clean water or is the water muddy and dirty?

Category 1 (Clean Water): 

This class of water damage is caused by clean and sanitary water, contains no contaminants at the source, and offers no significant health concerns to you or your family. However, clean water can be easily contaminated when it has left its source for an extended length of time. So it’s important to deal with it swiftly.

Category 2 (Gray Water):

This class of water damage is caused by a high level of contaminated water that’s unsafe for you or your family to touch or consume. This can be due to overflow water from an appliance, aquarium, toilet, or waterbed.

Gray water, like clean water, will go bad and smell bad after a long time. It should be fixed as soon as possible.

Category 3 (Black Water):

This third category is caused by black water that is severely contaminated and potentially harmful to you and your family. It can be water from sewage, water containing germs, viruses, and poisonous organic compounds.

Blackwater, unlike the first two categories, will have a terrible odor and will almost certainly contain toxic or other hazardous substances. When faced with it, it’s most critical to call a water damage restoration company immediately.

Classes of Water Damage Restoration

There are four classes of water damage restoration based on the magnitude of the water damage.

• Class 1 

You have a class 1 water damage restoration issue if the water only affected a part of the room and only a few things were damaged. There is very little or no moisture on the carpet or cushioning and it barely affected materials with poor permeance like plywood, particleboard, and VCT).

In most cases, only a small amount of extraction time is required to clean and restore the affected items.

• Class 2

Class 2 water damage affects the entire room, carpet, and cushion. Typically, the water has risen 12 to 24 inches up the walls, and structural materials like plywood, particleboard, and concrete will still be wet.

• Class 3 

Water damage from above affects the property and structure underneath it. Typically, the water is above the 2-foot level, and your ceilings and walls are soaked. This type of water damage usually involves a water source from above such as a burst pipe in the ceiling. This requires a fast response to remove water and dry with proper evaporation.

• Class 4 

This is the most critical water damage that has affected materials with very low permeance and porosity, like hardwood, concrete, plaster, brick, stone, and crawlspace. It will require specialized cleaning and should be tackled quickly to prevent structural damage.

Contact the Water Damage Restoration Experts in El Paso

It might be difficult to determine how much water has spilled on your property and whether or not the water is contaminated. The flood damage restoration experts at SERVPRO of Southeast El Paso/Butterfield will quickly contain and assess the damage, determining the type of water damage and the best restoration strategy.

Their team of trained water damage restoration experts is available 24/7 to meet your cleaning and restoration needs in El Paso. They have special tools and equipment that can help you get your property and home back to how they were before.

Contact SERVPRO of Southeast El Paso/Butterfield today at (915) 234-2679 to speak to an expert about your water restoration needs.