Post-Restoration Maintenance: Tips for homeowners to maintain their property after restoration work is completed
In the weeks immediately after a disaster, your focus is on putting out fires—sometimes literal fires. The hustle and bustle of contacting insurance and hiring someone to actually restore the damage will be at the forefront of your attention. Unfortunately, even once all of the dust has settled and been cleaned up, you’re not fully out of the woods yet.
There are a few ongoing maintenance and monitoring items that can help ensure the success of your repairs. In this article, we take a look at what actions you should take after your home has been damaged by water, fire, or both.
First, Note What Was Done
Before you get too far into the weeds, it’s important to understand what areas of your home were treated and what kind of work was done. Many homeowners will develop a natural sense of paranoia around anything that seems out of the ordinary immediately after a disaster event at their home.
While an attitude of vigilance is certainly helpful, you don’t need to obsess over every baseboard or carefully inspect each closet when the damage itself was isolated and contained. Understanding what was done will also help you communicate problems more effectively and simply recognize when something is off.
For example, in certain cases, your original subflooring may be left in place, or your HVAC system may have been cleaned rather than replaced. Being able to communicate these details and recognize what sort of complications could emerge from them are important elements of early detection.
Your restoration service will have a carefully detailed list of what was done and will have most likely presented it to you, but if you have any questions or don’t understand the implications of the repairs, reach out for clarification. They should be more than happy to answer any questions you might have.
Handling the First 90 Days
During the first 90 days, your home is going to be going through a sort of transitional period. The nature of said transition will depend in part on what kind of repairs you’ve done. That said, during this phase, moisture levels will likely still be out of balance if you had any type of water intrusion at all—even in cases where flooding was never the issue, for example, fire damage. Your home may still have high levels of water intrusion due to firefighting efforts.
If that’s the case, you’ll need to pay careful attention to your humidity levels. You don’t necessarily need to have an eye on the humidifier at all times, but you should know what the humidity is and contact restoration professionals immediately if the levels rise above 55%.
You should also keep an eye out for signs of further intrusion. For example, wet spots on the drywall or indications that your paint is bubbling or peeling. While neither issue necessarily speaks to a significant problem, they are indications that something requires further attention.
Take Basic Precautions
There are also a few basic steps you can take that will limit your risk for reoccurring problems and just generally help manage your home space better.
For example, get in the habit of running your bathroom fan for at least 30 minutes following a shower. Not only is this a good general practice, but it will be particularly impactful as your home reverts back to normal moisture levels.
You should also consider avoiding additional moisture-related stressors by taking basic precautions such as limiting the use of steam mops or comparable products.
Finally, as you clean, be on the lookout for musty smells, signs of discoloration, and other factors that could indicate a recurrence of the issue.
There Is No Need to Live in Fear
Hopefully, we didn’t scare you too much. If all of this information about the possibility of a recurrence has made you uneasy, keep in mind that all of the steps we’ve described so far require little active effort on your part.
The primary thing, really, is just to be aware of the potential for more problems and be ready to act quickly in the event that there is a problem. At the end of the day, fast, early detection will go a long way toward limiting further damage.
One of the best things you can do for yourself begins on the front end: choose a restoration service that you can trust. Not only will a good service be able to reduce the risk of reoccurring problems, but they’ll also be a valuable partner in terms of long-term monitoring and response.
As you’re searching for a restoration company, consider asking them not just about the immediate service, but also how they handle long-term recovery and what type of advice or ongoing support they are able to provide.
At AMH Restoration, we pride ourselves on being not just competent professionals, but also compassionate collaborators who work hard to get your home back in the state you need it to be in.
