Water damage refers to all the possible damage that can be caused by water. For example hurricane Katrina and floods cause water damage as does a pipe leak in the house. When there is water damage property, livestock, industry, population, environment is devastated or simply destroyed. It leaves in its wake diseases, pollution, rot, destruction and death.



Usually water damage can be classified into these 3 categories

The first category can be referred to as "clean water". The damage caused by this water is due to a pipe burst or a leakage or a sink or a water overflow. There is hardly any water damage to the property or to things and it can be set right very easily.

The second kind of water damage is caused by something known as "Grey water". This water contains quite a bit of pollutants or effluents that can be biological, chemical or physical. When there is water damage due to this category, the discomfort level and sickness level can be quite high. This type of water damage can be through the toilet bowls, effluent discharge from the commercial and home washing machines and dishwashers, sump failures etc.

Water damage caused by the last category is also known as "black water" and is extremely dangerous and unhealthy. This type of water contains harmful bacteria, fungi and other micro organisms that can cause near fatal diseases and very unsavoury living conditions. They can infect crops, livestock, farm and wild animals and humans too. Usually this category of water that causes water damage is seen after heavy rains and flooding or hurricanes and tsunami aftermath.

There are various types of methods that are used for removing the water that is causing water damage. There are specialized water damage restorations experts that can help out. Water damage restoration is the procedure by which the experts bring a property back to its press loss state. At time, the property can be fully restored and at times major modifications may need to be made to the property.

In the US, the 2 bodies IICRA and RIA that prescribe the standards of care for water damage restoration

The companies that are in the business of water damage restoration use the procedure known as S500 as prescribed by IICRA. The principles that are prescribed for water damage restoration have been taken from the various resources that include the insurance industry, people with specialized knowledge, equipment manufacturers, trade associations, water damage restoration services. It's a guide rather than a comprehensive guide.

The companies that are involved in the water damage restoration should also take the individual considerations of the property as well as review the S500 before doing the job.

The steps that are usually followed while doing the restoration of the property that has undergone water damage are as follows:

* Evaluation of the property damage

* Categorization of loss due to water damage

* Drying out procedure

* The structural requirements of the property

* Monitoring the property

* Completion of the project and final inspection