Elements of Water Damage Restoration in White Plains

9/14/2022 (Permalink)

Don't duck calling SERVPRO for water damage cleanup and restoration for your White Plains property.

The Three Primary Phases of Water Damage Recovery

Knowing what to expect with damages from water disasters is important to keep customers calm and informed through the restoration process. While an oversimplification, water restoration services can be broken down into three primary phases:

• Emergency Services
• The Drying Process
• Final Cleaning

White Plains water damage can be challenging to overcome through these restoration stages, but our SERVPRO team can help. We have experienced professionals capable of responding fast to emergencies and an educated roster licensed and certified to offer comprehensive restoration and recovery solutions.

Emergency Services and Mitigation

To mitigate when water damage is involved, remove the pressing concerns that threaten the structure and its contents. In most situations, properties face several approaches to eliminating direct problems. From water pooling on exposed surfaces to managing the location and condition of personal belongings and contents, there is more to mitigation and emergency services than homeowners might think. Our fast response allows us to get these early actions underway, with objectives like:

• Extraction - Water removal services are often the first action taken by SERVPRO professionals reaching damaged residences. We must eliminate pooling to protect exposed building materials like carpeting, plank flooring, and drywall.
• Managing Damaged Contents - Personal belongings and loose contents throughout the structure must be identified and cataloged for inspection. When these items are at risk for harm from migrating water, they can be moved to a safer area of the house or transported to our SERVPRO facility for intricate cleaning.
• Cataloging Damage - The inspection and evaluation process involves an experienced staff member walking through the property and noting damage encountered. The information collected here creates a detailed estimation and restoration plan.
• Removing Ruined Materials - Controlled demolition also plays an essential part in pre-restoration emergency services. Sagging materials overwhelmed by moisture and water must be cut out and removed. Similarly, SERVPRO can also discard any overexposed building materials like carpeting.
• Emergency Repairs Necessary - Because many water emergencies homeowners face can happen from broken fixtures, and portions of the plumbing, our general contractor's license can help by allowing us to complete needed repairs before the bulk of restoration gets underway.

Starting the Necessary Drying Process

Drying your home or business after water damage means overcoming moisture in several scenarios. One drying approach is not universal for structures, meaning SERVPRO professionals must diversify measures to ensure the expected moisture range is met. Some types of expected damage include:

• Wet Surfaces – When homeowners think of needed drying practices, damp surfaces and building materials come to mind. Air movers can help with the evaporation of this outermost moisture.
• Trapped Water – Water can become absorbed into materials like wood plank flooring, requiring specialty tools to resolve like drying mats.
• Humidity – Increasing the room's humidity requires suitable equipment to collect and manage this growing moisture concern. Dehumidifiers can trap moisture and prevent relative humidity from reaching its maximum.

Thoroughly Cleaning After Drying Materials

Cleaning up after water damage exposure can be an essential part of restoring the former appearance of your home after a disaster. Often elements like carpeted floors can become soiled or discolored, requiring focused cleaning efforts after drying with bonnet tools or hot water extraction equipment from our inventory.

Disasters like these are not fully resolved without needed repairs and reconstruction completed. We have a general contractor license to save customers time and money on vetting and selecting a subcontractor.

White Plains water damage can impact your property in many ways, but SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle can help. We have experienced professionals ready 24/7 to mitigate damage and protect your property from preventable harm. "Like it never even happened." Call now at (914) 684-1560.

How SERVPRO Helps White Plains Fire Damage Restoration

9/14/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO fire damage and restoration experts return your White Plains home to preloss condition, "Like it never even happened."

Fire Damage Recovery Happens in Many Ways

A fire is one of the most damaging events a property can experience in its lifetime. Much like other disasters and emergencies, there is an urgency to get restoration professionals on-site to begin needed mitigation and restoration services as soon as possible. We work with first responders to ensure we can start our emergency services when it is safe to begin this work.

Because of the possibility of White Plains fire damage for any residence, homeowners need to understand and appreciate the need for restoration professionals in these situations. Insurance companies require skilled and certified technicians to restore fire losses, and we are a preferred vendor to help.

The Importance of Swift Action

Because situations like fire damage threaten structures, our professionals need to reach the residence quickly. Mitigation is the objective of early responders, seeking to eliminate pressing concerns and prevent irreparable harm to the structure whenever possible. Much of the fire mitigation involves creating a safer workspace, such as:

• Air Filtration
• Fire Debris Removal
• Water Removal

Improving Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)

A threat of post-fire conditions in households is the concentration of airborne contaminants. Aerosolized soot particles, smoke solids, chemicals, and other particulates create a volatile environment that is hazardous for the house occupants. Before SERVPRO professionals can begin mitigation and restoration services, air filtration with HEPA products is often necessary.

How to Remove Smoke Residues

Smoke and soot damage is a common byproduct of the combustion process, making it one of the challenges SERVPRO professionals must overcome when addressing fire damage. There are multiple approaches to removing residues from surfaces.

• Solvent Products – Solvents work to dissolve moist soot buildup on surfaces.
• Alkaline Agents – With the acidity of soot particles, alkaline cleaners can be a practical choice to reduce corrosivity and prevent the erosion of finished surfaces.
• Media Blasting – Using various media under pressure by air or water, we can abrasively clean soot-damaged surfaces without destroying underlying substrates. Materials can include baking soda, corn cobs, and other abrasives.
• Material Removal – When other cleaning options have been exhausted, or the damage is noticeably more significant than these other restoration methods can resolve, controlled demolition is a suitable solution.

Post-Fire Malodor Removal

While one of the final obstacles for fire restoration services, malodors present a unique threat to the property. While these conditions are often mild enough to be pushed to the final stages of recovery after reducing their strength with mitigation and soot removal, house occupants cannot have comfortable living conditions with these persistent smells.

Deodorization must occur after the cleanup finishes and after fire losses. This typically requires a combination of hydroxyl machines with HEPA filtration and ULV or thermal foggers for widespread pairing agent distribution. These foggers are effective when removing trapped odors in porous building materials.

Build-Back Services Help After Cleanup

One of the advantages of SERVPRO for clearing fire damage threats from your property is our general contractor license. This accreditation allows us to assess the structural inefficiencies of the property after disasters to determine where reconstruction and repairs might be required. A structural engineer must inspect and provide the manner of reconstruction for extensive damage. Instead of waiting weeks on scheduling availabilities of subcontractors, our professionals can seamlessly transition from restoration to repairs and get the job done much more expediently.

New Plains fire damage can be destructive and ruinous for area homes and businesses. With our SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle team's fast response, we can quickly help get life back to normal. Give us a call now at (914) 684-1560.

Overcoming the Effects of White Plains Mold Damage

9/14/2022 (Permalink)

Mold damage remediation for White Plains homeowners and SERVPRO for great customer satisfaction.

Mold Remediation Should Be Managed Quickly

A common threat to area homes is excess moisture and water leaks leading to the possibility of mold development. In Westchester County, basements and attics are the most susceptible to this fungal presence, and if you suspect it might exist in your home, you should act quickly for removal.

Overcoming White Plains mold damage begins with the fast response of our SERVPRO remediation team. Because of the urgency of these conditions, we have professionals ready 24/7 to mobilize for inspections and remediation solutions.

What Makes Mold a Threat?

Understanding what makes mold and microbial growth a problem for area homes and businesses is essential. Knowing how organisms move through the residence and how rapidly colonies can replicate can express the urgency of securing remediation professionals when you see this threat exists. Some concerning attributes of mold colonization include:

• Colonies Are Destructive – Mold feeds on organic matter, destroying hosting materials like drywall and other building elements.
• Mold Moves Quickly – Another disturbing attribute of mold development is how quickly colonies move throughout a structure. Moist environments make all nearby surfaces susceptible to support migrating mold spores.
• Living with Mold – While naturally occurring spores are in almost every environment, higher concentrations make comfortable living a challenge.

How Do You Find Mold?

Suspecting mold in your home might not be enough for you to consider seeking the assistance of our remediators and project management. There are ways to help you have a better idea of whether microbial growth is likely in your residence. Physical signs can point to higher spore concentrations and even colonies existing out of sight. Some of these signals include:

• Damp Surfaces
• Spotting
• Musty Smells

Remediation Solutions for Mold

Choosing the right approach to remove mold damage from your home is more than just a universal solution. Careful consideration must be made to the hosting material's state, the damage's location, and the concentration of mold colonization in the area. Some mold removal solutions include:

• Surface Mold – When mold is still only impacting the surface of hosting materials, this is when remediation and cleanup are most straightforward. We have several sporicidal products that can destroy mold spores on contact.
• Infestation Beyond the Surface – Through abrasive cleaning and approaches like sanding, we can often reach mold that has moved just beyond the outermost layer of structural components.
• Fully Impacted – When the mold has overtaken the entire hosting material, there is no way to restore and preserve it. We must remove and discard these structural elements.

What Are Lingering Effects of Mold Damage?

Mold is destructive because it can impact your property in many ways. Even after you have removed any colonies remediation could find, there are still lingering threats that could exist that require attention. Much of this cleaning process hinges on restoring the appearance of former colony-hosting materials. Our SERVPRO IICRC-certified technicians follow specific protocols for effective remediation. It could also address the concerns of severe, musty malodors throughout the structure. Our focuses during post-remediation cleanup include:

• Refinishing
• Odors
• Structural Damage
• Need for Moisture Management

Is Reconstruction Necessary?

The role of repairs and reconstruction after mold damage is essential for your home. Not only will our general contractor license allow us to replace the materials removed to eliminate the colonies and the threat of spreading organisms in your house, but repairs are needed for other reasons. Preventing the recurrence of mold growth through installing better ventilation, patching and repairing structural vulnerabilities, and replacing damaged portions of plumbing keeps microbial threats from returning this same way.

White Plains mold damage can threaten comfortable living in your home. Let our SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle remediators help you resolve this threat quickly and prevent it from coming back. Give us a call now at (914) 684-1560.

Specialists Are Necessary for Water Damage Repair in White Plains

9/13/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO can mitigate water damage and perform demolition when required in White Plains' properties.

SERVPRO Can Handle Water Damage in White Plains Homes

Water can cause serious and long-term damage to your house, including creating a rich ground for mold growth. As a homeowner, you need to contact a reliable water damage restoration company that can help you to tidy things up when there is a leakage. This can help you avoid extensive damage to the house structures and belongings.

SERVPRO has expertise in handling water damage in White Plains homes. Some things that have enabled us to withstand the test of time and earn the trust of most homeowners are:

• We provide advanced training sessions to our technicians and ensure they are certified by the relevant authorities.
• We exhaustively document the situation at your house so that the insurance claim process is not too long for you.
• SERVPRO’s services are reliable, and our response time is always timely.
• We have developed roots in the local community, which helps us fashion our services according to the community.

Our technicians can use powerful water extraction equipment to remove as much water as possible. After removing it, we can run air movers and dehumidifiers in the area to pull moisture out of the affected structures and contents. This is especially vital in rooms with wood, carpeting, and other porous materials.

Advanced Equipment and Training

Our SERVPRO team can also use portable electric heaters to direct heat towards specific areas of a building instead of heating the whole airspace. We use these systems to heat materials and focus the heat on limited areas. Many of these units use heat exchangers to transfer heat from hot coils to air streams that air movers produce.

Applying antimicrobial and antifungal products is necessary for SERVPRO’s restoration process since it helps prevent mold growth and destroys the existing mold spores. This process allows for the restoration of the contents and reconstruction and rebuilding necessary to get your house back to its preloss condition.

Contact SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle for efficient restoration services at (914) 684-1560. We’re faster to any sized disaster.

Factors That Influence Flood Damage Restoration in White Plains

8/9/2022 (Permalink)

Thermaldynamics plays a key role in evaporation. SERVPRO knows how to mitigate storm damage and water from your White Plains property.

Flood Damage Recovery Follows Specific Principles

Flooding can be a complicated disaster for your home to endure and restoring and recovering from these circumstances most often requires experienced professionals like our SERVPRO team. We use science like psychometry to understand the behavior of water after a disaster like flooding to predict migration patterns and better protect the structure. This information can help in related restoration actions like:

• Structure drying
• Humidity management
• Content cleaning

Absorbency of Building Materials

Flood damage in White Plains can quickly overwhelm rooms and require fast and focused mitigation solutions. In places with unfinished areas like the attic or basement, the absorbancy and porosity of materials play a considerable role. SERVPRO professionals can quickly identify what building materials and contents are most at risk for saturation damage and relocate objects or establish containment and drying approaches for structural elements.

Warm Temperatures Seek Cold

One of the principles of water's behavior after flooding or other disasters is that this moisture moves from warm conditions to cold. All things in nature seek a balance, and cold and warm temperatures clash within your home to create a state in the middle. Likewise, warm and wet conditions migrate towards cooler temperatures in the building. It is often beneficial for SERVPRO professionals like ours to manipulate surrounding room temperatures to discourage migration and make drying practices more efficient.

Wet Conditions Migrate to Dry

The typical behavior of water through the study of psychometry also shows that areas of the home that are wet will seek a balance with drying regions. The wet to dry draws moisture and water damage through building materials to impact new structure areas. Understanding this behavior, SERVPRO professionals can better safeguard at-risk building materials with direct drying practices. A wet home will seek a balance with drying regions. The wet to dry draws moisture and water damage through building materials to impact new structure areas. Understanding this behavior, SERVPRO professionals can better safeguard at-risk building materials with direct drying practices. 

Flooding is a disaster that is devastating for your home or business. Our SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle team is ready to help; however, you need 24/7 at (914) 684-1560.

Handing Soot and Fire Damage in New Rochelle Homes

8/9/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO FRST crews mitigate smoke and soot damage with special cleaning products and equipment. "Like it never even happened."

What Makes Soot Challenging Fire Damage?

Because soot damage is one of the expected effects of structure fires, SERVPRO professionals arrive with the tools and products to overcome these threatening conditions. As a homeowner, there are things you can know about this fire disaster byproduct to show why professional restoration is a necessity.

You Must Remove Soot

Before managing the many layers of fire damage in New Rochelle homes and businesses, you must have a credible attack plan for soot and smoke residues. Many property owners mistakenly believe these conditions will lessen or disappear entirely on their own with enough time, but that could be a big mistake with the corrosive composition of soot particles and sensitive underlying substrates that could get ruined.

There Are Multiple Types of Soot

Because several types of materials can suffer damage in your home, the subsequent byproduct of this combustion varies in composition. Several types of smoke damage exist:

• Dry Smoke – Using chemical sponges and dry HEPA vacuums, SERVPRO professionals can often resolve the bulk of dry smoke damage on surfaces.
• Wet Smoke – Emulsification and pairing agents work well to lift soils from the surface after wet smoke effects. Wipe cleaning could smear on the surface, so pre-testing is essential.
• Protein Residues – Protein or grease residues can coat kitchen surfaces and be a challenging soil deposit to remove. Solvents are a helpful product in these cases.

Soot Needs More than DIY Cleaning

One of the common misconceptions about soot damage in your home is that it is easy to clean. While dry smoke can be less of a burden on professional restorers, cleaning up after any fire damage situation should be done by experienced technicians to prevent irreparable harm to the affected materials. We have special cleaning products, tools, and IICRC training to handle specific situations and return your property to preloss condition.

SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle can help with soot and fire damage cleanup. Call now at (914) 684-1560.

Causes of Possible Mold Damage in White Plains Homes

8/9/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO says that robust ventilation can help prevent mold growth and damage in your White Plains home. Call us for mold remediation.

SERVPRO Overcomes Mold Damage Threats

Mold development in your home is easier to understand and resolve when you can identify the cause and work on preventing recurrences. While there might be many reasons moisture could exist in your home, there are a few critical possibilities why mold is a threat right now.

Moisture and Water Damage Concerns

Even before you notice mold damage in White Plains properties, conditions must exist to support colony development and sustain their presence. Moist or damp areas of the residence are needed for this, which are not difficult to produce after disasters like burst pipes or leaks in the plumbing system. Drying must be complete to prevent mold and microbial growth, meaning that our sophisticated detection tools and sensors must get used to tracking moisture movement. Options include:

• Surface Moisture Detectors
• Thermo hygrometers
• Thermal (Infrared) Images
• Probing Meters

High Environmental Moisture Content

Humidity is one of the most direct influences on mold development in the house. After disasters, environmental moisture can continue to be a factor even if the surface water is resolved. Dehumidifiers can help collect humidity and lower these levels to prevent ideal conditions for colonization.

Poor Ventilation

Bathrooms and kitchens without adequate ventilation often see damp conditions persist, and water becomes a prevalent threat to these house areas. The lingering moisture content creates a viable location for mold development, so SERVPRO can resolve these threats by installing sufficient ventilation outlets at homeowners' request. 

Unknown Mold Damage Concerns

Mold damage can be challenging to track and identify until it breaches the surface materials of areas in the living space. Consequently, mold development can allow a continued spread of the organism through sensitive materials nearby until this threat gets resolved. You can look for surface spotting, persistent dampness, or a harsh odor to indicate the presence of colonies beyond what you can see.

Do you have mold damage? Call SERVPRO of White Plains and New Rochelle at (914) 684-1560.

Historic Playland Amusement Park

7/27/2022 (Permalink)

Everyone in this area knows Playland. Often known as Rye Playland, the amusement park that sits on The Long Island Sound, was built in 1928 and is a National Historic Landmark. They have been creating memories as metro New York’s top destination for family fun for 94 years! Whether you are looking to spend the day on the rides with all the amusement park food you can imagine, or a relaxing day on the beach with the sparkling Long Island Sound, there is something for everyone. 

Playland features one of the oldest wooden roller coasters in the country. The Dragon Coaster. I have spoken to a lot of people about Playland lately and everyone has a great memory of nights at Playland as a kid, and bringing their kids there, and now some people are bringing their grandkids. We all agreed that the Dragon Coaster was the ride we all feared and at the same time could not wait until the summer you would be tall enough to ride it! It is still operating since 1928 and you now have to be 48” tall to ride it.  

The park also features other rides, the Dragonator where riders sit on a giant disc facing outward, and it spins and carries you away into the night spinning and spinning. There is also a log flume (expect to get soaked), which is great for cooling down on the hottest days, go carts, The Whip – another ride that’s been there forever, and the YoYo, a swing like ride that takes you high in the air and goes round and round. The Double Shot launches riders through 2 cycles of positive and negative G “force” experiences.   

Every Friday night July 1st through September 2nd with a Season Finale on Sunday September 4th, Labor Day Weekend. 

There is something for everyone. Friday nights is a fire work show! There is a concert series for kids and adults and comedy shows as well. 

Check out their website at playland.com/shows for more information. 

All of us at SERVPRO of White Plains have memories of Playland and are continuing to make memories with our families there this summer as well. 

Enjoy the summer!! 

A Tragedy Changes a National Fire Safety Law

7/27/2022 (Permalink)

Almost 40 years ago a tragedy took place that changed the way fire codes and safety codes are written for amusement parks. For more than 40 years, people have gone to Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey, a short hour and a half ride from Westchester County, for a day of fun, riding roller coasters, playing boardwalk-style games and eating, walking around and taking in all the sights and sounds of an amusement park. 

On May 11, 1984, a day of fun turned into a day of terror and tragedy. There was a fire that took the lives of eight teenagers trapped inside the Haunted Castle attraction. 

A report on the tragedy released by the National Fire Protection Association said the structure was made of 17 interconnected commercial trailers and plywood frames. Fire consumed a foam pad inside the Haunted Castle and spread through the structure. 

As a result, Six Flags Great Adventure made some drastic changes that effected all Six Flags Parks nationally.  

They invested substantial resources in the safety of their operations and the training of their staff. They began an  in-house fire-safety team routinely checks for hazards and inspects all buildings and equipment. 

They worked with certified, local fire inspectors to ensure that they are in compliance with all state and national fire codes to meet and exceed. 

Peter Smith, author of "Doorway to Hell: The Mysteries and Controversies Surrounding the Deadly Haunted Castle Fire at Six Flags Great Adventure once said that everyone who was at Great Adventure that day and anyone who lives around here will never forget that day, as long as they live.  

The New Jersey State Legislature passed new fire-safety requirements for amusement buildings — such as haunted house — that required all structures designed to disorient, reduce vision, present barriers or impede the flow of traffic, be equipped with fire-detection and -suppression systems, as well as various other fire-safety provisions 

After the fire, Six Flags Great Adventure updated park structures with equipment that includes sprinkler systems, smoke and heat detectors and emergency generators, and added an in-house fire brigade 

The New Jersey Uniform Fire Code also requires a certificate of occupancy be obtained before certain attractions are opened to the public. 

Drawings of the attraction are required, showing entrances/exits, electrical switches, circuit breakers, layout of the visitor path, location of alarm systems and manual pull stations, and the locations of fire extinguishers and telephones. Fire safety and evacuation plans are submitted, with trained employees and staff conducting fire drills in case of an emergency. 

Now, the part of the park where the Haunted Castle was located, has been closed off to the public. 

The tragedy that occurred here prompted a National Law to be written for the safety of people at amusement parks, and it became known as the strictest fire code for the nation.  

Things to Know About Mold From The EPA

7/27/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO of White Plains is a New York State Licensed Mold Remediation Contractor. We also have people who work here who are New York State Licensed Mold Supervisors, and Mold Abatement Workers. 

We are always doing research to learn any new information that the EPA puts out on mold.  

The potential health effects and symptoms associated with mold exposures include allergic reactions, asthma and other respiratory complaints. 

There is no practical way to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment; the way to control indoor mold growth is to control moisture. 

If mold is a problem in your home or school, you must get the mold cleaned up and eliminate sources of moisture. 

Fix the source of the water problem or leak to prevent mold growth. 

Reduce indoor humidity (to 30-60%) to decrease mold growth by: 

• Venting bathrooms, dryers and other moisture-generating sources to the outside 
• Using air conditioners and de-humidifiers 
• Increasing ventilation 
• Using exhaust fans whenever cooking, dishwashing and cleaning 

Clean and dry any damp or wet building materials and furnishings within 24-48 hours to prevent mold growth. 

A mold remediation company will clean mold off hard surfaces with water and detergent, and dry completely. Absorbent materials such as ceiling tiles, that are moldy, may need to be replaced. 

Prevent condensation: Reduce the potential for condensation on cold surfaces (i.e., windows, piping, exterior walls, roof, or floors) by adding insulation. 

In areas where there is a perpetual moisture problem, do not install carpeting (i.e., by drinking fountains, by classroom sinks, or on concrete floors with leaks or frequent condensation). 

Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow on virtually any substance, providing moisture is present. There are molds that can grow on wood, paper, carpet, and foods.  

We will always continue to research and bring you the most up to date information especially from the EPA