All kinds of things in your home can be affected by mold, but you can do quite a few things to protect them and restore them if you do a little research. A lot of molded items can be cleaned and saved, but there are a few that just have to be thrown away.
If mold gets on anything made of real leather it cannot be restored. Leather is a piece of porous organic material and mold decomposes items like this pretty quickly. It will discolor the leather and this discoloration cannot be repaired in 99 percent of cases.
Baby bottles come in strange shapes these days and are very often difficult to get completely dry. Water bottles and other beverage containers that we may have in our cabinets come in shapes just as strange and if you do not have a dishwasher with a dry cycle, it can be pretty hard to get these dry without a good amount of effort. The solution to this problem is to place these bottles in the freezer until you are ready to use them again. This prevents mold from growing on it, since mold does not grow in freezing temperatures.
Something else that causes mold to grow on your belongings, especially clothes, is the simple act of throwing wet clothing on the floor or into the back of the closet and forgetting about them. Most people do not wash wet clothes immediately; we tend to just throw them on the floor and then throw dry clothes on top of them. This usually causes the dry clothes to become moldy if we leave them there more than a day or two. Not only does it cause the clothes on top of them to become moldy, but if the wet items were thrown directly onto carpet, the carpet can become just as moldy. Once carpet is molded, it usually needs to be taken up and replaced, but the padding underneath always needs to be removed because it cannot be cleaned.
If you have a lot of clothes in your closet, maybe you need to make sure that you do not pack them into the closet so tight that the air cannot circulate. The clothes insulate each other and create warmth in the closet where mold can start growing after just a few days. Some closets come with vents installed to prevent this problem, but if yours does not, you should probably find another way to store your clothes or get rid of the ones that you do not use.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Water Damage Restoration Contractors and
Miami water Damage companies.
Monday, October 1, 2007
How Water Affects Documents
Water damaged documents and books can be a pain for homeowners and especially libraries to have to deal with. If you are planning on salvaging papers or books, there are a few things that you need to know, especially if some of the things you may have to restore are very old or rare.
Most people are not aware of the fact that depending on the condition, composition of the paper, and the age of it, it will absorb more or less water than you would expect. If you have a large collection of old texts and you live in an area where water damage due to floods or hurricanes, knowing about how much water your collection will absorb will help you select a drying method that is appropriate. Information you also might want to have is just how long your particular collection can stay under water before some serious deterioration of the material occurs.
Some papers may absorb up to 200 percent of their original weight. Materials that are older than around the year 1840 can absorb up to around 80 percent of their weight and these old materials are particularly sensitive to mold when they have been immersed in water.
Most of the damage that occurs to books that is caused by the swelling of the materials will happen within around the first four hours after they have been submerged. The papers of the text block and the cardboard that the book binding may contain will soak up quite a lot of water and this will eventually cause the block of text to become either partially or completely detached from the binding and this is most noted when the material starts to dry out on its own and the humidity in the area falls below around 70 percent.
Most leather and vellum books can be saved if they are dried using some very carefully controlled measures. If the leather or vellum book that you are trying to salvage is from the 15th, 16th, or 17th century, you are probably already aware of the rarity of it, so these should not be mixed together with other materials for salvation, stabilization, or drying.
The most important thing to do before you start treating your papers is to stabilize the environment they are in. Lower the humidity to around 65 percent and get rid of any standing water that still exists. If you have a large amount of books that are packed onto bookshelves very tightly, they should not be removed and fanned out because this will help stop mold from growing on them, at least on the insides.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors and
Orlando water Damage companies.
Most people are not aware of the fact that depending on the condition, composition of the paper, and the age of it, it will absorb more or less water than you would expect. If you have a large collection of old texts and you live in an area where water damage due to floods or hurricanes, knowing about how much water your collection will absorb will help you select a drying method that is appropriate. Information you also might want to have is just how long your particular collection can stay under water before some serious deterioration of the material occurs.
Some papers may absorb up to 200 percent of their original weight. Materials that are older than around the year 1840 can absorb up to around 80 percent of their weight and these old materials are particularly sensitive to mold when they have been immersed in water.
Most of the damage that occurs to books that is caused by the swelling of the materials will happen within around the first four hours after they have been submerged. The papers of the text block and the cardboard that the book binding may contain will soak up quite a lot of water and this will eventually cause the block of text to become either partially or completely detached from the binding and this is most noted when the material starts to dry out on its own and the humidity in the area falls below around 70 percent.
Most leather and vellum books can be saved if they are dried using some very carefully controlled measures. If the leather or vellum book that you are trying to salvage is from the 15th, 16th, or 17th century, you are probably already aware of the rarity of it, so these should not be mixed together with other materials for salvation, stabilization, or drying.
The most important thing to do before you start treating your papers is to stabilize the environment they are in. Lower the humidity to around 65 percent and get rid of any standing water that still exists. If you have a large amount of books that are packed onto bookshelves very tightly, they should not be removed and fanned out because this will help stop mold from growing on them, at least on the insides.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors and
Orlando water Damage companies.
Smoke Damage Cleanup
Cleaning up smoke damage after a fire can be a pretty involved task, but if you know what you are doing and follow a few simple rules, it might not be as difficult as you might think. Even though you might want to get the job done as quickly as possible, you might end up doing more harm than good if you do not take your time to do it correctly. Do the job right, not rushed.
If you have pets, the best thing for them is to remove them from the area as soon as possible. You need to keep your pets out of the home until you are done cleaning up the smoke and water damage done to the home after the fire trucks have gone. Birds are especially sensitive to smoke and chemicals in the air, so if you had a pet bird in the home at the time of the fire, you should have it examined by a vet.
Use a vacuum cleaner to clean up any soot and other particles from your furniture and floors, after you are certain that the electrical circuitry in the home was not damaged by the water poured into the home by the fire truck.
Plants should be rinsed with water as soon as possible, but be sure not to drown the plant’s soil in an excess amount of water. If the soil has been saturated by the water from the fire truck and you want to save the plant, the best thing to do is to put it in a new pot with new soil.
Open the windows and doors in your home so air can circulate and help remove all the particles from the air inside. This will help remove the smell of smoke from the home, as well.
Do not sit down on upholstered furniture that has not been cleaned yet. This will only rub the soot down into the fabric and make it more difficult to remove.
Sending your clothes to an ordinary dry cleaner can irreparably damage your clothes.
Do not eat any foods that were in the home at the time of the fire. This includes everything that was in the home, no matter what it is. Replace everything in the home that was edible.
Ceilings and walls that have been smoke damaged can sometimes be cleaned and restored to their former selves, but heavier deposits of smoke must be specially treated so that the surface will accept being painted over again. Sometimes the stains cannot be removed and the surface must be painted.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Houston Fire Damage Water Restoration Contractor companies and
Los Angeles Water Damage and Restoration Services.
If you have pets, the best thing for them is to remove them from the area as soon as possible. You need to keep your pets out of the home until you are done cleaning up the smoke and water damage done to the home after the fire trucks have gone. Birds are especially sensitive to smoke and chemicals in the air, so if you had a pet bird in the home at the time of the fire, you should have it examined by a vet.
Use a vacuum cleaner to clean up any soot and other particles from your furniture and floors, after you are certain that the electrical circuitry in the home was not damaged by the water poured into the home by the fire truck.
Plants should be rinsed with water as soon as possible, but be sure not to drown the plant’s soil in an excess amount of water. If the soil has been saturated by the water from the fire truck and you want to save the plant, the best thing to do is to put it in a new pot with new soil.
Open the windows and doors in your home so air can circulate and help remove all the particles from the air inside. This will help remove the smell of smoke from the home, as well.
Do not sit down on upholstered furniture that has not been cleaned yet. This will only rub the soot down into the fabric and make it more difficult to remove.
Sending your clothes to an ordinary dry cleaner can irreparably damage your clothes.
Do not eat any foods that were in the home at the time of the fire. This includes everything that was in the home, no matter what it is. Replace everything in the home that was edible.
Ceilings and walls that have been smoke damaged can sometimes be cleaned and restored to their former selves, but heavier deposits of smoke must be specially treated so that the surface will accept being painted over again. Sometimes the stains cannot be removed and the surface must be painted.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Houston Fire Damage Water Restoration Contractor companies and
Los Angeles Water Damage and Restoration Services.
How to Contend With Water Damaged Papers
When our homes are water damaged due to floods and hurricanes, one of the things that we do not tend to think about until after we come upon them while attempting to restore the house is our documents. Any important documents that we might have in our homes at the time of the storm can be damaged almost irreparably, but there are ways to salvage these documents and store them later for better protection against not only floods, but fires, as well. Knowing how to deal with these documents after they have already become damaged is essential if you want to save them, especially if they are the only copies in existence.
There is no real reason to panic unless you have been away from the water damaged building for more than a couple of days. Most of the time it takes at least 48 hours for mold to start to grow on cellulose-based items like paper and cardboard, so getting to these soaked documents as soon as possible before those 48 hours are up is important. The environment in the building should be around 65 degrees Fahrenheit if you can manage it and the humidity needs to remain as low as possible. Mold loves humidity.
If you have any standing water still in the home, it needs to be removed as soon as possible. Documents lying in standing water need to be taken out of it and put on a flat surface quickly. Remove them carefully, since they can fall apart, depending on the weight of the paper and how long it has set in the water.
Figure out what documents are the most important to you. These should include marriage and birth certificates, death certificates, divorce papers, bank papers, warranties on large appliances, and any other legal documents you may have in your home. If you are a writer, a printed manuscript of a book you are working on is one thing that could be considered invaluable, especially if you do not have it stored on electronic media or if the media you did have it stored on was damaged during the storm. Take other printed materials like this into consideration depending on your own unique circumstances. If these items are not completely soaked in water, then you can possibly just dry them out using a fan or simply laying them out to dry. If they have been under the water for a long period of time, then freezing them and drying them at a local facility is best.
Using freezer wrap to separate watery books and documents from each other when you are packing them to take to the freeze drying company is best. Do not pack things tightly and label every box with your contact information.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
water damage restoration companies and
Dallas Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors.
There is no real reason to panic unless you have been away from the water damaged building for more than a couple of days. Most of the time it takes at least 48 hours for mold to start to grow on cellulose-based items like paper and cardboard, so getting to these soaked documents as soon as possible before those 48 hours are up is important. The environment in the building should be around 65 degrees Fahrenheit if you can manage it and the humidity needs to remain as low as possible. Mold loves humidity.
If you have any standing water still in the home, it needs to be removed as soon as possible. Documents lying in standing water need to be taken out of it and put on a flat surface quickly. Remove them carefully, since they can fall apart, depending on the weight of the paper and how long it has set in the water.
Figure out what documents are the most important to you. These should include marriage and birth certificates, death certificates, divorce papers, bank papers, warranties on large appliances, and any other legal documents you may have in your home. If you are a writer, a printed manuscript of a book you are working on is one thing that could be considered invaluable, especially if you do not have it stored on electronic media or if the media you did have it stored on was damaged during the storm. Take other printed materials like this into consideration depending on your own unique circumstances. If these items are not completely soaked in water, then you can possibly just dry them out using a fan or simply laying them out to dry. If they have been under the water for a long period of time, then freezing them and drying them at a local facility is best.
Using freezer wrap to separate watery books and documents from each other when you are packing them to take to the freeze drying company is best. Do not pack things tightly and label every box with your contact information.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
water damage restoration companies and
Dallas Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors.
Flood Damaged Documents
There are hundreds of different kinds of important documents and books that we could have in our homes that might become damaged during a flood or a hurricane and if the copies that we have are the only ones in existence, then safeguarding these items is very important. Whether it is a marriage certificate or a birth certificate, proof of insurance, or any other type of legal document, if it gets ruined due to being submerged in water, you might be in some trouble.
If you are already the victim of a flood or a hurricane and you have to take care of these documents that have already become damaged, then you might not exactly know how to deal with these items. After you have made sure that the electricity is off in your home after the waters have mostly receded is essential. You should do this before re-entering parts of your home that still have standing water in them. Find the documents you need to restore and if they are only damp, then it is possible to just lay them out to dry on a flat surface on their own. If they have been submerged for a while, then the best thing that you can do is take them to a local freeze-dry facility to have them treated.
When packing items to take to a freeze-dry facility, you should purchase freezer wrap from a local department or grocery store. You will use this to separate your papers and books from each other in the boxes you will pack them into. Find the most important documents that you wish to restore and afterward, find the less important ones such as books or anything that is considered “one-of-a-kind”. Pack these items into boxes and label the outside with your name, address, phone number, and any other pertinent information. Do not pack these tightly in the freezer paper.
After your documents have been taken care of and dried efficiently, the best thing to do is to invest in a waterproof and fireproof safe to pack these things in. Cash, jewelry, these documents, and anything else that you wish to have protected against the elements of nature will be very safe in one of these. Once you invest in one and see it work during a fire or a flood, you will be very happy that you made the investment. It will save you both time, effort, and money to invest in an appropriately sized safe.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of
Emergency Water Damage Restoration and
Houston Water Damage Restoration Which are Certified IICRC Water damage and mold remediation contractors.
If you are already the victim of a flood or a hurricane and you have to take care of these documents that have already become damaged, then you might not exactly know how to deal with these items. After you have made sure that the electricity is off in your home after the waters have mostly receded is essential. You should do this before re-entering parts of your home that still have standing water in them. Find the documents you need to restore and if they are only damp, then it is possible to just lay them out to dry on a flat surface on their own. If they have been submerged for a while, then the best thing that you can do is take them to a local freeze-dry facility to have them treated.
When packing items to take to a freeze-dry facility, you should purchase freezer wrap from a local department or grocery store. You will use this to separate your papers and books from each other in the boxes you will pack them into. Find the most important documents that you wish to restore and afterward, find the less important ones such as books or anything that is considered “one-of-a-kind”. Pack these items into boxes and label the outside with your name, address, phone number, and any other pertinent information. Do not pack these tightly in the freezer paper.
After your documents have been taken care of and dried efficiently, the best thing to do is to invest in a waterproof and fireproof safe to pack these things in. Cash, jewelry, these documents, and anything else that you wish to have protected against the elements of nature will be very safe in one of these. Once you invest in one and see it work during a fire or a flood, you will be very happy that you made the investment. It will save you both time, effort, and money to invest in an appropriately sized safe.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of
Emergency Water Damage Restoration and
Houston Water Damage Restoration Which are Certified IICRC Water damage and mold remediation contractors.
How to Contend With Water Damaged Papers
When our homes are water damaged due to floods and hurricanes, one of the things that we do not tend to think about until after we come upon them while attempting to restore the house is our documents. Any important documents that we might have in our homes at the time of the storm can be damaged almost irreparably, but there are ways to salvage these documents and store them later for better protection against not only floods, but fires, as well. Knowing how to deal with these documents after they have already become damaged is essential if you want to save them, especially if they are the only copies in existence.
There is no real reason to panic unless you have been away from the water damaged building for more than a couple of days. Most of the time it takes at least 48 hours for mold to start to grow on cellulose-based items like paper and cardboard, so getting to these soaked documents as soon as possible before those 48 hours are up is important. The environment in the building should be around 65 degrees Fahrenheit if you can manage it and the humidity needs to remain as low as possible. Mold loves humidity.
If you have any standing water still in the home, it needs to be removed as soon as possible. Documents lying in standing water need to be taken out of it and put on a flat surface quickly. Remove them carefully, since they can fall apart, depending on the weight of the paper and how long it has set in the water.
Figure out what documents are the most important to you. These should include marriage and birth certificates, death certificates, divorce papers, bank papers, warranties on large appliances, and any other legal documents you may have in your home. If you are a writer, a printed manuscript of a book you are working on is one thing that could be considered invaluable, especially if you do not have it stored on electronic media or if the media you did have it stored on was damaged during the storm. Take other printed materials like this into consideration depending on your own unique circumstances. If these items are not completely soaked in water, then you can possibly just dry them out using a fan or simply laying them out to dry. If they have been under the water for a long period of time, then freezing them and drying them at a local facility is best.
Using freezer wrap to separate watery books and documents from each other when you are packing them to take to the freeze drying company is best. Do not pack things tightly and label every box with your contact information.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of
Texas Water Damage Restoration and
Houston Water Damage Restoration Which are Certified IICRC Water damage and mold remediation contractors.
There is no real reason to panic unless you have been away from the water damaged building for more than a couple of days. Most of the time it takes at least 48 hours for mold to start to grow on cellulose-based items like paper and cardboard, so getting to these soaked documents as soon as possible before those 48 hours are up is important. The environment in the building should be around 65 degrees Fahrenheit if you can manage it and the humidity needs to remain as low as possible. Mold loves humidity.
If you have any standing water still in the home, it needs to be removed as soon as possible. Documents lying in standing water need to be taken out of it and put on a flat surface quickly. Remove them carefully, since they can fall apart, depending on the weight of the paper and how long it has set in the water.
Figure out what documents are the most important to you. These should include marriage and birth certificates, death certificates, divorce papers, bank papers, warranties on large appliances, and any other legal documents you may have in your home. If you are a writer, a printed manuscript of a book you are working on is one thing that could be considered invaluable, especially if you do not have it stored on electronic media or if the media you did have it stored on was damaged during the storm. Take other printed materials like this into consideration depending on your own unique circumstances. If these items are not completely soaked in water, then you can possibly just dry them out using a fan or simply laying them out to dry. If they have been under the water for a long period of time, then freezing them and drying them at a local facility is best.
Using freezer wrap to separate watery books and documents from each other when you are packing them to take to the freeze drying company is best. Do not pack things tightly and label every box with your contact information.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of
Texas Water Damage Restoration and
Houston Water Damage Restoration Which are Certified IICRC Water damage and mold remediation contractors.
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