90-minute on-site guaranteeFree inspectionsFree leak detection24/7 emergency responseFull insurance claim management90-minute on-site guaranteeFree inspectionsFree leak detection24/7 emergency responseFull insurance claim management
Every restoration decision, what gets saved, what gets removed, how the crew dresses, starts with one question: what category is the water?
Source: supply lines, faucets, appliance feeds, melting snow/ice.
Stakes: most materials can be dried in place if you move fast.
Source: washer/dishwasher discharge, tank overflows, aquariums, waterbeds.
Stakes: drying plus antimicrobial treatment; some porous materials go.
Source: sewage, floor-drain backups, rising ground/surface flood water.
Stakes: health hazard, containment, PPE, removal of what it soaked.
The category describes contamination, not volume. A hundred gallons of Category 1 supply water is a big drying job; five gallons of Category 3 sewage is a hazard protocol. Volume sets how much equipment shows up; category sets the rules everyone works under.
Clear, odorless water from a supply line, faucet, appliance feed, or snowmelt. It never touched soil, drains, or anything dirty on the way to your floor.
Extract immediately, dry in place wherever materials allow, and monitor daily to dry standard. Handled inside the first day or two, demolition is usually avoidable.
Truck-mount or portable extractors, weighted wands for carpet, air movers, LGR dehumidifiers, moisture meters and thermal imaging for the daily log.
Low health risk but real electrical risk, kill power to wet areas. The clock is the enemy: about 48 hours of sitting reclassifies it to Category 2, and hidden migration into wall bottoms is the classic miss.
Cloudy or gray water, often with a soapy or sour smell: washer and dishwasher discharge, tank overflows, aquarium or waterbed failures.
Extraction, saturated carpet pad removed, cleaning plus EPA-registered antimicrobial on everything the water touched, then monitored structural drying.
Extractors and air movers, LGR dehumidifiers, HEPA air scrubbers where airflow could spread contamination, antimicrobials matched to the surface.
Skin and ingestion irritant: keep kids and pets clear, wash after any contact. Porous materials get a case-by-case call, and untreated Category 2 degrades to Category 3.
Sewage smell, dark or debris-laden water, or any water from beyond the drain trap, floor-drain backups, and rising outdoor flood water are automatic Category 3.
Containment first, occupants out of the affected zone. Crews in full PPE remove and lawfully dispose of what soaked, clean and disinfect the structure, and verify before rebuild.
Containment poly with negative air, HEPA air scrubbers, dedicated extraction gear, EPA-registered disinfectants, full personal protective equipment.
Pathogens from the first minute: bacteria, viruses, parasites. Never touch it, never run the HVAC through it, and keep immune-compromised family, kids, and pets out of the house until cleared. This is not a DIY category at any volume.
Not sure which category you’re looking at? Describe it, free
No pressure, no truck rolled, just an honest read on your situation.
Standing water feeds bacteria and wicks through materials. Warmth accelerates everything. Friday’s clean-water leak, discovered Monday, is no longer a clean-water job, which is why “we’ll deal with it after the weekend” is the most expensive sentence in restoration.
Water sitting right now? The category clock is running
No pressure, no truck rolled, just an honest read on your situation.
If you hear our crew (or your adjuster) mention class, that’s the other axis: how much evaporation load the job carries, Class 1 (a corner of a room) through Class 4 (water bound deep in hardwood, plaster, concrete). Category picks the safety protocol; class picks the equipment math. Both land in your documentation. Full guide: water damage classes 1–4, explained. (More trade vocabulary, translated: the glossary.)
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No pressure, no truck rolled, just an honest read on your situation.
Five-minute callback, honest advice, zero obligation. That’s the whole pitch.
Keep your phone nearby. If water is still spreading, shut off the main valve now, it’s usually in the basement or crawl space, on the street-facing wall.