Water Damage - How New is it? - Learn by Taking These Steps

A natural problem that a lot of residences face is some form of water damage. As water damage repair professionals, Paul Davis understands the issues that water damage leads to, especially when it isn't in sight. Your house has plumbing running throughout it, including the inside of your ceilings and walls. If these pipes have condensation on them or a leak, they can slowly erode your ceiling or walls. One of the more frustrating parts to this is determining whether the water damage is new or old.

It's challenging to check how old the the damage produced by water is for these areas that can't be seen. Though, you could have a leaky pipe that was slightly dripping for a period of time but because it's not in plain sight, you don't know how long. There's no sure way to determine the precise time of the problem, but there are some ways to approximate the age of the water damage.

Find Out the Lifetime of Your Water Damage

The following steps can help you gain insight in finding out whether the damage produced by water is new or old:

  • History of the House: Take note of any spots on your ceiling or walls and take into account any strong weather you had in your location like a heavy rain storm. Water spots and damages can take awhile to materialize if it's a slight leak. If you live in an older house, the water damage spots could have been there for some time. So it's important to take note of the spots you observe while determining whether this is old water damage or old water damage.
  • History of the House: When your residence has any spots caused from water damage, it's important to take note of them when finding out whether damage caused from water is new or old. Additionally, you'll want to be cognizant of any storms that could bring hidden water damage to the surface like heavy rain. Know your house, because smaller leaks can take awhile to appear, and if you know what's new and what's old, you'll be able to pinpoint your problem faster.
  • Touch the Spot: You'll can verify whether the damage produced by water is old or new just by touching it. An older spot is going to be spongy because the material has taken in a fair amount of water. A newer spot is going to be moist, but the material will have a solid feel to it.
  • Look for Rings: When you see just a darker spot with no rings around it, this indicates that the damage produced by water is new. Older damage produced by water will have rings around it, and just like a tree, the more rings indicates the age. Different colored and shades of rings shows you that the area has been soaked, dried, soaked, dried, etc.
  • Examine the Materials: Materials like thick paint and tiles can trap water and moisture, so when you have a water spot leaking through one of these, this can indicate there's been a buildup of water for a period of time. Knowing the materials in your property can help you focus on your water damage problems more efficiently.
  • Mold Inspection: If you find that bacteria is there, the damage produced by water has lingered for nearly two to three days.
  • Decay: When your materials decompose from water damage, this is typically the result of repeat flooding or standing water. Rot typically doesn't happen from the first situation of a leak.

Dispose of Water Damage & Call Paul

The degree of the damage produced by water doesn't matter, Paul Davis is here to help. Our team of professional water damage restoration contractors can resolve the problem and have your residence in a great state. Remedy the problem now before it gets in a worse condition and call us at +1-403-696-8886 for a local franchise near you.