Water Damage Prone Areas of the Bathroom

Water damage in the bathroom is some serious business, since it can lower the value of your home significantly if it is not taken care of and also since it causes the bathroom to be unattractive to you and the rest of your family. Structural problems are also a hazard, but in the beginning the damage will only be cosmetic. This is fortunate, since you will be able to notice that there is a problem long before it does any long lasting damage. There are a few things that you can do to watch for water damage occurring to one of the most important rooms in your home.

There are several different junctions of water in your bathroom and they need to be inspected regularly and thoroughly to detect the presence of water damage. These are the sink, toilet, bath tub, and shower.

The shower and bath tub can require some special maintenance and attention. The tiles around the tub may crack over time and if they are, you should replace them and note whether there is any missing grout between any of the tiles. This grout needs to be filled in to keep water from seeping underneath the tile and damaging the wood underneath. Cracked caulking around the joints where the tile meets the walls or the tub needs to be replaced, as well.

The sink should be looked at every time you do a bathroom inspection, as the plumbing underneath could possibly be leaking. The seals in the pipes should be replaced if they are found to be loose or cracked in any way.

The toilet is also a vulnerable area of the bathroom. Any signs of moisture on the floor around the base of the toilet should be paid close attention to and any cracked tile around the base should be replaced. Toilets are notorious for overflowing due to clogs and one of the best ways to prevent this is to not put more toilet paper in it than it can handle at once. Hanging toilet bowl cleansers are also not advised, because these are likely to cause clogging.

Checking out the plumbing inside the walls can be difficult to do, but if you keep an eye out for signs of moisture on the walls and around the floor, you should be able to detect any leaks before they do any great amount of damage.


Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
New Jersey mold inspections and other states and cities such as
north carolina mold inspections companies across the united states.

Water Damage Prevention: Exhaust Fans

Keeping moisture out of your bathroom can be a big task, but installing an exhaust vent over the bath tub or the shower can be a tremendous help in this endeavor.

The purpose of the unit is to remove the steam from the bathroom so it does not become absorbed by the ceiling and walls in the bathroom and cause water damage. Mold growth is also a typical problem in the bathroom, so the exhaust fan will actually help you fight this second problem.

The quality of the fan is important. The quieter the fan’s operation, the higher the quality is. Some manufacturers do not put a noise rating on the packaging of the product, but most tend to do this to separate their high end exhaust fans from their basic ones. The other determining factor is how much air the exhaust fan will move per minute. The higher quality the fan, the more air it will remove from the room.

Ask yourself whether or not you want a light integrated into the fan unit. If so, then you might need a little bit of knowledge of how the electrical system in your house works. Purchasing a book on the subject is advised if you plan on installing the unit yourself.

If the fan is going to have a light in it, then it is a good idea to use the hole in your ceiling that should already exist from your original overhead light. If this does not exist or you want the fan separate from the light, you will create a hole with the jab saw. The electrical book you should have purchased should lay out the options on the kinds of switches you can use and how each one should be wired so you know you have continuity and that the wiring you install is correct.

After you are done wiring the fan, the exhaust duct kit will be installed next and this should come with instructions. This kit can be purchased at some hardware stores and home improvement stores.

Venting the air to the outside with the hose that came with the duct kit is not that difficult to do. Find the nearest soffit in your attic and cut a hole in it that follows the instructions that came with your duct kit. Attach the hose to it and you should be finished.

You will save a lot of money and time by installing this fan before water damage and mold becomes a problem in the bathroom. The damage caused by either can be quite extensive and expensive to repair.


Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
New Jersey mold inspections and other states and cities such as
north carolina mold inspections companies across the united states.

Standing Water, Water Damage, and Mold

Standing water inside of a home anywhere is a nuisance and most homeowners do not appreciate the liquid’s intrusion. It can happen almost anywhere, but most of the time the leaking of water into your house is completely preventable and the ability to repair it is always there.

Standing water not only causes water damage to the floor and walls, but it can also become a healthy breeding ground for mold. Stachybotrys atra is known for having a love of standing water and this is one of the last molds that you want growing in your house. While this mold is not as common as other genii of mold such as Cladosporium, Aspergillus, and Penicillium, it is not a rare one. It generally appears on items that have a high amount of cellulose content, such as dust, wood, paper on drywall, and etcetera. It requires almost constant moisture for days or weeks in order to start growing.

The health problems caused by Stachybotrys atra can be anything from coughing, runny noses, wheezing, and etcetera all the way to serious respiratory infections, rashes, and other serious health conditions.

Removing standing water from your home should be done as quickly as possible in order to prevent this mold growth and to prevent water damage. There are a few different causes of standing water.

If there is standing water in the basement after a heavy rain, then the cause could be that water is leaking into the basement through the foundation near the surface. This generally happens when water settles in around the base of the home in pockets because the soil is not piled high enough around the house. Water should not be allowed to settle around the house in this manner, so pile soil up around the foundation so that water runs down and away from it. Another good thing to do to keep this from happening is keeping your rain gutters cleared out as often as is necessary to keep them unclogged. Installing downspout extensions can also help run the water away from the home.

A cause of chronic standing water in the basement could be an underground spring leaking through the wall. There may not be much that you can do about this other than to have a drainage system installed. Do not assume that one type of drainage system fits all types of home constructions, because it does not. Talk to a contractor and find out what they recommend.

Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Chicago Water and Sewage Extraction and other states and cities such as
North Carolina Water and Sewage Extraction companies across the united states.

Repairing Water Damaged Drywall

Water damaged ceilings can definitely be a safety hazard in your home, but not everyone has the money to hire a professional to repair or replace the section of drywall affected. It may just be a badly discolored piece of drywall or it could be that the tape between one section of drywall and another is sagging down. Even worse, the drywall could be weak in the middle and eventually collapse onto someone you care about. Something needs to be done about these water damaged areas of ceiling not only for structural purposes, but also for cosmetic ones, as well.

If the ceiling is only discolored badly with water stains, all you really should have to do is paint over it with primer first and then paint over that with the color of the rest of the ceiling. Your ceiling may be a traditional and ordinary white, but other colors will cover up the stains better, so consider this an opportunity to change the color of your ceiling. You will not have as much trouble covering up the stains with a paint that is not white.

No matter where the damaged piece of drywall is in your home, repairing it should be pretty easy. If it is the tape that is sagging down and coming apart from the drywall, all you need to do is remove the tape. Replace the tape and place joint compound over it. Smooth this out until the tape is not noticeable, paint over it with primer, then with the color of your ceiling.

If the drywall is sagging or cracked in the middle, then it needs to be completely replaced. You need to take out the entire damaged part of the drywall all the way to the joists, because the new piece of drywall needs something solid to hang onto or it will fall. It needs to be cut down the center of a joist in the ceiling so the new piece has something to rest on. Cut the new drywall to fit the part that you removed, screw it in with a drill, and tape over it the seam. Use joint compound over the tape and screws and smooth it out until the seams and screws are not noticeable anymore. Paint over it with primer the same way you would if you were only replacing the tape as mentioned earlier and then paint the color you desire back over it.

Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
New York Sewage Damage Clean-up and other states and cities such as
North Carolina Water and Sewage Extraction companies across the united states.

Drying Out Water Damaged Properties

As you can imagine, drying out a home or other building that’s been submerged in water, whether it’s flood water or rain water, can be quite a daunting task. Here we’ll discuss a few different ways to begin the process.

A flood can happen in almost an instant, but drying out a home or other property can take a long time. Depending on the property you’re trying to dry out, using hot air drying techniques may damage the building, especially if it’s a historical one.

Before beginning the drying process, be sure to address the electrical hazard. Make sure all power to your home is completely off. Just because the power is off for all your neighbors, don’t assume that yours is off, too. This could be a very fatal mistake. Not only should you be careful of electrical hazards, but biological ones, as well. Flood waters such as those caused by Hurricane Katrina can be contaminated with human and animal waste, all manner of chemicals, and even cadavers. Protect your eyes, mouth, hands, and wear a respirator. Wash your hands in disinfectant soap after a session of cleaning and again before you eat.

Take pictures of the damage with a camera or if possible, videotape them. This documentation will make it easier when you begin negotiating with your insurance adjuster on what compensation you will be eligible for.

Make any repairs necessary to keep water from re-entering the home. These repairs should only be temporary while you get the majority of the building dried.

Any effort to begin drying out a home is the attic. Any wet insulation should be removed as quickly as possible; it is no longer useful, but it is heavy and holds moisture for quite a long time and will continue to cause damage to wood, metal, and drywall. If anything in the attic is soaked with water, remove it. These waterlogged items are heavy and can cause the ceilings to crack. Fresh air circulating through your home is a good way to begin and if you have any fans, turn them on once you’re confident that you can’t become electrocuted simply by walking around.

Opening the windows throughout the house (as long as it isn’t raining) will help and at this time you should begin to wash down any wooden items in the home in order to remove mud, silt, and other debris.


Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors and
Orlando water Damage companies.

Mold And Your New Home

Say that you’re having a new home built for you. Imagine your surprise when you discover after it’s done that it’s infested with mold! What a nightmare that would be! Most people don’t think about the possibility of mold actually being built into their homes when the contractor is in the process of building it. How can this happen?

Sometimes building materials that have mold on them are used in the house’s construction and the contractor and/or his supervisors don’t assess the quality of the materials before using them. The best thing you can do to prevent mold from being built into your new home are to inspect the building materials and test them yourself.

Sometimes the materials bought to build your home with are stored outside directly on the ground and in cases where it rains on them and the humidity is high, mold can and will begin to grow on these items, depending on how long they are left there. Both building materials and the entire home itself should be covered with plastic sheeting at the end of each day to make sure the part of the home that is already completed and the materials it is being built with are safe from rain. Until the walls and roof of the house are installed and are completely able to keep out rain and other kinds of precipitation, it should be covered each and every day of the construction.

The home sometimes isn’t tested for mold growth as it should and when it should be, which is during the home’s construction and after it is finished. Although some people choose to do mold testing during and after their new home’s construction on their own (as they should), it is the job of the contractor to make sure the integrity of the structure is not compromised by anything, including mold. You could sue the contractor if you discover the mold contamination after the home is already built, but who wants to build a home for thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars just to find out that you can’t live in it? Nobody I know of.

The modern materials that we use to build homes these days, including drywall and plywood, are things that mold love to eat. Most homes are built recently have some amount of these materials in them, though, and sometimes it can’t be helped unless you want a more expensive alternative.



Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Houston Fire Damage Water Restoration Contractor companies and
Los Angeles Water Damage and Restoration Services.

End Mold’s Romance With Your Bathroom

When home buyers finally decide to purchase a new home, one of the first things they consider remodeling tends to be the bathroom. Bathroom remodeling isn’t always the easiest thing to do, especially if you are so unlucky as to find a colony of mold living in what is supposed to be one of the most comforting and relaxing areas of your home. Most people, however, wouldn’t know what to do if they found a mold colony in any part of their home, much less their beloved bathroom, even though this is one of the more likely places to find it.

The reason that the bathroom is one of the most common places to find infestations of mold is because there is a constant pattern of heat and humidity in this space. While some kinds of mold pose no threat to human beings, other kinds of mold can be hazardous to our health and can even render our homes uninhabitable. Black mold is found in many bathrooms and basements and it is very toxic. It has been known to cause rashes, fevers, flu-like symptoms and other health complications. If you discover what you think is black mold (and it truly does appear to be black), it’s best to call in a professional to get rid of it.

While it’s expensive to have the mold in your home removed, you will definitely want to put this on your to-do list. It can and will move to other parts of your home if it’s left unchecked. After the mold is removed successfully and you continue with your bathroom remodeling project, you’ll want to take steps to prevent the re-growth of mold in the future.

Install a bathroom fan while you’re remodeling if you don’t already have one. This is one of the best things that you can do to prevent mold from sneaking back into your quiet space. Bathroom fans get rid of the majority of the moisture that mold needs to grow and survive. Even if you’re not remodeling right now and your bathroom has no visible signs of mold, don’t bet on mold not invading there in the future, if you don’t have a fan in the bathroom, you should get one.

After showering or bathing, the shower curtain should be shaken off in the tub to direct as much water as possible toward the drain. Water that collects on the walls surrounding the tub should also be wiped either dry or down toward the drain with a squeegee. You want all the surfaces in your bathroom to dry out as quickly as possible.




Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Houston Fire Damage Water Restoration Contractor companies and
Los Angeles Water Damage and Restoration Services.