Premier Water Damage Restoration Pasadena CA

Water damage in Pasadena can take many forms. The S500 Standard by the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification (IICRC) defines water damage categories and classes.

Water damage categories are clean water, gray water, and black water. 

• Clean water damage doesn’t pose a health risk, but it can still soak up your belongings and result in a loss. It comes from leaking water supply pipes, backed-up sinks, and weather-related damage through your roof or windows like heavy raining, snow, and ice dams.  
• Gray water has a slight level of contamination, containing chemicals and food waste. Sump pump overflows and broken appliances or air conditioners are common causes of gray water. Gray water damage also includes toilet overflows that do not contain feces. 
• Black water is the most hazardous type of water damage. Typically, sewage backups, feces-filled toilet overflows, and natural disasters like flooding are the culprits. 

Professionals should almost always handle gray and black water, while knowledgeable homeowners or property managers can handle clean water on their own. 

The categories of water damage are determined by the level of water contamination, as you might expect. 

However, water damage classes are determined by how likely it is for the water to evaporate. Instead of the contamination levels, they are determined by the volume and depth of the damage. There are four water damage classes, numbered one through four. 

• Class 1 water damage only affects one room and evaporates slowly.
• Class 2 is still contained in a single room, but the water evaporates faster this time, affecting the more critical components of the building, such as the walls and flooring, on the surface level.
• Class 3 evaporation is the most rapid, with damaged drywall, insulation, and subflooring, and multiple rooms affected.
• Class 4 damage is rare but extremely destructive, with water flooding the entire property. Repairing such damage can easily cost five or even six figures. The entire structure must be repaired, including the concrete, bricks, foundation, and other elements. 

Again, class 1 can be DIYed, but the rest of the classes should not be.