Did the Water Restoration Company really dry everything out?

3/13/2017 (Permalink)

Tools we use when training our techs

I have watched this industry change quite a bit over the past 20 plus years.  There have been a number of factors influencing this change:  Technology, research, changes in billing practices, litigation and (most influential) the media.  The change brought by the media is that more and more mitigation (our main function) has become a term not unfamiliar to the common person any longer.  Couple that with the news coverage of mold and we have more homeowners asking better questions!  By far the most common question: "How do we KNOW it's dry??"  Unfortunately more often than not water restoration "experts" have more faith in their science than they should and do not fully confirm every material is fully dry on every project.  This is because a special practice is required to 100% confirm all substrates are dry.  Here at SERVPRO of Hyde Park / Central Austin we do things a little more innovative.  Pictured above is what is commonly referred to as a "screw set".  Now, this is our in house training tool, so, this is a cut-away illustrating proper application of this technique.  As one can see in the photo a stainless steel screw is set through the baseboard, drywall and sill plate allowing us to read all three substrates at once.  There should be a screw set at the point of water penetration at the very minimum by the end of the project.  It is also common to have multiple other sets in various other areas of concern such as window sills, door headers, cabinets, etc.  If your water restoration company isn't setting screws, they aren't getting all the data!