Water Damage After Firefighting in Coachella

The fire is out, but the water the hoses left behind is still in the house — in the floors, the ceilings, the insulation, and the wall cavities. The drying is the longest part of the job, and it cannot be rushed: the walls are closed only when the readings say the moisture is normal, and the readings are taken every day until they are. This post explains where the water goes, how the drying works, and what the readings say when it is done.

The second thing to understand is that the water is not a side effect. It is the firefighting, and it is the reason the fire went out — and it is also the reason the house needs drying, because the water soaks deeper into floors and wall cavities with every hour it sits. The provider maps the water on the first visit, and the drying follows the map, not the eye, because a floor that looks dry can still be wet underneath.

Where the Water Goes

The water goes where the fire was, and then it goes further. The hoses soak the room where the fire started, and then the water runs — down through the floors, into the ceilings below, into the wall cavities, and into the insulation. A fire on the second floor leaves water on the first floor, and a fire in a kitchen leaves water in the rooms underneath it. The provider maps the water on the first visit, and the map is what the drying follows.

The water also goes where you cannot see it. It soaks into the subfloor, into the framing, into the insulation behind the walls, and into the ceiling below. A room that looks dry on the surface can still be wet inside the wall, and a wall that is closed too early will grow mould and have to be opened again. The moisture is read with a meter, not with a hand, because the hand can only feel the surface.

The water goes into the contents too. The furniture, the carpets, the books, the clothes — all of them absorb water, and all of them need to be assessed, listed and either dried or removed. The provider lists and photographs every damaged item, and the inventory says which is which. What can be dried is dried, what must be removed is removed, and the record is what the claim is built on.

How the Drying Works

The drying works with air movers and dehumidifiers, which run through the job and pull the moisture out of the air and out of the materials. The air movers push dry air across the wet surfaces, and the dehumidifiers pull the moisture out of the air, and together they dry the house from the inside out. The machines run for days, and they run day and night, because the drying cannot be rushed.

The drying is checked every day, with a moisture meter, in every wet room. The readings are taken in the material, not on the surface, because the surface dries first and the inside dries last. The walls are closed only when the readings say the moisture is normal — not when the surface feels dry, and not when the calendar says it is time. The readings decide, and the readings are what keep the job honest.

The valley's heat changes the drying. A Coachella summer dries a surface fast, but the moisture underneath is what matters, and the readings are taken in the material, not on the surface. A room that feels dry on a hot afternoon can still be wet inside the wall, and a wall that is closed too early will grow mould and have to be opened again. The drying takes as long as it takes, and the readings are what say when it is done.

Why the Readings Matter

The readings matter because the eye cannot see moisture. A floor that looks dry can still be wet underneath, a wall that feels dry can still be wet inside, and a ceiling that looks clean can still be holding water. The moisture meter reads the material, and the readings are written down every day, so the file shows the drying as it happened, not as it was remembered.

The readings matter because the claim reads them. The provider's record — the photographs, the inventory, the drying readings — goes into the claim file, and the readings are what show the drying was done properly. A job that is closed without readings is a job that cannot prove it was dry, and a job that cannot prove it was dry is a job that will be questioned.

The readings matter because the mould follows the moisture. A wall that is closed while it is still wet will grow mould, and the mould will spread, and the wall will have to be opened again and the job done twice. The readings are what stop that from happening, and the readings are what say when the job is done. The provider will not close a wall before the readings are normal.

What Not to Do with the Water

Do not wait. The water soaks deeper into floors and wall cavities with every hour it sits, and the longer it sits, the more it costs to dry. Call (561) 566-7293 and describe the water — where it is, how deep it is, which rooms are wet, and whether it is still coming in. The provider will tell you whether the job needs a visit, and what the visit will cover, before any work starts.

Do not mop the water and call the job done. A mop cleans the surface, but the water underneath stays, and the moisture will come back through the floor and the walls. Do not turn on the air conditioning, because it pushes the soot through the ducts and spreads the moisture to rooms that were not affected. Do not close the walls before the readings are normal, because a wall that is closed too early will grow mould and have to be opened again.

Do not throw anything away without photographing it first, and do not start cleaning before the adjuster has seen the damage, unless the provider tells you the cleaning cannot wait. Photograph every wet room, every damaged item, and every surface, before anything is moved or cleaned, because the photographs are the record your insurer will read.

When the Drying Is Done

The drying is done when the readings say the moisture is normal, in every wet room, for more than one day. The provider will tell you when the readings are normal, and will show you the readings, because the readings are the record and the record is what the claim is built on. The walls are closed only when the readings say the moisture is normal.

The drying is done when the rooms are clean, dry and rebuilt, and the contents come back last. What can be cleaned is returned, what must be replaced is replaced, and the inventory is checked against the list that was made on the first visit. The provider will walk the property with you at the end, room by room, and the job is not finished until you have seen it and the readings say the moisture is normal.

The drying is done when the smell is gone. The soot carries the smell, and the smell lingers in walls, ceilings and ducts long after the soot is gone, and the smell is the last thing to go. The provider treats the source, not the smell, and the source is the soot in the walls, the ceilings, the ducts and the fabrics. The smell is the thing that tells you whether the job is done.

Drying After Firefighting, in Order

1. Map the water — The provider maps the water on the first visit — the floors, the ceilings, the insulation, the wall cavities.
2. Extract the water — The standing water is extracted first, before the drying starts.
3. Run the machines — Air movers and dehumidifiers run for days, day and night, and the readings are taken every day.
4. Check the readings — The walls are closed only when the readings say the moisture is normal.
5. Close the walls — The repair starts when the drying is done, and the contents come back last.

Mistakes That Make Water Damage Worse

• Waiting while the water soaks deeper into floors and wall cavities
• Mopping the surface and calling the job done
• Turning on the air conditioning, which pushes soot through the ducts
• Closing walls before the drying readings are normal
• Throwing wet items away before they are photographed and listed

For help with this in Coachella, see Firefighting Water Extraction & Drying in Coachella — or go back to the Coachella fire damage restoration home page.