Water Damage Repair
1-800 Water Damage performs hundreds of water damage repair jobs per year in Grand Junction, CO. Our office has been in this location for over 7 years, so we’ve seen a lot of flooding scenarios in peoples’ homes.
As one of the largest restoration contractors in Grand Junction we also have a very strong concept of the restoration market within our area. Not a lot of people really understand how to perform water damage cleanup, or know how the industry works when it comes to insurance, claims, adjusters, deductibles, and restoration time-frames.
That’s why we’re working to demystify the industry, help homeowners to avoid floods in their homes, and know what to do in case the worst occurs.
What to Expect with Water Damage
1-800 Water Damage of Western Colorado responds to water damage repair emergencies or other types of home disasters (such as with fire damage or mold remediation) within about 1 hour, plus drive time. If you live within Grand Junction city limits, our response time is an hour and a half or less, even for emergency, after-hours calls.
If you need water damage repair in Fruita, CO, Palisade, or other surrounding areas, expect a little longer. Rifle, CO, Delta, CO, and other towns more than 30 minutes away from Grand Junction – expect about a 2-hour response time, total.
First Steps to Respond
- If you do have water damage in your home, shut off your main water valve. It’s extremely important to minimize the amount of damage caused by a flood by shutting off the main water valve.
- The sooner water is turned off, the less time will be involved for restoring your home, meaning you can get back to your regular life.
- After shutting off your water valve, you should then call 1-800 Water Damage.
- When you call us, we also help you take the next steps as far as insurance goes. You may consider calling in a claim with your insurance carrier at that time, as well, but we walk you through whether that’s a good decision. If your loss size is very small, it may not be worth putting in a claim, for example.
Water Damage and Insurance Deductibles
Some water damage losses aren’t very large, even if the initial leak may appear disastrous.
We recently responded to a water loss in an older home. It appeared that a pipe broke, and water poured into the basement like rainfall. Once we got the water turned off though, the dry-out was complete in just over a day. No reconstruction services. No big deal. Pretty inexpensive for the homeowner.
Luckily, in this case, the homeowner did not put in a claim with their insurance carrier. Had the homeowner done so, the total cost of the claim would have been less than their deductible, and the claim would have been a waste.
Insurance Companies and Risk
We all buy home insurance to protect our homes from the sometimes-large costs associated with water damage repair, mold remediation, and fire damage restoration. When you put in a claim with your insurance, it goes on your record. Even in the above scenario where the total cost of the claim would have been less than the homeowner’s deductible, the “zero-dollar claim” still would have counted against the homeowner, had they put in a claim.
Insurance agencies insure against risk, but they aim to have as few “risky clients” as possible. Some insurance companies discontinue policies if the policy holder (aka the homeowner) puts in too many claims within a specified time period. The homeowner is then forced to find a new insurance carrier to continue coverage on their home. Not an ideal scenario.
Should You Put in a Claim?
When 1-800 Water Damage responds to a water loss, we help you determine if it’s a good idea to put in a claim. We do this by estimating how much the water damage repair to the home will cost, then looking at your deductible.
Deductibles are the amount of any claim put on the property for which the homeowner is responsible. Insurance coverage does not go into effect until deductibles are paid.
Small Water Damage Claims
There’s a kind of additional risk that comes with small water damage claims. You, as the homeowner, may be up your ankles in standing water, but you don’t want to put in a claim on your home because the overall cost of repair could be under your deductible.
That’s one major area where 1-800 Water Damage of Western Colorado can help. We help you decide if it’s worth putting in an insurance claim for your home’s disaster, based on our estimated cost of repairs.
You never have to consider whether you should put in a water claim, without professional guidance.
Water Damage Cost
The average water damage repair job in Grand Junction, CO costs about $3,500 for mitigation (dry out and removal of damaged materials), and $7,000 for reconstruction. Most homeowners do not have a $10,000 deductible.
This means that most times someone calls a professional or looks them up online for flood damage repair, they’re going to be well over their deductible. There’s usually no question about it. But, it’s still good to know that for sure by calling us first, just to be sure.
Water Damage Repair Time
Water damage dry-out in a home typically takes 3-7 days and is relatively painless, aside from loss of access to certain parts of the home (or in some cases, the entire home), and general noise involved from running equipment.
The actual amount of time required is usually determined by the size of loss, types of affected materials, “category of loss,” and overall job scope. Things can sometimes get complicated, however, when a home contains asbestos.
Water Damage and Asbestos
Regulation 8 in Colorado requires that if more than 32 square feet of drywall is removed from a home, it must be tested for asbestos. If a home is found to contain asbestos, that material must in some cases be abated before dry-out can be completed.
Abatement in a home is typically completed within a few days, but scheduling an abatement company can be difficult depending on their availability. It’s not uncommon in Grand Junction for asbestos abatement companies to be booked out several months in advance.
Reconstruction
Once a home has been dried out and asbestos removed or deemed free from a home, reconstruction begins. Reconstruction can take anywhere from a couple days to a couple months. The most time-intensive part of reconstruction is lead times for materials.
Getting new cabinets made for a home, for example, can take a month, at least. Lead time has only increased since last year, with nation-wide shipping delays.
Avoid Mold Growth
The main reason any homeowner should call a professional restoration company when they have water damage in their home is to avoid microbial growth.
Our main warning is that mold is far more common in Grand Junction than you might think. Just because we have a dry climate doesn’t mean there aren’t humid areas in your home – the kitchen, and bathroom, for example.
When water is introduced into any area of your home via a broken pipe or leak, the environment can become ideal to allow for mold growth. And believe us, every part of your home already has mold spores. They aren’t dangerous, but they’re there. It’s just part of the natural world we live in.
When it comes to water damage repair, don’t cut corners and open the door for mold to grow. Even if you’re worried about your deductible, insurance, and overall cost, it’s better to get professional advice.
Paying upfront for water damage repair from a professional contractor is far less expensive than trying to handle it yourself. Even small mold jobs can cost upwards of $10,000.
