10/30/2024 (Permalink)
SERVPRO of Lynchburg specializes in storm and flood damage restoration. Our crews are highly trained and we use specialized equipment to restore your property to its pre-storm condition.
Have Storm or Flood Damage? Call us today
434-525-9559 or 540-586-1579
10/28/2024 (Permalink)
Here is some great info provided by the Property and Liability Resource Bureau about preventing storm damage. Check them out at plrb.org
Severe Thunderstorms
It is the severe thunderstorm that produces the tornado, large hail, and high wind damage to structures, as well as frequent lightning strikes that cause most property damage. All thunderstorms are dangerous. Though small in size, compared to a hurricane for example, they are extremely powerful. The National Weather Service rates approximately 10,000 thunderstorms as severe each season.
Hail
Background
The majority of the structural damage caused in a severe thunderstorm occurs during a hailstorm. Hail damage to structures, foliage, vehicles, and agricultural crops is estimated to exceed $1-billion annually.
Hail that causes damage to structures is usually at least 1” in diameter. The larger the diameter of the hailstone, and the harder the stone, the more severe the impact on a building. The so-called baseball-sized hail causes more severe damage that the so-called golf-ball sized hail.
Vehicle damage can be caused by hail that is about .75” in diameter. Crop damage has been caused by hail as small as .25”.
Preventing Damage
Roof damage is the most frequent structural loss caused by hail. Reducing roof damage that might result from a major hailstorm is possible. It depends on the type and quality, as well as the maintenance of the structure’s roofing system. It is a fact the cedar shake roofing is more likely to be damaged than 50-pound composite roofing material. The choice of roofing is a decision made by the building’s owner, although building code requirements sometimes restrict it.
Mitigating Damage after a Storm
Close any openings made in the structure by the hail. Broken windows are the most common problem. Keep a roll of plastic sheeting that can be quickly cut to size and nailed over the opening.
Openings in the roof and in siding from hail are rare. If they occur it is best to close them as soon as possible. Keep your personal safety in mind and attempt such a closure yourself only if it can be done with little or no risk. Your insurance policy will likely cover the cost of emergency close up. Contact your agent or claims center to report the damage and seek advice on how to proceed.
Wind
Background
The number two cause of structural damage in a severe thunderstorm is from the so-called straight-line wind. This is wind moving in one direction and not rotating, such as a tornado.
Wind is considered severe when it reaches about 60 miles per hour. Some very severe windstorms can achieve a velocity of 100 miles per hour. Both are dangerous and will cause structural damage.
A form of wind that causes damage approaching that of a strong tornado is the downburst. This is usually in a very concentrated area. It is created by air blasting out of a thunderstorm to the ground beneath the storm cell.
Minimizing and preventing wind damage to a structure is possible. Roof and siding damage are the two leading types of loss following a windstorm.
Roof damage can be reduced during the construction phase when the roof deck and the shingles or membrane are applied over the decking. A well-designed roofing system will firmly anchor the trusses and decking to the walls and foundation to keep the entire roof from lifting off the building in a strong wind. Roofing material must be properly fastened to the deck. Weakly connected shingles will lift easily from the deck.
Siding damage can be reduced at the construction phase as well. Properly fastened siding is less likely to lift off a structure in strong wind. Building codes will likely direct the minimum standards for connections. You, your architect, or your contractor may decide to exceed these minimums for a stronger and more storm resistant structure.
Falling trees and tree limbs are another significant type of damage to structures in a windstorm. Tree maintenance to remove dead limbs or identify and remove weakened trees will reduce the likelihood of the structure being damaged.
Mitigating Damage after a Storm
Close any openings made in the structure by the wind. Roof openings and broken windows are the most common problem. Keep a roll of plastic sheeting that can be quickly cut to size and nailed over the opening.
Keep your personal safety in mind and attempt such a closure yourself only if it can be done with little or no risk. Your insurance policy will likely cover the cost of emergency close up. Contact your agent or claims center to report the damage and seek advice on how to proceed.
Falling trees and tree limbs can open a structure with sudden violence. A tree on a structure is a very serious personal and structural safety issue. A tree may look as if it will not shift position. But it can shift and cause serious injury to the unwary. A fallen tree may also mask other very serious safety issues, such as downed electrical wires. The wires may still be live and the tree itself energized. Contact your agent or claims center to report the damage and seek advice on how to proceed.
Tornadoes
Background
A tornado is a violent rotating column of air. It originates in a severe thunderstorm as a funnel and dips to the ground. Once on the ground it is a tornado and a highly dangerous storm. About 1200 tornadoes occur annually, according to the National Weather Service. Fortunately most of them are the so-called weak tornado with winds of less than 110 miles per hour. While these will damage structures they cause few deaths. The most violent tornadoes, such as the storm that destroyed a swath of property in Oklahoma City and Moore, Oklahoma, during the 2003 season, are very rare. However they kill the most people and cause landscape clearing, catastrophic structural damage.
Please see the wind section for preventing and mitigating damage from a tornado.
Background
Flash flooding sometimes follows rain during a severe thunderstorm. This peril is the leading killer of people during the severe thunderstorms. The fatalities occur not in structures, but usually in vehicles and after dark. Drivers under estimate the depth of water, the energy of its velocity, and how easily a vehicle can begin floating in about 24” of water.
Structural flooding typically occurs in areas that are known to be flood plains and have been mapped by the National Flood Insurance Program.
10/28/2024 (Permalink)
It is tragic when a flood brings devastation and water damage to your home. But rapid water removal, clean up and repairs certainly must get under way for you home to get back to normal with minimal losses.
Safety is a top priority. After the flood damage, evaluation of the home's safety issues must be completed before you dare to enter your home again.
You do need to call your insurance agent to be certain if you are covered under your standard home owners policy or if you do possess flood insurance coverage. An insurance adjuster will be dispatched to your property to inspect the damage and eventually offer a settlement. Ask for help in retaining a competent water damage restoration company. SERVPRO does work with many agencies. We can assess and document all water damaged items, help you with your claims and paperwork, and expedite the water removal and restoration. Our inspection will indicate to you the severity of the water damage that your home has suffered and any potential health effects you may have to address during the process of getting the flood damage repairs done on your home.
When these concerns have been addressed, and if you have been given permission to enter your home, you should also document all the flood causing water damage for insurance purposes. Be sure that you do take pictures of the flooded areas of your home and any damaged belongings, including damaged furniture. This, along with the input from SERVPRO, will help you to be fairly compensated by the insurance company.
Once you have done the documentation and the adjuster had done his inspection, then the clean up starts to get under way. The home needs to be made dry and needs to be cleaned up as soon as possible to prevent any other damage from occurring. This will also lessen the likelihood of mold and mildew growth. Contamination is a given if the flooding is the result of groundwater intrusion, whether from rain, bodies of water, or a sewage blockage. Do not attempt to clean and sanitize on your own. The potential for future illness is too great.
It is wise to call the professionals from SERVPRO because they can immediately begin to pump out the water and mitigate on-going water damage. And they have the skill and knowledge, along with the professional equipment required to start and complete the entire restoration process for you.
After the water removal and clean up are in operation, then repairs need to be done. They could be extensive, depending on how much structural damage has occurred and the condition of the contents of your property.
If you have water damage to your home, call SERVPRO of Lynchburg/Bedford & Campbell Counties at 434-525-9559.
10/28/2024 (Permalink)
If you look on the internet, there are scores of DIY mold test kits. Before you invest in one of these kits, here are things you ought to know about mold:
A true mold test can only be conducted by a Professional Environmental testing company; they determine the type of mold, the source of the moisture, and how to kill the mold at the core. They create a protocol, which can be read by an IICRC professional like SERVPRO of Lynchburg/Bedford & Campbell Counties. It’s best to use a testing company that does not do cleaning themselves because their assessment will be unbiased.
Where the mold is located, often dictates where the moisture is affecting the building
Wood, insulation, fiberglass, carpet and other organic substances become a thriving environment for mold once there is moisture present for more than 24 hours. After a week, it is almost guaranteed.
Free estimates or removing mold yourself cost homeowners more in the long run!
Be wary of companies who advertise free mold testing. Free mold tests are often offered by people who are uncertified or inexperienced and if they do the mold testing themselves, they are using these kits mentioned above. Unless they are a certified Environmental Hygienist and have a PhD in microbiology, they do not have the knowledge or resources to truly diagnose the mold condition in your home.
This means you have to pay to have it removed again, and have more sanitation and demolition performed, which increases the price to rebuild and replace tremendously.
What you should do instead
Having mold can be scary, especially if anyone in your home is prone to getting sick (people with asthma, low immune systems, allergies, babies and the elderly). We recommend the following course of action if you need to have mold removed from your home.
Now that you’re armed with knowledge, it’s time to start making some calls!
SERVPRO of Lynchburg/Bedford & Campbell Counties' technicians are qualified to help you with your mold clean up, and have the following certifications:
8/15/2024 (Permalink)
In a fire, seconds count. Seconds can mean the difference between residents of our community escaping safely from a fire or having their lives end in tragedy.
Everyone needs to have an escape plan!
Have you contacted your local fire department? See how you can get involved with them and your community to prevent house fires. Sometimes they will have events or give out smoke detectors for your home. Don't think this could never happen to you because it easily could. We don't have control over everything in our homes! Be safe and have a plan!
8/15/2024 (Permalink)
Mold can spring up very quickly in humid environments and many homes have areas that are prone to mold growth for this reason. Bathrooms, kitchens, attics, and basements all have the highest chance of developing mold because humid air often circulates in these rooms. Proper ventilation can help to significantly reduce the chance of mold growth in these areas of your home. It is important to take steps to ensure that each room is well-ventilated and that the air is circulating well.
Some of the most important areas to vent are the bathrooms and the attic. Bathrooms are usually quite small with a lot of warm, moist air circulating within them regularly. This makes them very susceptible to rapid mold growth. Investing in vents and fans that push the humid air outside of the home will help to keep mold growth to a minimum. Attics often have poor ventilation and many homeowners are tempted to quickly ventilate bathrooms by placing vents in the bathrooms that push the humid air into the attic. This will result in mold growth in the attic, which could then spread into the ducts as well as tight, difficult-to-reach spaces.
Avoid these potentially costly problems by investing in quality fans and vents that will draw humid air out of the rooms, sending it outside of the home, rather than into the attic.
If you see mold, call SERVPRO of Lynchburg/Bedford & Campbell Counties 434-525-9559.
8/14/2024 (Permalink)
Ever wonder what a water damage is like in the eyes of the technician? Well know you can know! Here is what one of our lead water technicians here as SERVPRO of Lynchburg / Bedford & Campbell Counties, has to say about it.
"There are a million things that run through my mind as a technician when I receive the call for a water damage. Where did the water come from? What kind of floorings are we working with? How many levels of the property are affected? Although these questions are typically answered by the customer on the initial call, we still wonder about the unknown things to prepare for.
These questions are turned to assumptions of the worst as we prepare the trucks to respond, and then we arrive only to ask more questions. What is wet, how wet, how far has the damage spread, and what are the best methods to dry it quickly to prevent further damage? While most technicians can diagnose with a simple tool, we have to diagnose using tools and by looking in places that property owners never even imagine water could have went.
During the course of drying a structure we still ask constant questions like; is it drying, how dry is it, when might it be completely dry. We answer these by frequently checking the amount of moisture content in the air and structure. Water is so good at hiding and most times a property owner is thinking; why are they looking there? Some will say it, while others will just look at you with the eyes of disbelief, but just as we gauge our equipment’s readings, we read the customer and give the response to their possibly unasked concern.
Above all else in the mitigation of a property, I have some other questions that I ask myself. These are the questions that, I feel, distinguish SERVPRO in our industry. How can I make this customer's nightmare turn into a mere uncomfortable dream, and what can my team do to keep our customer confident in us throughout this process? These answers are only available by communication and assurance that the home or business they've worked so hard for are being cared for as if it were ours."
Lead Technician at SERVPRO of Lynchburg / Bedford & Campbell Counties
3/5/2024 (Permalink)
Mission
To develop a team of Quality People, who Focus on Excellent Service, Fairness and Mutual Respect.
Vision
To be the Premier Fire, Water, Mold Restoration Company in the Communities we Serve.
Values
Integrity: To act with integrity and honesty in the work that we do, the people we interact with, and the decisions we make. We will not compromise what is right, for what is easiest.
Customer Service: To provide premier services through continual reviewing of our goals, expectations, and training.
Leadership: To lead others by our example.
Responsibility: To maintain our team’s strong foundation, and to be a positive agent of change.
Respect: To show respect to others with our words, our actions and our attitudes.
Goals
SERVPRO of Lynchburg/Bedford & Campbell Counties seeks to honor the Lord in all that we do, and to have a positive impact on the lives of our employees, customers, and community.
3/5/2024 (Permalink)
A basement can flood at any time, although flooding most often occurs during heavy rainfall. Basements are inherently prone to flooding because they are the lowest level of a building and are normally built partly or entirely below ground level. There are a number of reasons why your Lynchburg basement could flood, including:
Have Questions about Basement Flooding?
Call Today - 434-525-9559
If flood water is not handled quickly and properly, it can jeopardize your health and safety, and cause severe damage to your home’s structure. Remember, the longer you wait, the worse the problem will get.
The bottom line: a flooded basement can jeopardize your health, safety, and your home’s integrity. It’s worth making a call to SERVPRO of Lynchburg / Bedford & Campbell Counties and let our trained, professional crews handle the situation safely and correctly. We have earned the trust of hundreds of homeowners, business owners, and property professionals.
We are Flooded Basement Specialists:
3/5/2024 (Permalink)
Electrical fires are the cause of many house fires can be some of the most difficult to put out due to the difficulty of identifying the source. Proper care of electrical outlets and appliances will help to prevent electrical fires. It is very important to follow manufacturer guidelines when using electrical appliance and systems, such as the wattage guidelines given when changing light bulbs. Be sure that you do not plug in too many electrical units into one outlet, as this could burn out the outlet and cause a fire. Be sure that you have your wiring checked regularly by an electrician. Faulty wiring is a leading cause of electrical fires and is a common problem in many homes. If you hear a sparking sound near a particular electrical outlet or appliance or see smoke or smell burning after plugging a unit in, immediately unplug the object and call an electrician to check your wiring.
Finally, if an electrical fire does occur, do NOT attempt to put the blaze out with water. This will only make the fire worse and could shock or electrocute you. If safe to do so, attempt to unplug the source. Put the fire out using baking soda or a blanket to smother the flames. If the fire is larger, a class C fire extinguisher can be used. If the fire continues to grow, leave immediately! Do not be tempted to put out a growing fire by yourself. Allow the firefighters to do so.
If your home has been damaged by fire, please call SERVPRO of Lynchburg/Bedford & Campbell Counties at (434)-525-9559.
24/7 Emergency Service