Classifying a Water Damage

7/7/2019 (Permalink)

When our crew gets to a water damage, we not only categorize it, but we classify the damage as well.

Classification

Water damages are classified based on the amount of water as well as the material involved in the damage.

• Class 1 - This is the least amount of water, absorption, and evaporation. Only a portion of a room is affected or a larger area with minimal moisture absorbed. There is little to no wet carpet present.
• Class 2 - This involves a large amount of water, absorption, and evaporation. At least an entire room with carpet is affected. There is moisture in structural materials and substructure soil.
• Class 3 - This involves the greatest amount of water, absorption, and evaporation. In this class, the water may have come from overhead. Ceilings, walls, insulation, carpets, etc. are saturated.
• Class 4 - This class relates to special drying situations. For example, some materials may require longer drying times and even different methods.

Classifying water damages is vital to our evaluation. It lets us know what type of equipment we need to use, the extent of the damage, and how long we can expect it to take. If you find yourself in this situation, give SERVPRO of Fort Lee a call at (201) 496-6024.