A Guidance to Figure Out the Age of Water Spots

When you have backed-up toilets, sinks or bathtubs that overflow, you know that water damage repairs will be needed. Still, your residence can suffer from water damage in ways that aren’t as apparent. Since you have pipes running through your home, you can have a pipe leaking or an accumulation of condensation between your ceilings and walls. It’s an alarming problem because this isn’t visible- you won’t notice it until you there’s water damage, and then it’s hard to diagnose how long the problem has persisted.

You can figure out how new or old your water issues are by analyzing the water damage itself since the pipes are concealed. Unfortunately, it’s hard to figure out a precise timeline, but we have some guidance on how to examine the damage so you can come up with an approximate time on how long you’ve had water in the damaged space.

Tips On Water Damage – Evaluate its Age

The following tips can help you judge whether the damage caused by water is new or old:

  • History of the House: Keep a record of any spots on your walls or ceilings and take into account any outside influences like heavy rain. Damages and spots caused by water can take awhile to emerge if the leak is small. If you live in an older house, the water damage spots could have been there for awhile. So it’s critical to take note of the spots you see while figuring out whether this is new water damage or old water damage.
  • History of the House: An old residence could already have some previous water damage, so it’s essential to keep a record of what’s there and to note if the damage changes over a period of time. Tracking the weather is a good idea as well, because if you have a a slow leak, it can take awhile for a spot to surface. Keeping track of your water damages can save you lots of time when pinpointing whether the damage caused from water is new or old.
  • Touch the Spot: You’ll can check whether the damage caused by water is old or new just by feeling it. An older spot is going to be mushy because the material has taken in a good amount of moisture. A newer spot is going to be moist, but the material will still have a solid feel to it.
  • Look for Rings: You know how tree rings show the age of the tree? The same method can be used towards water spots. An older water spot is going to have rings around it. They will also be discolored since the spot gets wet then dries and gets wet again then dries again, etc. A newer spot will be darker with no rings around it.
  • Examine the Materials: It’s fundamental to know about the materials that comprise your walls or ceilings, since things like tiles or thick paint can actually trap moisture. If this is the situation, even a small water spot can indicate the buildup of water has been around for a while.
  • Mold Inspection: Bacteria, or mold, growth typically indicates that the damage caused by water has lingered for about two to three days.
  • Decay: If your materials decompose from damage produced by water, this is typically the outcome of repeat flooding or standing water. Rot typically doesn’t occur from the first instance of a leak.

Eradicate Damage Produced by Water & Call Paul Davis

The size of the damage caused by water doesn’t matter, Paul Davis is here to assist. Our team of skillful water damage restoration contractors can resolve the issue and have your home in a good state. Remedy the problem today before it gets in a worse condition and reach out to us at (206) 364-3000 for a local franchise in your area.