Approaches to Detect if Water Damage is Old or New

A natural complication that a lot of homes run into is some form of water damage. As water damage restoration professionals, Paul Davis understands the issues that water damage produces, especially when it can’t be seen. Your residence has plumbing everywhere, including the inside of your ceilings and walls. When these pipes leak or have condensation on them, they can begin to deteriorate your ceiling or walls. One of the more hard parts to this is discovering whether or not the water damage is old or new.

For these areas that can’t be seen, it’s difficult to figure out how old the water damage is. Though, you could have a pipe that’s been slightly leaking for a period of time but because it’s not in plain sight, you don’t have a timeline. There’s no way to determine the precise time of the problem, but there are some ways to approximate the age of the water damage.

Find Out How Old or New the Damage Produced by Water is with This Guidance

You can learn whether your water damage is old or new by following this step-by-step process:

  • History of the House: When your home has any spots caused from water damage, it’s essential to keep a record of them when figuring out whether your water damage is old or new. Also, you’ll want to be cognizant of any storms that could bring hidden water damage to the surface such as heavy rain. Know your home, because modest leaks can take awhile to surface, and if you know what’s old and what’s new, you’ll be able to diagnose your issue faster.
  • History of the House: An older property may already have some previous damage provoked from water, so it’s essential to keep a record of what’s there and to note if the damage alters over a period of time. Tracking the weather is a good idea as well, since, if you have a a slow dripping pipe, it can take months for a water spot to surface. Keeping track of your water spots and damages can save you a lot of hassle when determining whether the damage caused from water is old or new.
  • Touch the Spot: You’ll be able to establish whether your water damage is old or new just by touching it. An old spot will be mushy since the material has absorbed a lot of moisture. A new spot will be wet, however, the material will have a solid feel to it.
  • Look for Rings: You know how tree rings determine how old a tree is? The same method can be used for water spots. An old water spot is going to have rings around it. They can also be shaded differently because the spot gets soaked then dries and gets soaked again then dries again, etc. A new spot will be dark with no rings circling it.
  • Examine the Materials: Learn about the material in your home, because water and moisture can become trapped by thick paint and tiles. So if water spots show up through these types of materials, this means the buildup of moisture has remained for awhile.
  • Mold Inspection: When mold has had time to colonize, this indicates your water damage has lingered for approximately two to three days.
  • Decomposition: Your material doesn’t typically decay from the first situation of water damage. So when there has been deterioration, this means your material has been susceptible to constant standing water or flooding.

Get a Knowledgeable Water Damage Repair Contractor

When you’re having issues with damages that are created by water, Paul Davis is here to assist you. It’s fundamental to take care of any dripping pipes on your property before the damage becomes extensive. Our water damage restoration professionals can find dripping pipes and repair your home back to normal no matter the size of the job. Call Paul today at (206) 364-3000 and a local franchise will be there to assist you.