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New Year Flood

J

Jeff Forsyth

New member
Having been away for Christmas, we arrived home to find a torrent of water flooding through the kitchen roof space. We only moved in during the beginning of November. Apparently, it had been -12C in our absence. Luckily we are insured. In addition, which cheered me up no end, our new neighbours came to the rescue. As for the 911, well, it had a close miss, after being peppered by several pieces of collapsing plaster work. With my wife pregnant and not too well and being quite ill myself, I soldiered on the following day with the help of friend to remove plaster, and insulation from the loft space and thesaturated carpet from the kitchen area. With the help of an emergency plumber and electrician, we managed to get the house heated and on the way to recovery. I feel now we have finally got somewhere and the renovation people should be here this week.

Exhausted

Jeff
 
You have my every sympathy. I had a hot water cylinder burst some years ago, and I know what a mess it made. Hope you get it all fixed easily.

JH
 
Hi Jeff

Insist that the property is well dried out before reinstatement works are completed -get walls tested with a moisture meter (by somebody who knows what they are doing!!). It may take a bit longer , you need dehumidifiers in for at least six weeks, but if you entrap the moisture you may end up with more problems in the future i.e. dry rot to timber, mould growth due condensation, plaster delamination. For every inch of wet fabric, it takes one month to dry out....at least.

Make sure timberwork/joinery tested with a moisture meter for moisture content -be suspect of anything over 18-20%MC. If any joinery taken off, ensure it is lined with dpc or joinery lining on rear to prevent mositure migrating from fabric and leading to decay problems.

Suggest decs just emulsion initially, don't paper, as this will hinder drying out.

Hopefully all will be OK. I usually insist on this after flood damage, but few insurance companies will allow for complete job. They base it on a numbers game and if only 1 out of ten repairs fail or have further problems, it's cheaper for them to redo that one than to do the other nine properly in the first place.....doh!![:mad:]
 
Cheers Melv-

I did all the usual piccy and video taking. The Insurance companay could not supply and emergency cover at the time and advised we get on with it. I managed to stem the flow and open all the windows. The next morning, the plumber and leccy chap arrived (both work for local government and are well respected). WHilst they were working getting the plumbing leccy and heateing re-stated, I with a friend managed to dig out all the lagging, plasterboard and wet carpet and remove from the property, wacked up the heating and put in a dehumidifier which made major inroads into drying everything out. Next day the boards were nearly dry. I opened the access hatch to foundations which seemed pretty dry, but its insulated underneath and therefore they are taking the boards up as I speak.

Keep ya all posted

Jeff
 
Dry rot will only be a potential problem where there is a PERSISTENT source of moisture keeping moisture levels above 22%, and also where there is no ventilition. Turning up the heating would only be a problem if you were heating an unventilated void where the moisture remained trapped. Otherwise using the heating to assist the evaporation of spilled water is sensible, assuming you are also using a dehumidifier and ventilating.

John H
 
Melv, thats a rather hevay handed NO, considering I stated I was using dehumidifiers. The guidance with the dehumidifiers consider 22C as optimal. Also, I am using some major industrial blowers/dehumidifiers to enhance circulation. The drying out process is going a treat even under the floor boards. Cheers for your support John

:)

Jeff
 
Jeff -don't know whose advice you are following, but at 22C prime temp for dry rot to form -with moisture present this will lead to high humidity for potential dry rot and mould growth -I've seen the results......[:eek:]

Ideally you need to keep temp below 18C with dehumidifiers running, and Relative Humidity below 55% (bare in mind the dehumidifiers will give off some heat) and every so often, if weather is dry, kill the dehumidifcation and open the windows to air the propertyt, but don't let the internal temp drop too much.

Hey, I used to get paid a lot of money for this advice!!!![:D][:D][:D]
 
The 22C was me winding you up. Though the instructions attached to the air movers(akak lge blowers-one in dining room, one at end of kitchen, one in attic and enormous dehumidifier in kitchen area). Ambient temp seem to be btwn 14-18C approx. Company involved is Rainbow International.
 
Have also taken your advice regarding opening of windows. Throat is drying up.

One other question: Bear in mind I'm quite pushy when it comes to getting my tuppence worth. However, I have opening the hatches to under the kitchen area and a netting is suspended btwn the joist and the floor boards. (The guy from Rainbow knows this as does the loss adjustor.)WIthin the netting is the usual pink lagging. Some of which is damp. This seems to be drying, and I will insist that the boards come up and the lagging replaced. Am I being over zealous. The foundations are well aerated. Any more tips.How long should I be looking at in terms of drying time. The east coast of Scotland is notoriously mild and dry and the process seesm to be working. Im sure the plaster on the kitchen wall will have to come down and so the lagging can be removed there. What else should I worry about. Should I buy a moisture and not be satisfied until the levels are equivalent to the dry end of the house. Any advice appreciated.

Sincerely

Jeff
 
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