Best Flood Recovery Advice for Our Texas Neighbors

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Don't buy any Chinese drywall.

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You plainly don't do class actions. Any serious advice?

Anything in your house that's been thoroughly touched by flood water is compromised and has to go. There's no telling what was in the water and there's no amount of bleach that can make it safe enough to stay in your house.

It may be one of your most prized possessions or some random item but it's still compromised if exposed to dirty, bacteria ridden flood water long enough.

Kej'n Nevee

Watch out for contractors during the rebuild. They will screw you all to hell if you aren't careful

Put All of your important documents and photos in airtight ziplock bags and put them up higher. Like someone else said, you can elevate your furniture with cinder blocks. And if/when you do flood, throw it away. The only stuff we kept was random clothing that our kind Northshore friends took to commercial dry cleaners to have them sterilized.

But again, things that would break your heart to lose-wedding photos, baby books, etc. put it in airtight bags and try to put it as high as you can.

Triple check the measurements and quantities that the insurance adjuster has on you proof of loss. The adjuster was wrong on every single room in my 2000 Sq foot house. When corrected this resulted in an additional $10,000 being added to my claim. I had to take these measurements myself.

Vinyl gloves hold up better than latex. Buy a LOT of them, face masks, and water. Don't forget LOTS of hand sanitizer, since running water (city or well) won't be safe to touch for weeks. Non-slip boots are a must because your floors will be slippery as hell after the water recedes and you will fall very easily.

Remove sheetrock asap so the drying process starts quickly. Don't rush to rebuild - your studs need to dry COMPLETELY before closing walls back up. Make sure you treat studs with anti-mold treatment before rebuilding, to.

Ceramic tile is not safe - even it can and probably will have mold under it. It's gotta go too.

Good luck to all our Texas family and friends. It will be a very, very long and emotional ride. Prayers help, but venting helps too. Do both.

Flood insurance only covers items under the roof of your house. i.e. Stuff damaged sitting in the garage will be covered but stuff on the back patio won't. If you want your grill and patio furniture covered move it. Not to mention the garage might get less water than the back yard.

That was my experience with having flood insurance. Not sure how the FEMA coverage for people without insurance works.

On your home A/Cs:

If your outside unit (the Condenser) goes under, your insurance (hopefully you have it) is obliged to pay for replacement of it. It may still work although it's long-term usefulness is compromised. After the Condenser is completely no longer in flood water and you have electrical service, give it a try. If you can use it to dehumidify the interior of the house more quickly, do it. Set them to as low as they will go and let them eat.

I was one for two with my Condensers, it was a godsend. Plus it made the work environment inside the house much better.