re: Leak caused floor damage

Most mold is not toxic


Get a home test kit from Home Depot and if it is not toxic you can handle that shite yourself with some antomicrobial. Save your deductable.

Call insurance.. hidden leak they should fix..

fwiw

Was out of town for a few weeks when I got a call from neighbor that I had water going out my front door down my sidewalk.. the ice maker line sprung a small leak .. but after two weeks flooded my kitchen.. hall front dining room bathroom etc..

Had to rip out one room of eng wood floor and Sheetrock everywhere… had to take out some eng floor in another room that had just started getting wet..

Was able to order same floor ( acacia) from same company and my floor guy ( same person that originally installed them.. ) took molding off the room that had just started getting wet and let it set a few week.. that room did not buckle.. yay eng floors! . it is a lot of layers ( which is the point.. to cross the grain pattern so when they dry they pull differently and do not buckle)

Anyway years latter and the floor that was a little wet and dried is still good..

Also insurance will usually pay for floor for the entire room since often they can not match.. when I had mine installed I bought a few boxes to keep for spare.

Btw my damage was like 12k (?? ) insurance guy did not blink.. premiums did not go up .. I have had same insurance for 30 years ..

May not be covered, “sudden and accidental” is not what you have going on.

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Servpro and the like are expensive as shite. Avoid if you’re footing the bill.

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This is why he should file a claim. They won't cover the dishwasher but will cover the mold damage which will be much larger than what the naked eye can see. Then replacing the flooring.

Not to mention if you go to sell, warped floors aren't a good look.

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I'm not going to be able to get by with replacing a few boards. She's already talking about replacing cabinets...

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Insurance most likely will not pay for cabinet replacement if it is not severely damaged FYI. Even if they do they don't have to ensure the new cabinet matches the rest.

They will pay to dry out that small section of the house and that includes the lower half of the wall in the damaged area.

They will also not pay for new countertops if they say you could have removed yours safely even if yours get damaged while removing them. They will only pay for remove and reset.

You are going to make a claim for a small amount of water damage and in the long run could cost yourself thousands in deductibles and higher premiums.

Again, most mold is not toxic. The media scares people about mold and most people think it is all toxic. Cladsporium is pretty benign compared to Stachybotrys, and they are both "black mold."


It's not bad to handle non-toxic mold yourself

Remove all affected drywall and insulation if any. If there is any mold in the framing, expose it, clean it, and treat it with an anti-microbial but do not use bleach no matter what people tell you. After treating it, dry it using any air circulation you can. You can also get a cheap moisture meter to monitor it to make sure it is at an acceptable level. Next cover with an oil-based or shellac primer. Do not use latex primers as they are not nearly as effective. Zinsser makes a primer that has an antimicrobial built into it for just this type of issue.

Once all of that is done you can proceed with repairing the drywall

You can also run a dehumidifier for a few days with a HEPA filter to help remove any spores. There are places that will rent these out.



Zinsser primer

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Then replacing the flooring.

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They do not have to pay to replace the entire floor in LA. They only have to pay for the damaged area even if the color does not match. Louisiana has no matching law for insurance.

Even if they still make his flooring it will not be the same dye lot and there will be color variations.

I do agree that if the flooring is very damaged he should file a claim. I don't think he should call Servpro as they have a history of overcharging and getting people's insurance cancelled. They employ people to maximize the billing even for services they do not complete. Ask all the lawyers in Lake Charles that have had to sue the crap out of Servpro after the hurricanes.

There are plenty of local licensed remediation companies that are way more reputable.

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Call Matt Morris

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That's hilarious.

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The main concern is the wife...she's been having some health issues for years so I need to have some professionals come in do the whole damp testing/mold testing to assuage her fears. I'm not going to be able to get by with replacing a few boards. She's already talking about replacing cabinets...

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Maybe the floors aren't the only thing that needs replacing...

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Strategic Water & Mold Restoration
Phone: (504) 644-9525
LINK /

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I dealt with this guy after Ida on a few things. Knows his stuff