Category 3

Water losses are broken up into different categories. Category 3 is the worst. Category 3 means that the water contains lots of contaminants. Usually when we deal with category 3 losses we are dealing with sewage. So when we do a this kind of cleanup we have to take extra steps to make sure everything is clean.

Some things can be save, some can not. If you have a category 3 water loss you should never save carpet and pad. Though we can definitely get the carpet and pad back to dry standard, but it is nearly impossible to get rid of all the germs. The same can be said about drywall that has come in contact with contaminated water.

The main problem is that water, and especially sewer water, can contain thousands of different bacteria and viruses. There is no way that we can be sure that all of them will be cleaned. If you have this type of loss there are some things you should make sure your remediation specialist does.

  1. Make sure they set up a containment area. There should be no way that during the remediation the specialist can contaminate another area. This means they need to put down plastic in any areas they are travelling that are not affected.
  2. Make sure they remove all porous materials. This is what we mentioned earlier about carpet and pad.
  3. They need to use an antimicrobial on all structures that stay, and if they are cleaning your furniture the same holds true.
  4. Once all this is done then they need to go about drying the same way that they would with any other water loss

So if you have a category 3 loss be careful. Don’t go into the area if you don’t have to. Call a specialist. If you have questions you can always contact The Flood Team for recommendations.

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