How do restorers help?
Being informed by the police that a property has been used to manufacture or grow illicit drugs comes as a horrible shock. Being left with the daunting and confusing responsibility of returning the property to health and safety standards is only made more difficult by the complex requirements in the process.
Comprehensive testing
While there is often substantial debris from a clandestine laboratory operation, much of the damage and danger is invisible to the layman. Dangerous residues and compounds are deposited on ceilings and walls, and embedded in furnishings. Experience and careful sampling are an essential first step to restoring your property for safe habitation.
Decontamination
With many illegal, harmful, and controlled substances around clandestine laboratories, thorough decontamination requires specialised procedures, equipment, and chemicals. Given their danger, even the disposal of these materials is often necessarily controlled.
Health and safety regulations
For obvious reasons, the cleaning and the disposal of labs are subject to stringent health and safety regulations. Understanding and streamlining the post-remediation verification tests is an essential step that any quality restorer will help you prepare for.
What should I do?
With more than one hundred clandestine laboratories decontaminated, we at Insurance Restorations have the experience and knowledge to help you navigate the practical and regulatory maze of returning your property to pristine condition. Services we can help with include,
- Preliminary site assessment and documentation
- Pre-remediation sampling and testing
- Regulatory compliant decontamination plan
- Post-remediation verification and clearance testing
- Final report to authorities
Why restoration services after a fire?
We know that any sized fire can have devastating and disruptive consequences for your family and your home. The damage caused by a fire is complex and has serious health implications. Only professional fire restorers have the knowledge and expertise to safely get things back to the way they were.
All fires are different
The location of a fire, the source, and the extinguisher used all change the dynamics for fire restoration. While it is important to act quickly to get your property and contents back to normal after a fire, the wrong course of action may do more harm than good.
Soot and smoke
Usually most of the damage done in a fire is not done by heat, but by the smoke and the soot produced. These travel throughout a home and get embedded in the surfaces of walls, ceilings, fittings, and furnishings. Identifying where soot and smoke have traveled is often difficult, but an essential part of complete restoration.
Dangerous contaminants
In a fire, many harmful toxins are released. These can cause respiratory or immune issues, and some are even carcinogenic. They are carried throughout the home in smoke and soot, and require experts to identify risk and determine the right restoration methods.
What should I do?
At Insurance Restorations we work hard to help protect and salvage as much of your home and contents as possible, while prioritising health and safety. From big items, like carpets, drapery, and furniture, to sentimental objects such as toys, clothing, and bedding, we strive to bring all of your contents back to how you love them.
When you call us we send our team of professionals to help start getting you back on your feet as soon as possible. Services we can provide include,
- Detailed inspection and assessment of the fire damage
- Preliminary make-safe, so that you can continue to live in your house if safe
- Extraction of water and foam used to extinguish the flames
- Assess and manifest contents items effected for insurance claims
- Clean, sanitise, and restore contents items that can be safely restored
- Carefully dispose of damaged contents, toxic ashes, and other hazardous materials
- We can also help with detailed estimates for repair and reconstruction, so that you feel well informed going forward
Why is mould a problem?
Mould might seem like a bit of harmless slime that grows in the corner of the shower, but mould is a variety of fungal organisms that can cause serious problems for your home and your health if not adequately addressed.
Mould can quickly spread out of control
Mould thrives in hot, humid, dark places. This means that in the Australian weather it only takes a small water leak to start a mould infestation. Because mould prefers places like wall cavities, behind cabinetry, and under floorboards, often what you can see is only the tip of the iceberg.
Mould can be dangerous to people
Mould can pose serious health risks to people, especially children and the elderly. The microscopic spores and mycotoxins that moulds produce can cause breathing difficulty, respiratory illnesses, allergic reactions, and even immune dysfunction. These health risks are serious enough that the Australian government recently conducted a parliamentary inquiry into mould related biotoxins.
Mould damages your home and contents
Because mould is a fungus it degrades organic materials, and is a leading cause of wood rot. If left untreated mould will continue to grow and spread, effecting more of the timber frame of your home, damaging it’s structural integrity.
What should I do?
It makes sense to reach out to remediation experts when you discover a mould problem, and at Insurance Restorations we have the experience and the expertise to deal whatever you face. Our team of certified professionals will be at your doorstep right away to get on top of your mould problem immediately. This includes,
- Conducting a thorough inspection of all the dark, dank places that are the most fertile breeding ground for mould
- Locating the affected areas, isolating and containing them so the threat to health and further contamination are neutralised
- Comprehensive remediation of any mould problem using specialist cleaning, anti-microbial treatments, and the removal of contaminated materials
- Our wealth of experience helps us balance thorough solutions while minimising cost and disruption to your family
- Ensuring preventative measures future-proof your home so that mould won’t return
- We can even assist with necessary repairs and reconstruction
Is a bit of water really a problem?
It certainly can be. Unfortunately, whether a big flood or a small leak, the consequences of water damage can be devastating.
Property Damage
Most materials in the home absorb water quickly and are structurally damaged by it. Water quickly ruins furniture, floorboards, carpet, cabinetry, doors, skirtings, and even plaster walls. Identifying, containing, and drying escaped water are essential to protecting your home and contents.
Health Hazards
Whether it’s from a roof leak, a burst wall pipe, or a bathroom backup, escaped water often transports microbes and chemicals which can be hazardous to the health of you and your family. Even if it seems fresh and dry, restoration-grade cleaning and sanitisation are essential to preventing health risks.
Risk of Mould
Mould grows in damp, dark environments, precisely the kind of environment water leaks create. It is very common for the slow or ineffective drying of a water leak to start mould growth that only spreads over time. Therefore it is essential to nip the problem in the bud by quickly and thoroughly dealing with any escaped water.
What should I do?
When a water leak effects your home, the team at Insurance Restorations are just a call away. We have the personnel, the equipment, and the expertise to restore building and contents to their original condition. Some of the tools we use and services we provide include,
- High-tech moisture meters help us investigate where water has flowed and allow you full confidence that there will be no nasty surprises down the track
- We carry water extractors, driers, dehumidifiers, and air scrubbers so that no matter what we find, we can safely and rapidly start getting things back to normal
- Anti-microbial and sanitisation treatments are key tools in both protecting your health, and preventing future damage from mould growth and the like
- We are also happy to help you come up with a detailed estimate for any reconstruction works required, so that you feel confident and well informed going forward
