Property Care & Preservation
Flooding
One of the most devastating things that can happen to your home or business is flooding. When it happens it is extremely upsetting, however that is only the beginning. If many houses are hit at the same time there can be problems in appointing contractors and the quality of repairs can suffer as a consequence. In Carlisle in Cumbria severe floods occurred in January 2005, over 2 years after the floods subsided there were still builders and skips on Warwick Road. I was told that many of the residents suffered because the builders were taking on more work than they could realistically handle and the dated construction practices they employed meant that in some cases the unfortunate residents were stuck in caravans and B&B’s for well over a year.
As specialists in damp prevention and eradication we are are obviously the first choice for flood recovery too! Our advanced construction systems and in depth knowledge of dampness within buildings means we can get an immediate start on refurbishment without the traditional wait for a drying out period. We can have all areas of your property back in action with minimum delays saving you valuable time and disruption as well as vastly reducing the overall cost to your insurance company.
We work faster and smarter, by using modern construction methods and systems. We can effectively eliminate traditional delays. We can turn quotations around in record time, in many cases we can deal directly with your insurance company and avoid any out of pocket expenses completely.
If you would like more details on how we can help you, please contact us and we will arrange for one of our qualified and experienced surveyors to visit you and explain how we can provide a bespoke solution to get your remedial work under way and get you back in your home in record time.
Case Study
In 2007 our senior surveyor was called to one property in central Carlisle where a firm of flood recovery specialists (who also happen to be a firm of carpet cleaners!) were insisting they could not replaster a house they had pulled to bits until it had sufficiently dried out. The home owner had been hearing this same old excuse for months and decided to get a professional opinion. He was duly instructed and carried out calcium carbide tests at several key positions throughout the house. The resultant readings were normal and the house could in fact be replastered immediately. Amazed by the difference in results, our surveyor asked the home owner exactly where had the samples had been taken by the other firm, the home owner pointed to the tell tale signs of where the test was done, it was discovered they had been carrying out tests below the damp proof course (where most old properties are continually damp anyway), the home owners had consequently been out of their home for several months due to that error. Who knows how long that would have continued had an experienced surveyor not been called in.
