With technology
employed by restoration companies today, it takes an average of
three to five days to completely dry out a water-damaged
structure. AFT utilizes TES to dry most class one and class two
jobs in under 30 hours. These are jobs that would have 24” or
less of water on the floor and up the walls 24". This time frame
also includes carpet, carpet pad, hardwood, walls, and
substrates.
TES reduces mold and
structural damage caused by slow evaporation of water trapped in
walls, ceilings, and floors. We reduce mold by drying at
temperatures that are higher than mold is able to grow. The
temperature in the drywall will reach around 120 degrees Fahrenheit
and mold of any type will not grow in temperatures higher than 118
F. For instance, Stachybotrys (better known in the news as “black
mold”) is unable to grow at temperatures above 104 F.
When restoration
companies come to your home or business, many times they begin by
telling you what building materials have to be removed and
replaced. ATF starts by doing a thorough examination in order to
save and dry out as much material as we can safely dry out. We do
not have to tear off baseboards or rip out the carpet and pad unless
it is not safe for you to keep that material (raw sewage for
instance).
Instead we use TES to
heat up the water surface in order to force the water molecules to
heat up and evaporate quickly. The evaporated water is then removed
from the structure quickly by using air-movers to force it out
through an open window or vent.
In some homes, we have
even been able to dry out the wet materials from below by using the
unfinished basement and ducting and tenting to dry the floors above
that were water damaged. We used this type of method because the
occupants were an elderly couple with difficulties in getting
around.
Additionally,
homeowners like TES because there is less tear out of materials from
their home and therefore less interruption in their lives. TES is
very quiet. Air movers and dehumidifiers are very noisy and often
homeowners turn them off so that they can sleep at night. TES uses
noise reducing boxes to lessen the noise by 75%. TES dries out
faster and homeowners’ lives are inconvenienced for less time that
traditional dry out companies.
Also, insurance
companies love TES dry out because there is less destruction of the
structure and more saving of materials. They also like the fact
that by drying faster there is less time that the homeowner is
inconvenienced or out of their home if the whole home is affected.
Thirdly they can close the files quicker.
