What to Expect: The Average Cost For Water Damage Repair After a Flood

Did you know that nearly 14,000 people experience a water damage emergency every day in the United States? Such problems can be caused by improper water drainage, faulty appliances, broken pipes, etc.

But if such an unfortunate event happened to you, what should you expect in terms of water damage repair? How much you are supposed to spend on restoring your house and fixing all the problems caused by water? It’s not easy to find an exact answer, but this article explores the factors that influence the water damage restoration costs, so keep reading!

1. The Extent Of The Damage

Water can cause damages in different ways. For example, if a pipe breaks into your house, it will definitely cause a big puddle in your bathroom or kitchen. It might damage your rugs, some furniture items and that’s pretty much it. On the other hand, if your entire house is flooded, we talk about damaged electronics, big stains on your floors and walls, mold and mildew problems, etc.

The professionals have established “classes” of water damage when it comes to determining the amount of damage caused by a puddle or flood. For example, Class 1 refers to damages as simple as a few wet rugs, usually caused by a faucet or something similar.

Class 2 refers to damages done to an entire room, usually by a broken pipe. Class 3 is a more serious type of damage and it involves wet ceilings, wet walls, damaged electronics, and even deteriorated insulation. Lastly, Class 4 refers to very serious water damage that usually involves the entire house.

2. The Type Of Water Causing The Damage

Water is water, right? Well, not exactly, especially when we talk about water damage. The experts have again created a few categories of water that can cause damage to a particular residential or commercial property.

For example, “clean water” refers to water coming from the faucet, rainwater, water coming from heaters, toilet tanks or the sprinklers installed in your yard. This type of water is relatively clean, meaning that it doesn’t contain damaging agents, foreign substances or chemicals.

Damages caused by “grey water” are more expensive to fix because this type of water might contain toxins, chemicals or cleaning agents. We talk here about water coming from toilets (containing urine and other impurities) or water coming directly from dishwashers and washing machines. This type of water has a lot of soap and traces of detergent in it that can spread all over the house and cause a problem.

Lastly, damages caused by “black water” is the most expensive to repair. This type of water might come from sewage backups, contaminated underground water or even water coming from lakes and rivers. This water might contain a lot of bacteria, impurities, contaminants, and chemicals, so fixing such damages is not that easy.

3. Mold and Mildew Removal

Another important factor you need to take into account when calculating water damage restoration costs is, of course, mold and mildew removal. As you probably already know, a really humid environment can immediately start the development of mold and mildew. These impurities can quickly spread and compromise indoor air quality. At the same time, mold and mildew can cause an unpleasant odor in your house and damage your furniture items.

The experts will eventually analyze your mold and mildew problem and try to come up with a solution. The first step is to dry everything in your house, so that mold doesn’t spread even further. The second step would be to use special vacuum cleaners and complex cleaning methods to eliminate all the mold and mildew in your house.

4. The Cost Of Reconstructing Or Restoring Furniture Items, Floors, Ceilings, And Doors

These are just a few of the items that can be quickly damaged by water. The professionals will assess the damage caused to your floors and come up with a restoration plan. The same thing will happen for your doors and other items usually made from wood in your house. If you have a patio and it has been seriously damaged by water, it might cost several hundred or even thousands of dollars to restore it.

5. The Cost Of Replacing Electronics And Electronic Equipment

It’s not only that electronics can be damaged by floods or puddles in your house. Water can also cause short circuits that basically fry your electronic devices or deteriorate them severely enough to make them unusable. No house can be called a home without a working fridge, microwave, stove, TV set, and functional power outlets, so you’ll have to spend money on replacing some of these electronics as well.

Calculating The Average Cost Of Restoring Water Damage

These are just a few of the most important factors that influence how much you’re expected to pay for water damage repairs. However, it’s also possible to follow a few rules of thumb to determine a basic average, so you know what type of budget to prepare.

According to the experts, water damage repair is calculated based on every square foot of your house. The national average cost is between roughly $3 and $7 for every square foot of property damaged by water. in other words, if your house has an average size of 2,000 square feet, you should expect to pay between $6,000 and $14,000 to completely restore your house.

However, keep in mind that these are just average numbers, so your exact cost might be different. The most important thing is to contact the experts as soon as possible to help you remove stagnant water and attempt drying your property, so that further damage is minimized.

Now You Know More About Water Damage Repair

As you can see, water damage repair costs are not an exact science, but you can definitely calculate an average total price based on the factors mentioned above.

To help you stay prepared and minimize the damages done by water, make sure that you read our article on what causes flooding in residential properties! It will open your eyes to how water can suddenly become your worst enemy if you’re not careful when using it.