How DO YOU KNOW if you have a category 2 water loss?

April 5, 2016

Water Restoration, IICRC, Reets Drying Academy, ReetsTV, IICRC, — Reets Drying Academy - Water Restoration

Determining your category of water loss on your next mitigation job is very important to everyone involved.

So then how do we know what is a Category 2 Water Loss?

The S500 says: “A Category 2 Water Loss contains significant contamination and has potential to cause discomfort or sickness if contacted by humans.”

So what category of loss do we have? Thats hard to say and is going to take some investigation on your part.

Each water restoration job will be unique with all of the different factors that come into play. When looking for possible contaminants to determine a category of loss you have to take into consideration the condition of the property you are working with and also the source of water.

The condition of the property will influence your decision as to which category you are choosing. If the building is already not in the best state you have to make sure you take that into consideration based on where the water is going. If there is elevated bacteria in a building you are entering the first thing you may notice is the smell. If your nose is smelling it, then it is probably there.

The source of water will play a role in determining the category. Where did it originate from? A washing machine, a dishwasher, a toilet, or is it from rain or flooding? All will coming into play when making your decision.

Time and temperature will also help you come to a conclusion on this. Ask yourself? How long has the water been sitting there? Is there potential for mold growth based on the time it has been sitting and the temperature inside of the structure?

As told to us from Jeremy Reets in our NEWEST ReetsTV Water Restoration Pro Series video he tells us to make sure when we are on our next water restoration job and determining the category of loss to: