Recommended Equipment for Water Damage Restoration

Are you looking to get started in the water damage restoration business?

A common question that I get asked is: what kind of equipment should I get for water damage restoration and how much equipment should I get?

Well, if you are trying to get started and want to work with what you’ve got, I recommend purchasing enough equipment to either stake a job or handle one very small job.

And if you get a big job and don’t have enough equipment? Well in that case, you can do a couple things:

a) You can then purchase the equipment you need for that job

or

b) If you’ve established a relationship with a rental company in your area, rent the needed equipment. That way, you avoid losing jobs and avoid having tens of thousands of dollars of equipment just sitting in a warehouse.

With that being said here’s a list of recommended equipment for starting a water damage restoration business.

Recommended equipment for starting a restoration business:

• Water extractor or wet-dry vac: If you aren’t ready to invest in a water extractor (if you are, we recommend this one),  and also a water claw.  you may want to get a wet-dry vac from your local hardware store. It won’t tide you over forever, but it’ll get you through for some time.
• Moisture meters:
  • My suggestion: Invest in the best quality moisture meters.
  • 1 Hygrometer:
    • Here are a couple we recommend
      • Vaisala HM40/Phoenix HM40
      • Delmhorst HT4000
  • 1 Moisture Meter:
    • Here are a few brands we recommend:
      • Flir MR60 pin/pinless
      • Delmhorst
      • Protimeter
      • Tramex
• 1 IR Camera:
  • My suggestion: This is the exception when it comes to investing in best quality. Do not spend $5000 on an IR camera, you don’t need it. A $400-$500 IR camera will give you what you need to start. Try this one OR this one
• 1 XL Dehumidifier  OR  2 Large Dehumidifiers
  • My suggestion: A good rule of thumb when deciding on how many dehumidifiers, air movers, and AFDs (air filtration devices) to purchase is:
    • For every 1 XL Dehumidifier, buy 7-8 air movers, and 1 AFD
    • For every 2 Large Dehumidifier, buy 10 air movers, and 1 AFD 
  • XL Dehumidifier recommendations:
    • Phoenix Drymax XL
  • Large Dehumidifier recommendations:
    • Phoenix Drymax BLE
• Air movers
  • My suggestion: Get 7-8 air movers if you have 1 XL Dehumidifier or get 10 air movers if you have 2 large dehumidifiers
  • Air mover recommendations:
    • Phoenix AirMax
    • Elite SS Axial Airmover by ASD
      • My suggestion: There are different types of air movers. Pick your air mover and stick with it because they stack together, the repair parts are all the same, and they look better on the jobs.
• Air filtration devices (AFDs):
  • My suggestion: When you buy one XL Dehu (or 2 large dehus), buy one 500 CFM AFD, I recommend this and not going with larger units. It works better to have smaller units spread out because they can capture in different areas versus having just one really big one in one spot.
    • Phoenix Guardian Pro R 
    • Or Sterilizair from ASD Products
      • Fun fact: David Hodge, one of Reets Drying Academy’s instructors, helped develop this AFD!

We’ve teamed up with Scott James from Kentucky Cleaning Supplies and we’ve put together a sample list! Check it out here!

Want an itemized list with prices of the equipment we mentioned here? Download it HERE

If one of these lists is a perfect fit for what you need to get started, or if you would like a customized quote with different equipment reach out to Scott and he’ll get you set up!