What Are Unusual Ways Minor Water Damage Becomes a Big Problem in My Home?

7/14/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO is committed to mitigating the water damage to homes of Lenexa, KS

Resolving Water Events of All Sizes Fast Is How SERVPRO Protects Lenexa Homes from Big Losses

Famous last words from a homeowner struggling with expensive and disruptive water property destruction often start with a rueful statement that the cause seemed like a relatively minor problem. Mopping up a puddle inside a cabinet or putting down a towel under the refrigerator because you believe, without any real proof, that the kids spill water daily, quickly show to be inadequate short-term “band-aid” solutions. We can help residential property owners in Lenexa, KS when water loss circumstances require comprehensive and analytical assessment and permanent professional resolutions.

What Are Little Leaks in My House Telling Me?

When homeowners choose to minimize the importance of repeated water damage in their Lenexa home, they run the risk of severe, permanent, and expensive damage. Anytime you see water, where it should not be, an alert should sound. For example, a recurring leak around or in the tracks of a sliding casement window may signal something much more sinister than your failure to close it during a rainstorm. What in reality is happening could be structural leaking due to one or more of the following:

Can Water Leak Through a Window Frame?

Water can intrude around a window frame because:

• Buildings settle, and temperature and humidity fluctuations can cause wood framing around openings to swell and shrink, warping the window or the frame so that gaps permit water to leak inside.
• Installation issues, including failure to use effective vapor barriers and specialized flashings.
• Dried-out glazing putty, poorly applied paint, and failed caulking beads all contribute to improper seals which allow water seepage.
• Leaks in the roof or the siding above the window can percolate inside the cavity between the interior and exterior wall, eventually breaking through and damaging your home through the window opening.
• Settlement in the foundation that skews the square of windows and doors

How Can Condensation and Appliance Use Cause Water Damage in My Home?

A common household water damage source in many Lenexa, KS homes is condensation. It might feel like an annoyance rather than a threat, but homeowners must address the challenges of condensation forming in unexpected places or failing to drain appropriately. Where is condensation likely to become a problem?

Air Conditioners

Many AC systems use condensation to cool by reducing the humidity inside your home. Warm, moist air flows over cold coils, and moisture condenses on the cold surfaces. The now-liquid water vapor moves into a drain pan and funnels into a condensate drain line. If the drain pan cracks or the drain line is clogged, the water can flow down walls and onto floors.

Refrigerators and Freezers

The refrigerators and freezers can collect ice from the compressor coils that provide the cold and freezing air inside these appliances. Self-defrosting units periodically move through a warming cycle to reduce the ice, which is frozen condensation. Similarly to the drainage in an AC system, if the drain pan cracks or drainage line clogs, water can escape and saturate the floor under the appliance.

Labor-saving devices are many in the average home. Typically, these appliances use water, often plumbed directly through pipes and houses. Homeowners can take these conveniences for granted, surprised at how often water damage can stem from their use.

Water and Ice Maker Supply Lines

Increasingly refrigerators are equipped with water dispensers and automatic ice machines. Freestanding ice makers are also common. The freshwater lines that provided the water can leak, often without notice, as they are threaded through walls and behind cabinets.

Dishwashers and Laundry Machines

The pumps and hoses used by dish and clothing washers can fail or crack, spilling water in kitchens or utility rooms. The leaks can start very small, but the accumulated corrosive effect of many days, weeks, or even months of water seeping onto fixtures and structural components takes a heavy toll.

How Does Water from Leaks and Condensation Drainage Negatively Affect Your Home?

The water leaking from waste or supply lines or spilling from drains can collect under appliances, saturate cabinets, soak carpets and several layers of flooring, and even destroy drywall. Structural components become weakened, and mold damage can become an issue. A failure to intervene earlier might now necessitate extensive repairs and even partial demolition.

How Can a Water Restoration Company Help?

Our team at SERVPRO has the training, experience, and equipment to assess what seems like insignificant water damage before it becomes a crisis. If the water damage has caught you unaware and built up to a significant problem before we arrive, we also are capable of scaling our services to manage even complex water loss scenarios.