Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Calling and getting help lined up doesn't cost you anything. Any charges come from the company that does the restoration work, and that will be laid out in a written estimate before work starts.

No. We answer, listen, and arrange for a local company to handle the actual restoration work in your area. See our About page for more detail on how we work.

That depends on the company that takes the job, current job volume, and your location. We don't set or guarantee response times. Ask the company directly for an expected arrival window.

Mitigation is the emergency phase: extracting standing water and drying the structure to stop further damage. Restoration usually refers to the rebuild phase after mitigation, like replacing drywall, flooring or cabinets. Many companies handle both, but it helps to ask which phase a quote covers.

The IICRC S500 standard splits water into three categories by contamination level: Category 1 (clean, like a broken supply line), Category 2 (gray water, with some contamination), and Category 3 (black water, grossly contaminated, such as sewage or floodwater). Higher categories require more careful handling and disinfection, not just drying.

Cost depends heavily on the size of the affected area, what materials are involved, and whether testing is needed first. Ask the company for a written, itemized estimate before agreeing to work, since a fair price for a small bathroom spot looks nothing like a fair price for mold behind drywall across a whole room.

If the visible mold covers 25 contiguous square feet or more, Texas requires the remediation to be done by a state-licensed Mold Remediation Contractor. Smaller areas can legally be cleaned by someone without that license, and homeowners are exempt from the licensing requirement when working on their own property.

It depends on the size and location of the affected area and what the remediation plan calls for. Larger jobs often involve containment (sealing off the work area) and air scrubbing, and the company doing the work can tell you whether you'd need to be out of that part of the house, or the whole house, during the job.

It typically starts with an assessment of structural, smoke and soot damage, followed by board-up or tarping to secure the property, water extraction if firefighting efforts left standing water, smoke odor treatment, cleaning of salvageable contents, and repairs to damaged structure and finishes. The exact scope depends heavily on how much of the home was affected and by what: flame, heat, smoke, or water from suppression efforts.

Not always. Sudden and accidental water damage, like a burst pipe, is typically covered by a standard homeowners policy. Damage from a slow leak that built up over time, and damage from flooding (water coming from outside the home), are common exclusions. Flood damage needs a separate flood insurance policy. Confirm your specific coverage with your insurer.

Many policies cover freezing damage only if you took reasonable care to maintain heat or shut off and drain the water. After the February 2021 freeze, the Texas Department of Insurance told insurers in Bulletin B-0010-21 that power outages keeping people from heating their homes were beyond their control, and that reasonable care has to be judged on each claim's circumstances. Tell your adjuster about any outage and keep records of it.

If it's safe, shut off the water at the source or at the main valve, move valuables off wet flooring, and take photos or video of the damage before anything is cleaned up or thrown away. Avoid standing water near outlets or a breaker panel, and don't use a shop vac on standing water near live electrical circuits.

Ask for proof of insurance, ask about relevant licensing (including a Texas Mold Remediation Contractor license for larger mold jobs), and get a written, itemized estimate before work begins. Reputable companies are used to these questions and should be able to answer them without pushback.

Sewage is Category 3, or black water, under the IICRC S500 standard, meaning it's grossly contaminated. It requires disinfection and, often, removal of porous materials that contacted it (carpet, some drywall, insulation), which goes well beyond just drying the area the way a clean-water leak would be handled. Treat any sewage backup as a health hazard and avoid direct contact with it.