Colorado had a cold snap around the end of December, with temperatures dropping below zero for two days. CMS Restoration got a lot of calls during that period and was slammed. Several weeks after that cold snap, we got a call from a homeowner saying that her entire house was flooded. When we arrived, we found the biggest icicles we had ever seen on the side of the house. The house has three levels, and the leak started from upstairs and went down to the main floor and the basement. The leak had been going on for a week before anyone discovered it.
The house was pouring so much water that the concrete could not hold any more water. The concrete started to push the water through the house. That process is called hydrostatic pressure, and these huge icicles grow. We had the arduous task of taking these icicles down to prevent more damage to the concrete. Various power tools were used to get these icicles down. We started with a sawzall and a skill saw in an attempt to get the icicles down. Some of the icicles were loose enough that we could knock it off with a hammer, chipping away at them. Our boss had a bright idea of using a jackhammer to get at it and break these thick icicles and ice apart. It took our crew a couple of hours to get all the icicles off the house and clear a path next to the foundation.
This house had a lot of contents that were affected by water damage, and mold was starting to grow on quite a few contents. We often call a contents company that we work with to haul away all the contents and furniture in the house. They salvage what they can and inventory all the items they take away. They cleared all the space so we could proceed with the necessary demolition and mold remediation. Mold remediation requires any affected materials to be ripped out since they can’t be adequately cleaned. The baseboard, carpet, pad, drywall, insulation, hardwood flooring, and tile were all disposed of. The upstairs had several rooms affected, including the master bathroom. The main floor had a kitchen, dining room, laundry room, and pantry.
The entire basement was affected and was stripped down to the studs. The independent environmental consultant we work with tested the house for mold spores. Testing is important to compare the pre and post-testing to see if we have remediated the mold properly. After the demo, we HEPA vacuumed the affected areas and sprayed an anti-microbial sealant on all the mold left behind on any surfaces. We fogged with an anti-microbial agent that encapsulates any remaining mold spores that might’ve been left behind. After we get the clearance from our independent environmental consultant, the rebuild process can start to restore the house.