Water Damage – How Old is it? – Discover by Following These Steps

When you have clogged bathtubs, toilets or sinks that overflow, you know that you’re in need of water damage repair. Though, your house can sustain water damage in ways that aren’t as distinct. Since you have pipes running through your house, you can have a pipe leaking or an accumulation of condensation between your walls or ceilings. It’s an alarming situation because this isn’t in sight- you won’t recognize it until you have water damage, and then it’s difficult to diagnose how long the issue has persisted.

For these spaces that aren’t visible, it’s difficult to establish how old or new the water damage is. After all, you could have a leaky pipe that was slightly dripping for a period of time but because it’s not in plain sight, you don’t know how long. There’s no way to determine the precise time of the problem, but there are some approaches to approximate the age of the water damage.

Discover the Time Frame of Your Water Damage

You can get an estimated time frame of your water damage by following these steps:

  • History of the House: Keep track of any spots on your walls or ceilings and take into account any outside influences such as a heavy rain storm. Damages and spots derived from water can take months to materialize if it’s a slight leak. Older properties could have some water spots and damages that were sustained previously. So it’s fundamental to keep track of the spots you observe while indicating whether this is old water damage or old water damage.
  • History of the House: An older house could already have some previous damage caused from water, so it’s essential to keep track of what’s there and to note if the damage changes overtime. Tracking the weather is a good idea too, since, if you have a a slow leak, it can take awhile for a spot to surface. Taking note of your water spots and damages can save you lots of time when pinpointing whether your water damage is old or new.
  • Touch the Spot: You can feel the spot, because this can disclose a lot about the age of the water damage. A newer spot will feel wet but your ceiling or drywall will still feel the same, while an older spot will be mushy and spongy because your material would have taken in a good amount of moisture.
  • Look for Rings: Having rings around the damaged spot created by water indicates its age. Think about it like a tree- the more rings it has, the longer the water damage has been lingering. Discoloration of the spot is also helpful because it reveals that the area gets soaked, dries, gets saturated, dries, etc. If it’s a new water spot, the area will be a single mark with no rings.
  • Examine the Materials: Materials such as tiles and thick paint can trap water, so when you have a spot produced by water leaking through one of these, this can indicate there’s been water lingering for a period of time. Knowing the materials around your property can help you address your water damage problems more efficiently.
  • Mold Inspection: When bacteria has had time to settle, this indicates that the damage caused by water has been present for nearly two to three days.
  • Decomposition: If your materials decay from water damage, this is normally the consequence of consistent flooding or standing water. Rot normally won’t occur from the first situation of leakage.

Get Help from an Experienced Water Damage Restoration Contractor

When you’re having water damage problems, Paul Davis’ expert team is here to help out. It’s fundamental to take care of any dripping pipes in your home before the damage becomes extensive. Our water damage repair professionals can detect a leak and repair your property back to normal no matter how big or small the job is. Get in touch with Paul now at (803) 329-1140 and a local franchise is there to help out.