We can all agree that both you and your family’s safety is most important when considering taking on a property restoration project. However, this is one aspect that is largely overlooked by the amateur restorer.

So before you start your project you should assess the situation and think of what safety gear you may need; more commonly referred to as PPE (personal protective equipment).

Every different restoration project will have a different set of PPE that should be considered. For example, a simple drywall and painting project may require only minimum PPE such as a dust mask and eye protection, but more involved property restoration projects such as a Category-3 water damage loss would require you equip a much more serious set of PPE.

Some examples of PPE include:

Continue reading “Safety Gear You Should Use When Taking on Restoration Projects In Your Home” →

MOULD, the word that scares many homeowners and occupants alike. Our goal in this post is to share some information on the topic that will help you understand the subject better.

Ok, first off there are thousands of different kinds of mould species that could be present in your home so don’t immediately think you are dealing with the infamous “black mould”. Mould spores are referred to as being ubiquitous which means they are found practically everywhere on planet earth, from the forest to the streets, to even inside your home. These mould spores are for the most part harmless, in fact, we breathe them in every day and we are still standing. The point where they can be an irritant to your health is when they become active and begin to grow in your home.

How to identify mould / microbial growth in your home:

Continue reading “Mould In Your Home – The Basics” →

Have you ever encountered a situation where you suspect there is something weird going on inside your wall or ceiling? Perhaps a leak within the structure or you suspect there is a cold draft coming in from somewhere but you just cant seem to pinpoint it?

Well with the use of the latest technology, we are now able to identify these problem areas and start seeing the invisible.

This is done through the use of thermal imaging, at one point this technology was very expensive and reserved only for military and government applications. However as this technology progresses it becomes more affordable to apply it to other new industries, in this case the property restoration industry.

The company we have to thank for this is FLIR. Flir is a pioneer in the thermal imagining sector and produces the best equipment available today. We first started using these Flir cameras in my business about 10 years ago and each camera was in the $10,000-$15,000 range, the technology was just being released for use in our industry so they were quite expensive to own. Nowadays the price for a basic model is very affordable as they go for around $1,000. This new price range makes it a must own for any property restoration professional.

For property restoration, some of the best uses of thermal imaging technology include:

Continue reading “Seeing The Invisible Water Damage – Thermal Imaging” →

Well, let’s jump straight into it: There are 3 main types of smoke and residues that can be left behind by fire damage in your home:

Continue reading “The 3 Types Of Fire Smoke And Residues” →

We think we have all heard the word “HEPA” before,  and it is usually associated with clean air. While in simple terms that is correct, we will be going into a bit more detail of what HEPA’s are,  why they should be used in certain situations, and what you should be looking for.

Without getting too much into the science of things, HEPA is an acronym for high efficiency particulate air. Whenever you see the term HEPA being used it means that the filter has been made and certified in accordance with current HEPA filter standards.  Nowadays you can find HEPA filters in household appliances such as fans and even vacuum cleaners.

But when it comes to property restoration we are not talking about household appliances containing HEPA filters, instead, we are talking about Continue reading “HEPAs – Cleaning The Air In Your Home” →