Commercial Water Damage Restoration Services for Businesses in Northampton

2/14/2023 (Permalink)

SERVPRO of Hampshire County understands how important your property is. Let us help you out.

SERVPRO Offers Water Mitigation Services to Learning Institutions in Northampton

Commercial water damage restoration is an important service that can ensure learning is not interrupted for long periods. If they are not given the attention they need, and in good time, staff and students may be exposed to an uncomfortable learning environment. With the help of specialized equipment and processes, it is possible to remove the water, dry the buildings, and disinfect and restore all surfaces.

When restoring water-damaged schools in Northampton, SERVPRO technicians perform a site assessment to determine the extent of the damage. Sports facilities, furniture and fixtures, and learning materials are the most affected. There is no single fix-it-all moisture control technique, so we must use several techniques and tools in different areas within the institution. Some of them include the following:

• Furniture and fixtures: We remove porous materials and upholstered furniture and replace them when it is impossible to get them dry and clean. We can sand chairs and desks with hard surfaces and perform appropriate water damage cleanup and disinfection.
• Sports facilities: Our SERVPRO technicians drain, clean, and disinfect fields, swimming pools, and gyms. We can then dry the affected areas using commercial air scrubbers, dehumidifiers, and air movers.
• Learning materials: If it is possible to restore papers and books, we can sub-contract a professional paper conservator to do lyophilization – a freeze-drying process used to preserve them.
• Specialty Drying: We can use specialized drying procedures such as injection drying to remove moisture from ceilings, walls, and other hard-to-reach areas.
• Mold remediation: If mold is present, our team performs mold remediation and the necessary disinfection to prevent re-growth.
• Reconstruction: We recommend this whenever the damage is extensive and impossible to repair.

It is recommended to work with commercial water mitigation technicians certified by the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification (IICRC). The training our team undergoes helps us to minimize disruption and expenses that result from water damage and restore a functional and safe learning environment.

Don't let unexpected mold, fire, and water damage interrupt your business operations. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 and let our certified technicians make it "Like it never even happened." Trust us to handle all your commercial water cleanup needs and return your business to its glory days.

Northampton Flooding Necessitates Expert Water Damage Restoration

1/31/2023 (Permalink)

With advanced equipment, SERVPRO restores property to pre-damaged conditions, "Like it never even happened."

Professional Northampton Water Damage Restoration

Northampton homeowners often have to deal with the effects of powerful storms and the flooding they sometimes cause along the area’s rivers. These residents must act fast to limit their losses and find effective professional remediation when powerful winds, torrential rains, and rising storm waters damage their homes. Luckily, SERVPRO can help them recover.

SERVPRO is skilled at performing the water damage restoration work Northampton residences usually require following severe weather. Company water damage remediation teams are highly experienced in providing water removal services, completing basement flooding cleanup projects, and performing water damage repairs. After your initial call, SERVPRO’s cleanup and restoration crews:

• Generally, arrive at your home within four hours, ready to professionally inspect it for black water-related problems.
• Employ state-of-the-art extraction equipment to remove any remaining destructive waters from your residence rapidly.
• Shovel out and safely dispose of dangerous biohazards like chemical wastes, farming refuse, and sewage discovered after standing waters are extracted.
• Locate and discard irreparably-fouled structural materials, furnishings, and other household contents
• Inject salvageable structural materials with industrial-strength disinfectants and fog all impacted spaces with the same heavy-duty antimicrobials
• Scientifically dry, monitor the progress of such efforts, and thoroughly deodorize odorous rooms utilizing the latest technology.

Following these actions, residents are often shocked to find their homes perfectly restored to their pre-storm state. This is why our company is known for making water-impacted homes previously seem like they never even suffered stormwater damage in the first place.

So, when the natural elements get the better of your residence, remember that your highly-trained and experienced friends at SERVPRO of Hampshire County are just a short phone call away. Contact us any time of the day or night at (413) 324-1300 for fast and effective water damage restoration assistance. Once all is said and done, you are going to be glad you did.

Why Northampton Families want SERVPRO's Mold Remediation Services

12/19/2022 (Permalink)

Don't let mold take control of your Northampton property. Call SERVPRO today!

We Can Protect Your Property with Mold Remediation

Finding a musty-smelling area in your Northampton home covered in dense dust is one way many homeowners discover that mold has overgrown and started a colony. Our mold remediation experience means we can eradicate excess mold and also assist you in preventing future issues with this ever-present microbe.

If this happens to your Northampton property, our mold remediation services can help you regain control over your house’s interior environment. ‘Remediation’ is more accurate than ‘eradication’ because microbes are everywhere. Instead, SERVPRO addresses the situation by creating a less favorable environment for microbes to flourish. While many remain, their population should remain low in numbers. 

SERVPRO uses the latest technology and scientific developments to help our customers fight against mold. Our specialists combine different components within the scope of their mold remediation services, including:

• Assessment of moisture that allows excessive microbial activity,
• Physical removal of visible mold, and
• Antimicrobial applications.

Whenever we find mold has become a nuisance, we also locate the water source providing sustenance to those microbes. We use moisture detection devices to locate the source of such moisture, be it from your residence’s exterior or somewhere inside. At times, we find more than one source, including condensation on metal surfaces that form droplets.

Removing excess mold helps lower the population and greatly reduces the number of spores. Dry ice blasting on unfinished surfaces that can handle debriding is very effective. For other surfaces, we apply Concrobium, allow it to dry completely, and then physically remove the now-dead mold with stiff brushes. After this, we can finish up with stain removal or repainting. During these activities, we use custom-built plastic sheet compartments and negative air pressure powered by our air scrubbers.

As we finish our mold remediation activities, we apply an additional protective layer of Concrobium to prevent future mold colonization. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County knows mold remediation. Call us at (413) 324-1300 whenever you find mold or mildew taking over your home.

SERVPRO Provides Fast Response Water Damage Repair in Northampton

11/15/2022 (Permalink)

The first step to resolving water damage is calling your local trained professionals at SERVPRO of Hampshire County.

Need Water Damage Repair and Restoration in Northampton – Call SERVPRO

Water leaks in homes and businesses in Northampton can cause a great deal of damage immediately, as well as secondary damage if the water and moisture are not immediately removed. Water from broken pipes, overflowing laundry tubs, and sinks can deliver hundreds of gallons onto the floor, into adjacent rooms, and rooms below. Ceilings can collapse, structural materials swell, warp or lose integrity, and mold can begin growing in less than twenty-four hours.

That’s why SERVPRO in Northampton provides water damage repair and responds in less than four hours after your initial call. We know how important it is to remove excess water and begin moisture removal and drying in all areas of the home impacted by the water incident. Our technicians utilize various equipment to quickly remove the water and moisture from multiple materials and situations.

For example, we use hardwood floor vacuum mats to remove water from hardwood floors, between the planks, and from the subfloor. We use moisture detectors to check for water and moisture inside walls and under cupboards to avoid moisture pockets that can lead to structural loss in drywall and pressed wood products. Mold can also grow in these spaces, leading to a strong, musty odor permeating the home. Lingering moisture can lead to added secondary damage that many owners become aware of after it is too late.

SERVPRO provides a complete suite of services for water damage events, including repairing and restoring your home or business. Please don’t wait until it is too late. Call us now for help with the following:

• Ceiling repairs from water damages
• Water clean up
• Mold Inspections, remediation, and removal

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County for water damage repair and restoration services. We provide service to Northampton and nearby areas. We can help 24/7. Call (413) 324-1300.

Cleaning Fire Residues in Your Home

9/20/2022 (Permalink)

Residues after a fire can cling to surfaces and require more aggressive cleaning methods. Contact SERVPRO to assess and remediate the damage.

SERVPRO Technicians Respond Quickly and Use the Appropriate Cleaning Methods to Remediate Fire Damage in Your Home

Fires can be devastating and traumatic events for homeowners. In addition to the loss of property and essential documents, they must cope with a massive cleanup. You left candles burning in the living, and somehow your curtains caught fire. Cleaning fire residues such as soot and ash is a big job that requires professional experience. If there is a fire in your Hampshire County home, make a call to the professionals right away. We have the skills to safely and effectively remove smoke and soot residues from your home and furnishings.

In Easthampton, SERVPRO offers fire damage cleaning methods to return walls and ceilings, and other surfaces back to their pre-damaged condition whenever possible. There are various cleaning methods our team can use to clean soot, smoke, and ash from your home. Techs can use dry cleaning for light-to-medium non-grease-based residue. Technicians may also use this method to pre-clean before wet cleaning. Wet cleaning can effectively remove light-to-heavy non-grease-based soiling. Foam cleaning can remove fire residue from upholstery materials that may shrink or bleed if wet. Some items may require immersion cleaning. With this method, items are dipped in a cleaning product bath to remove soot and ash. Peroxide active cleaning is the method for cleaning acoustical ceilings and other porous and nonporous ceiling surfaces. This method is primarily for ceilings with heavy soiling.

Agitation can also be part of the fire damage cleaning process. The crew may use water or air pressure, rotating brushes, wiping, scrubbing, or sand-blasting to remove residues from various surfaces. Once the residues loosen up, the team can clean or remove them from the surface.

Before the cleaning phase begins, SERVPRO technicians perform tests to determine the correct cleaning method. The appropriate technique effectively removes residues from the surface without causing further damage. During structure cleaning, the team may put plastic sheets in place to seal off the areas and prevent fire residues from migrating to other parts of the residence. To remove smoke odors, technicians may use thermal foggers and air movers to neutralize and eliminate smoke odors.

If you need fire damage restoration, give SERVPRO of Hampshire County a call right away at (413) 324-1300. We are available 24/7 to restore your home to its pre-damaged condition whenever possible.

How SERVPRO Has You Covered When Water Damage Hits Your Amherst Pet Store

8/17/2022 (Permalink)

Water damage is a real risk for most businesses, and it is also something no company wants.

Water Damage

Water damage is a real risk for most businesses, and it is also something no company wants. Water damage can happen very quickly – all it takes is a broken pipe or seepage from outside to flood part of your pet store and leave you wondering how you will get things back on track.

There is much to consider after water damage hits your Amherst pet store. You need to consider your stock and try to save as much as you can. You also need to talk to your insurance company, close up the shop until the damage is taken care of, and figure out how to open again as soon as possible. After all, a closed business does not make money, so getting open again is of paramount importance.

We recommend you put in a call to SERVPRO as soon as you can. Our water remediation experts are on hand to help you deal with the situation. We have the skills and equipment you need to get your premises dried out and back on track.

The heart of our work is getting your pet store dry. Our teams come equipped with powerful free-standing, submersible, and truck-mounted pumps to extract as much water as possible before drying begins. We test the humidity of your building and the moisture content of materials in the affected area to set a realistic drying goal. SERVPRO technicians have a range of air movers, fans, and dehumidifiers on hand to get your pet store dried out as soon as possible.

However, the help we offer you does not end there. We also liaise with insurance adjusters on your behalf – we have proprietary software that generates labels and assists with listing salvageable and unsalvageable items. We also offer a full pack to move your stock out while the building is dry. Our storage facilities are managed by skilled staff to provide excellent conditions for storage, and we have powerful Esporta washers on hand to clean any soft furnishings from your store. After your store is properly dry, we employ a range of techniques to deodorize it and make it fresh and welcoming for staff and customers once more.

We understand that you need to open your doors again as soon as possible. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for help.

Repairing Damage to Wall Systems of Northampton Offices

8/17/2022 (Permalink)

“We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster.”

SERVPRO helps Northampton businesses with water damage repair

Commercial properties look to our professionals' fast and reliable response to help mitigate and restore their structures after leaks and burst pipes. With how rapidly elements like drywall can become ruined by water saturation, we respond fast with solutions like:

• Extraction
• Cleaning
• Drying
• Content Protection
• Mold Prevention

What Materials Need to be Removed? 

The first determination of our team during water damage repair for Northampton businesses is what physical damage is apparent. We can often target the problem areas based on surface damage visible on elements like drywall near the leak.

What Framework Was Installed? 

In commercial structures, it is common to see metal tract frameworks. Older buildings might still have wood framing between walls, and each of these materials is handled differently when restoring water damage, as wood is absorbent.

What Is Needed to Dry Up Damage? 

With the structural cavity exposed, we can focus on the needed tools and pieces of equipment to dry up damaged elements still installed. Even with a metal framework, it is vital to fully dry the opening between wall surfaces to reduce the likelihood of secondary effects like mold and microbial growth. We utilize air movers and dehumidifiers to have the most significant impact on removing moisture from structural cavities.

What Materials Get Replaced?

After much of the drying is complete, we can focus on the materials that must get replaced. Wall systems consist of several pieces and parts. With the framework exposed and necessary damaged elements removed, it is possible to quickly replace full panels of drywall and similar materials where needed.

Wall systems often contain the bulk of the plumbing network for commercial properties. When these materials become damaged, it is up to our experienced restoration and reconstruction professionals of our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team to help. We are a full-service contractor for restoration and recovery - give us a call today at (413) 324-1300.

Clean and Dry Out Your House After Flood Damage in Northampton

8/17/2022 (Permalink)

Our techs are ready 24/7, 365 days a year.

Rapid Cleanup of Flood Damage in Northampton

Storms happen year-round in our area and can leave us with the after-effects of such weather. Flood damage in Northampton is one of these consequences. There are a few reasons that might cause us to have problems with too much rain. 

Streams in Northampton can cause flood damage if sufficient rainfall forces water to flow over their banks. Another reason is if the ground is dry and dense, which keeps water from entering the land. Instead, the rain must run across it, seeking low spots. If a residence sits in one of these lower-lying areas, it can quickly become a victim of flooding.

When flooding happens to a residence, one of the first things people need to know is to move their most valuable and fragile things, including food, to a higher level. Refrigerated items might not last more than a day or two, so you should give this less priority over boxed, bagged, and canned goods. These are much less perishable and can sit for days in a box, whereas items from your refrigerator might quickly begin to spoil and become unusable.

Other things to keep in mind regarding a flood are:

• Flash flooding happens without warning so keep off lower roadways or those marked as such,
• Have extra water available, as well as basic food items and any needed medications, and
• Keep family documents on you, such as IDs, passports, credit card information, insurance cards, etc.

When the flood recedes, wait for official announcements regarding returning home, using electricity or water, and notices about downed power lines. Always think of these as live and capable of causing harm, so never touch or attempt to move them. SERVPRO is ready to help start cleaning up the flood damage and begin restoration of your house.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County wants to assure you we are here and able to assist you with cleaning up and drying out your home. Call us at (413) 324-1300. We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster.

Cleaning Northampton Office Walls During Fire Restoration

7/20/2022 (Permalink)

If you find yourself in need of assistance with fire damage remediation, call SERVPRO at (413) 324-1300.

Walls and Ceilings Require Prompt Fire Restoration

Active fire and combustion in commercial properties create a turbulent environment where aerosolized solids and smoke debris are churning in the affected offices. Many situations place these particulates under pressure, blowing them out towards vertical surfaces and the ceiling. When it comes to restoring affected materials impacted by soot, there are several types of surfaces impacted: 

• Painted
• Finished
• Textured
• Wallpapered

Identifying the Type of Smoke Damage

The type of smoke damage plays a role in fire restoration for Northampton office buildings. The thickness of the soiling is also a contributing factor in determining the best cleaning and restoration approach. With an assessment and skilled professionals starting mitigative action quickly, we can protect many of the contents and building materials impacted. 

• Wet smoke
• Dry smoke
• Grease fire residues
• Puffback

Dry Cleaning Solutions 

Sponges for dry cleaning help remove debris and residual buildup on affected materials like drywall panels. Dry cleaning will not work with grease-based soils, but many fires impacting office buildings do not fall under this heading. The actions of the dry cleaning sponge can effectively prepare a surface for wet cleaning strategies. 

Wet Cleaning Where Possible 

With much loose debris and manageable soot particulates removed with chemical sponges, we can implement wet cleaning solutions to protect underlying substrates where possible. Wet cleaning is only effective with surfaces capable of handling moisture and can be the only suitable cleanup strategy when grease-based residues and soil deposits exist. With many office surfaces being painted, wet cleaning is often the preferred option. 

Restoration and recovery rely on the fast response of our experienced technicians. We prioritize the removal of harmful soot and smoke residues on surfaces using several effective strategies. Give our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team a call to help when you need it at (413) 324-1300.

Do Not Make These Flood Damage Cleaning Mistakes

7/20/2022 (Permalink)

You need the right equipment when it comes to flood restoration. SERVPRO uses the latest technology and equipment.

SERVPRO Cautions Northampton Homeowners

Flooding in your home is inconvenient and stressful, and you want to start cleaning up immediately. However, before you rush to deal with the flood problem in your home, please be aware that people make common mistakes when cleaning up a flood.

If you are trying to fix flood damage in your Northampton home, please try and avoid these mistakes:

• Using the wrong equipment. A regular mop and brush are not enough for flood damage. You need proper water extraction gear, such as the kind used by SERVPRO.

• Ignoring the risk of hidden damage. Flood water can seep into walls, drywall, insulation, and wooden floors, causing damage. Our techs use monitoring equipment to check for hidden water damage.

• Forgetting about the contamination risk. Flood and stormwater can contain microbes, human waste, dangerous chemicals, and other contaminants. We train our teams in the safe disposal of contaminated water and materials.

Our teams have the training and equipment to assess the situation and take action. We check for hidden damage, deal with contamination risks, and ensure your home is structurally sound.

Do not take risks with flood damage cleanup. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300.

Are You Looking for a Thorough Mold Removal Company?

7/20/2022 (Permalink)

Mold will spread like wildfire within 24 to 48 hours. SERVPRO techs are trained and experienced in mold remediation services.

SERVPRO Digs Deep During Amherst Mold Removal

Amherst is a lovely New England town of just 37,819 residents – but do not let the small size fool you. Amherst is a vibrant and lively community where there is always something to see or do. In 1658, John Pynchon of Springfield purchased a parcel of land in the area. For several years, Amherst was part of its mother town of Hadley before becoming a township in 1759. 

What Are The Steps of Mold Removal?

If you are concerned about mold removal in Amherst, working with a company like SERVPRO that takes a thorough approach to mold remediation is essential. Mold removal is not as simple as wiping away visible mold, as the colonies you see are only one part of the problem. When SERVPRO arrives at your home, we will:

• Set up containment using thick plastic sheeting and duct tape to ensure the mold spores stay in the affected area.
• Use moisture meters and probes to track the area's moisture level before, during, and after remediation.
• Use air machines and air scrubbers to trap mold spores.
• Deodorize the area afterward to get rid of the musty smell.

If you need a thorough mold remediation service, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300.

Northampton Homes Often Need Certain Kinds of Water Damage Repair

6/22/2022 (Permalink)

All you need is SERVPRO for all your water damage needs.

Water Damage Repair Can Be Assisted in Northampton

Northampton homeowners can often help themselves and remediators by periodically checking certain areas of their residence for water-related issues. If owners can’t do it themselves, they should hire a professional firm like SERVPRO to do it for them. These simple efforts to catch problems early help limit potential damage and aid cleanup and restoration crews.

As one of the best water damage repair firms in Northampton, SERVPRO knows how to fix nearly any problem caused by water. Among other things, we have expertly provided water removal services, resolved basement flooding, and repaired ceiling leaks, burst pipes, and their effects. In performing their work over the years, our technicians have identified some key areas where leaks and related damage usually appear. If you suspect a water problem, they suggest that you check: 

• Places behind discolored structural elements, like subflooring, areas between walls, attics, or other spots directly below roofs
• Around window frames, especially the caulking around them, their glass seals, and spots under or beside your windows
• Areas over pipe networks after hard freezes and extended periods of cold weather
• Pipes under kitchen and bathroom sinks
• The gaskets and valves of dishwashers, under or behind washing machines, and around old water heater tanks that haven’t been checked in a while
• Neglected water containers that may have corroded or otherwise deteriorated

If you take these simple measures, you should be able to substantially limit potential water damage and help speed up any necessary remediation. However, a better option is to have your home periodically inspected by experts.

That said, rest assured in knowing that your helpful neighbors at SERVPRO of Hampshire County are always here and ready to assist you with all of your water damage repair needs. Call us anytime at (413) 324-1300 for help.

Professional and Affordable Water Removal Services in Amherst

6/22/2022 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Techs Strive to Preserve and Restore Water Damaged Carpets in Amherst Homes

Amherst Property Owners Rely on SERVPRO to Mitigate Water Damage

During the winter months, temperatures in Amherst can drop as low as 17 degrees Fahrenheit or less. Water pipes running through areas of the house without central heating like your garage or cellar are prone to freezing which causes these vital supply pipes to burst.

SERVPRO's water removal service in Amherst has the expertise and equipment to rescue your home. Using truck-mounted submersible pumps and industrial wet/ dry vacuums, our 24-hour emergency service can restore your rooms to their former glory under most circumstances.

Following an initial assessment, our team can use the latest technology, including infrared cameras, to remove the water you can see and the water you cannot see. Our primary concern is getting your home dry. Still, a thorough assessment is necessary to reduce secondary water damage from mold and mildew.

The priority is your valuables. Residual moisture, if left unchecked, is a hotbed for bacteria growth and mold. As part of our service, we can put your possessions in a safe and dry area. SERVPRO's pack-out team can remove your furniture, valuables, and, in some cases, carpets before work begins. Of course, this is in the case of extreme flooding from clean water.

We begin by removing water almost immediately using a two-step process, first, by truck-mounted submersible pumps, which are capable of removing thousands of gallons of water in one go. Followed by industrial strength wet/ dry vacuums to remove residual water and moisture, preventing mold and mildew buildup.

Upon arrival, our estimator can inspect your floors to determine how deep the damage goes. In some cases, this can mean removing carpets to check for damage to the sub-floor. As part of our ongoing commitment to our customers, SERVPRO can conduct an in-depth inspection of your sub-floors. Leftover moisture inevitably leads to problems further down the line, so identifying wetness is a high priority for preserving and protecting our customers' property.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is the one to call for fast and efficient water removal. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster simply by calling (413) 324-1300.

How Effectively Can Professionals Remediate Mold Damage in Amherst?

6/22/2022 (Permalink)

Contain the spread of mold throughout your home with a call to SERPVPRO. Contact us at the first mold sighting for best results.

Team SERVPRO Offers BOTH Expertise and Equipment to Remediate a Mold Infestation in Your Home

Mold presents a wide range of problems to Amherst property owners. First, it becomes an eyesore if left to proliferate on visible parts of the structure. It also produces terrible odors. The spores that form mold are always present in a home environment, so when conditions are right, growth occurs. Therefore, besides cleaning the affected areas, remediation also involves eliminating the conditions that favor mold growth.

You might try to deal with mold damage in Amherst by scrubbing the affected areas or even painting them. However, these measures only give you a temporary reprieve because they do not address the cause. Even if you replace the affected contents or parts of the structure, the problem might still recur because the source is elsewhere.

When you call SERVPRO, we rely on proven methods to give you a longer-term reprieve from mold proliferation. First, we do a thorough inspection of the property to identify all moldy areas. This inspection is an essential step because mold might be present even in areas that you are yet to identify. Depending on the level of infestation, we might use containment measures such as polythene sheets to prevent spores from spreading to unaffected areas. Air scrubbing might also be necessary to minimize spores in the air within the affected area.

Working with professionals like the team we send from SERVPRO ensures access to equipment that not only makes the work simpler but also guarantees a positive outcome. We have a big range of equipment to combat different problems. We have air scrubbers with HEPA filters to deal with airborne particles. We also have an injection system that helps eliminate moisture from wall cavities without requiring demolition. We have many other specialized types of equipment which we use depending on the problems that we find in a property.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County has the necessary skills and equipment to help you deal with mold-related issues. Call us at (413) 324-1300 any day.

Call Professional Restorers in the Event of Storm Flood Damage in Northampton

5/17/2022 (Permalink)

If you find yourself in need of assistance with Storm damage remediation, call SERVPRO at (413) 324-1300

SERVPRO Performs Storm Flood Damage Repair in Northampton

Natural disasters like storms wreak havoc on communities yearly, leaving many people without homes. Taking too long to respond to the aftermath of a storm might cause the porous materials in your home to disintegrate or your house to experience rapid mold colonization.

You should call a reliable restoration service provider such as SERVPRO when there is storm flood damage on your Northampton property. Our team can help you with water damage repair. We can repair, rebuild, and recover your residence to get it back to its state before the loss. Storms can leave a trail of damage behind, including:

• Flood damage
• Wind damage
• Hail damage 
• Ice and snow damage

Our SERVPRO response team can handle the damage and follow the proper restoration process to completion. We are a leader in the restoration industry, and we have garnered enough trust from our customers. Our restoration process can involve these steps:

• Debris removal
• Emergency repairs
• Water damage repair 
• Drying and dehumidification
• Cleaning and disinfecting

You can place your absolute trust in SERVPRO restorers to handle storm damage of any size in the shortest time possible. We have cutting-edge technology that can exceed our customers’ expectations. We can use self-priming trash pumps to extract the floodwater. These pumps use force to generate a pumping action by using the pressure differential in a liquid. 

Our SERVPRO technicians can also use our heavy-duty venting fans and dehumidifiers to dry your house. The equipment lets us dry buildings more rapidly by moving vast amounts of dry air into them. We have different air movers that generate an airflow of incredible velocity from 1,000 to 3,000 cubic feet of air per minute. This air movement is helpful for general ventilation. It can remove vapors, unpleasant smells, and fumes from a house. 

You do not have to worry even when your house has sustained damage. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for efficient and professional restoration. We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster.

Why Calling SERVPRO Should be a Priority After a Flood in Westhampton

5/17/2022 (Permalink)

Flooding from storms can happen at any time. Call SERVPRO so that your home can be restored as quickly and cost-effectively as possible.

Who to Call After Flood Damage in Westhampton

Did you know that the thought of losing your home or possessions to flooding is a common fear among homeowners? These forces of nature are often unexpected and can be caused by just about anything. Heavy rainfall, backed-up drains, storms, or natural disasters can all be a trigger for excess water entering the home and causing harm. We offer a single solution that can be sought anytime via our 24-hour emergency call line.

The first thing homeowners can do when calling us about flood damage in Westhampton properties is to give us the information you have available. Providing us with all the facts can help us to ascertain what type of equipment we need and which technicians to send. At SERVPRO, we are well aware of the stress that flooding can cause to our community and promise to deliver a focused customer approach in any work we do.

It is important not to panic but at the same time to act quickly. Standing water can cause permanent damage if left too long. However, never put your safety in jeopardy in an attempt to save possessions. SERVPRO technicians can remove furniture and other items to a clean location either on-site or in a local facility. We are also trained to spot potential hazards like electrical wires or structural damage and deal with them safely.

Your SERVPRO technician can carry out an initial visual inspection to decide the type of equipment that is most effective for your needs. Generally, we remove standing water below two inches with powerful heated extractors. Water levels above 2 inches may require submersible gas pumps to be brought in to drain the affected area quickly.

It is only natural to assume the worse in an emergency. However, we work toward a restore-over-replace mentality. That means doing our utmost to save your possessions. In some cases, we may perform a pack-out service which involves labeling all goods and sending them to a specialized facility where they can be deep cleaned, dried, and restored.

We have extensive experience in dealing with situations just like yours. SERVPRO of Hampshire County is ready to receive your call at (413) 324-1300 anytime, day or night.

How Our Technology Can Restore Your Amherst Home After A Mold Infestation Takes Over

5/17/2022 (Permalink)

Call us for help!

SERVPRO's Technology Eliminates Mold Damage With Ease In Amherst

Eliminating mold damage from your Amherst home requires speed, thoroughness, and flawless sanitization to get it done optimally. Without the right equipment for the job, the fungus can keep coming back, possibly stronger and more resistant to treatment than before. SERVPRO carries an advanced array of mold-fighting tools and technology that allows us to take care of infestations faster and more reliably. By using these technologies and more, we can bring you one of the best mold remediation services in the country.

Moisture Detection Tools

One of the important ways we are helped by the latest and greatest technology when fighting mold damage in Amherst is with our moisture detection tools. Our handheld thermal hygrometers and infrared imaging devices allow us to see through walls and floors to find moisture pockets harboring live mold growth. Without water, mold cannot grow (although dry areas could still house dead colonies). So these tools allow us to find and destroy any remaining patches of growth in the home.

Sanitization Technology

Simple sanitizing sprays, wipes, and solutions are often not enough to kill mold and other fungi. Because spores have a tough outer layer insulating them from many common chemicals, these products prove ineffective in the long term. Instead, we turn to machines that project powerful ultraviolet light onto an area, frying the spores and ensuring that anything in the vicinity stays dead.

Thorough Odor Removal

Conventional odor removing techniques involve masking odors or, in some cases, neutralizing common chemicals via common cleaning agents. However, mold colonies emit odors that cannot easily be masked or neutralized by the usual methods and solutions. Their odorous particles tend to spread widely throughout the home. To take on these problems, we employ custom-made chemical and thermal foggers that can find and eliminate the smell of mold in every corner of your home.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County provides expert mold damage remediation and restoration services at affordable rates and fast speeds. Call us for help at (413) 324-1300.

Flood Damage Estimates and Insurance Work for Northampton Offices

4/20/2022 (Permalink)

Storm damage? SERVPRO is prepared with restoration equipment and experienced technicians.

Acquiring Claim Approval for Flood Damage in Northampton Offices 

Working with insurance companies is a way to help commercial customers during a challenging and traumatic time of a building’s life. Post-flood recovery is often handled through directly interfacing with insurance adjusters to get the green light to start mitigation and restoration.

Detailed Damage Documentation

Provide the needed information to get a claim approved for flood damage in Northampton offices after natural disasters; careful inspections and documentation are required. This begins with cataloging where floodwater is in the building, what materials have already been destroyed, and what mitigative actions are needed to help.

Loss Reporting

Losses are a large contributing factor to the documentation our SERVPRO team is asked to provide insurance companies after a flood incident. Several areas of your office building can be destroyed by migrating floodwater, including:

• Contents
• Furniture
• Wares
• Documents
• Electronics

Determining Needed Restoration

Part of working to meet the expectations and demands of an insurance provider is being detailed about the work to be done in the structure. Companies want to know what our restoration crew intends to do with the damage assessment we conducted and the necessary actions to restore the property and its contents after these emergencies.

Creating the Estimate

While ultimately, you are most concerned with the timeline to get your doors back open and resume serving customers, it is important to learn about the anticipated costs of restoration as well. Whether you have the appropriate coverages to manage these scenarios without out-of-pocket expenses or not, SERVPRO works fast to provide a detailed and accurate estimate to get the information to the necessary party as soon as possible.

There are dozens of direct challenges for meeting the needs of insurance providers to get claim work started after flooding in your office. Our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team works directly with area providers to be a preferred vendor for flood restoration, storm relief, and cleanup after loss events. Call today at (413) 324-1300.

Why Speed Matters After Water Damage To An Amherst Hotel

4/20/2022 (Permalink)

Keep the Water Out of Your Hotel in Amherst

Swift Water Removal and Drying Mitigates Problems for Commercial Buildings

Hoteliers everywhere know that water damage is a genuine risk for their business. Harm can happen in the blink of an eye. Sometimes water enters due to extreme weather or a flood. Still, other times it is due to a leak, a broken pipe, or even a careless guest who left the faucet on or the bath running.

The most important thing in dealing with water damage to an Amherst hotel is speed. It would be best if you acted quickly to reduce the risk of damage spreading further and causing more harm to the building. Swift action often means the damage can be contained in a small area and dealt with there, which lessens the disruption of most of the guests.

The consequences of water damage to a hotel can be severe, especially if the problem is left unchecked. The obvious problem, of course, is damage to floors, rendering corridors unpassable. Moisture damages all kinds of floors, including carpet, wood, vinyl, and the wooden subfloor in the case of carpeted areas.

However, the problem does not end with damage to flooring. If the problem is severe enough, the ceiling of the area below might be damaged. Water also wicks into walls and is soaked by drywall and sometimes insulation. There is also a real risk of harm to hotel items such as chairs, beds, towels, and bedding. Depending on your insurance policy, you could find yourself liable for damage to guests’ belongings.

As well as widespread damage, if left unchecked, a water problem could result in mold, which no hotel owner wants. It is evident that time is of the essence when dealing with water damage to a hotel: The consequences of leaving it are quite dire.

SERVPRO is quick to respond to any call for help. Our IICRC-certified teams are trained to assess, extract water, and dry every affected area quickly. Our technicians have a range of moisture meters and probes at our disposal for a thorough assessment of the situation.

Carpets, furniture, and soft furnishings are of particular concern to hotel owners. SERVPRO experts are trained in a range of water extraction and drying techniques that are suitable for even expensive carpets and fine soft furnishings. Our SERVPRO IICRC industry-certified technicians have a range of specialty upholstery drying techniques at hand to rescue water-logged chairs, sofas, and beds.

If necessary, we can also remove baseboards and cabinets to dry inside walls and behind carpentry. Our drying goal is to restore your hotel “Like it never even happened.”

Do not let water ruin your hotel or your business. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for help.

When Puffback Leaves Fire Damaging Soot in Your Grandy Home

4/20/2022 (Permalink)

If Puffback Strikes Your Pittsfield Home, Call SERVPRO for Cleanup

SERVPRO Offers Information, Advice, and Service Regarding Puffback and then Clean Up to Your Home

For homeowners who run oil-based boilers or furnaces in their Grandy home for heating, they should be well aware of the need for inspection and service on an annual basis. Your ability to listen for troubling noises that the unit is making or abnormal behaviors of firing and then get help can keep you from a severe mess to clean up in the future. In a phenomenon known as puffback, oil-burners are ignited and immediately burn off pooled oil in the combustion chamber, which can send a palpable wave of soot through the ductwork and vents of your home.

The lengths to which this fire damage can affect your Grandy home are directly correlated with the force of the blast. While, in some cases, this puffback could also cause damage to your heating unit altogether, you are almost always left with thick soot to clean up somewhere in your house. When the heated soot contacts cold corners of a structure, "soot tags," often mistaken for cobwebs, form. While this residue can be overwhelming to see at first, it is something that should be handled quickly. Lingering soot in areas of your home is not beneficial for your family to be around, and it is highly advisable to trust certified professionals to restore the damages created quickly.

Our SERVPRO technicians are well equipped to deal with fire damage restoration efforts, including the expertise necessary to successfully and completely clear up any presence of soot throughout your home and your ductwork. Our trained technicians deploy state-of-the-art equipment and cleaning products to ensure a clean-looking and smelling home upon completion of our service. The cleaning of ducts is a step that many homeowners rarely even consider. They can see a minimal way into the ductwork moving throughout their home. Yet, with any puffback scenario, this network going throughout your home will be hit the hardest by the soot damage.

While our SERVPRO professionals are well versed in ensuring that the full scope of the damage has been corrected, personal cleanup efforts might leave you overlooking this critical step. This can eventually send more soot through the system when the heating pump kicks back on again. To prevent an endless cycle of recleaning the same areas, consult with the appropriate repairmen to look into your oil-based furnace to ensure that it does not need servicing. Then, contact our team to thoroughly clean the soot from your walls, floors, ducts, and ceilings. You will feel "Like it never even happened."

While puffback can be an ongoing problem to underserviced heating units, it does not make the damage that occurs any less challenging to battle. Do not hesitate to give our experienced team at SERVPRO of Hampshire County a call. You can reach us anytime at (413) 324-1300.

Fire Damage from Your Clothes Dryer Can Affect Your Entire Amherst Residence

3/17/2022 (Permalink)

It is important to remove lint from the dryer vent after each use to prevent a fire from starting.

Rely on SERVPRO to Restore Your Home after Fire Damage

Pulling fresh, just-dried towels out of the dryer can fill the area with a fresh, pleasant scent. During the winter in Amherst, this chore can become one of the nicer ones just because of the warmth felt. However, just like the aroma can spread, lint from damp towels can accumulate and cause heat to build up to dangerous levels inside your ducts.

After pulling each load from your dryer you can prevent fire damage in Amherst, with the mundane task of removing the lint in the trap. When homeowners neglect this task, lint can eventually pass through and into the duct. Still damp, it often sticks to the interior of the duct, slowly building up. Continued use of your dryer and sporadic removal of lint from the trap can lead to a fire starting inside your ductwork.

Dryer fires can also affect the clothing inside the dryer in cases where heat cannot escape into the duct and out the exterior vent. Synthetic fibers produce toxic gases when they combust. When the basement holds the washer and dryer, fire can affect the floor of the ground-level story in your home. Finished basements, of course, sustain a great deal more property damage than unfinished basements might experience. The materials used to complete a basement often help spread the fire, which can weaken even more considerable areas of the ceiling above, and thus, the flooring above.

Because many homes do not contain functioning smoke detectors in the basement, or if they do, testing does not happen on a monthly schedule, a fire in this location can become quite large, even with the occupants at home. Just as home maintenance that takes place on a regular schedule helps prevent a lot of damages caused by a multitude of disasters, acting soon can help keep existing fire damage from worsening.

SERVPRO technicians hold IICRC certificates, including Fire and Smoke Restoration (FSRT). We continually maintain and check our tools and equipment to ensure they remain in working order. When a fire takes out your home's electric supply or only causes damage to the area we need to work in, we can supply our own to power our equipment.

After removing all charred and burned items from your basement, smoke odors can still permeate your entire home. This is because soot particles, as they disintegrate, become airborne and can enter your heating and cooling system and then spread throughout your home. Our Odor Control Technician (OCT) can help you address this predicament and make your home smell normal again.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County wants to help homeowners in our area, from Northampton to Ware, recover from fire damage. Ensuring your family lives in a safe home, free of the carcinogenic properties inherent in soot particles, is very important to us. Call us 24/7, 365 days a year, at (413) 324-1300, so we can help make your home "Like it never even happened." again.

How Water Damage in Granby Homes Affects your Upholstery

3/17/2022 (Permalink)

Water Damage? Upholstery and Carpet Drying in Easthampton--Call SERVPRO

With Finesse, Training, and Equipment SERVPRO Technicians Clean Your Water Damaged Belongings

Water damage can lead to several effects on your property, and there is a need to act quickly to prevent further damage and restore as many items as you can. For instance, when your upholstery comes into contact with the moisture, you should expect some swelling, water spotting, color bleeding as well as potential mold growth. Each problem requires a discrete solution. Since this is one of the most stressful moments, you need to work with a professional in the restoration industry. Here, we will cover some of the common moisture effects that take place after a water damage event in Granby.

When the upholstery in your Granby home becomes exposed to water for a long duration of time, the wood absorbs the water and swells. It can also crack if you fail to take quick preventive measures. As time goes by, the framing joints can also weaken, the glues break down, and water spots may appear on the fabrics. When attending to such situations, our SERVPRO technicians may decide to wet the entire furniture to prevent water lines and give uniformity.

Wetness can cause the dust covers to bleed, and should they sag, then it means they might stain the floors or carpets. Rust may also appear on the metallic backing on upholstered buttons and zippers. There is also the possibility of the wooden furniture legs staining your carpets. If you fail to work with a service provider like SERVPRO before the items with such stains dry, then the chances of removing the stains are minimal. Never panic and start rubbing the upholstery fabric or carpet since that may lead to irreparable fiber distortion and staining.

When our SERVPRO IICRC certified technicians are restoring your property, we pretest our spot removing procedures within an inconspicuous area to ensure their efficiency and safety. By performing a close inspection, we can identify possible fabrics appearance changes and dye transfer. We also know that water-based stains dissolve readily in water-based solutions. A solvent solution may be necessary when addressing oil-based spills. We have spray bottles filled with SERVPRO formulated agents, and we know how to use them.

When drying your upholstered furniture, we put in place dehumidifiers and air movers. These devices help in lessening the drying time. Since moisture creates favorable conditions for mold growth, we remove the water source to prevent such eventualities.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is a trusted leader in water damage restoration and has highly trained technicians. Call us at (413) 324-1300 when you face any water, fire, mold, and storm damage, and we can restore your property to its earlier state, "Like it never even happened."

How Objects React to Standing Water in Ware Flood Damage

2/27/2022 (Permalink)

When the flooding situation in your home isn’t mitigated, the flood damage simply escalates. Contact SERVPRO 24/7 - 365 days a year.

Calling SERVPRO Immediately after Flood Damage Can Help to Reduce Restoration Needs

Standing water can be one of the most destructive forces of all in your home if it is allowed to remain undisturbed. However, while some objects and materials can rather quickly break down and be destroyed in standing water, others can be surprisingly resistant to its effects. How much flood damage to your Ware home ends up costing you typically depends on what, exactly, is swamped and soaked in water.

Materials that Are Vulnerable to Standing Water

The bulk of any replacement costs in your Ware home after flood damage should likely come from these objects and materials. When swamped with water, they can begin to chemically oxidize, break down, develop mold and fungal growth, and experience other destructive processes. These materials may be ripped to pieces, dissolved, or otherwise physically damaged to such an extent that we cannot do anything to restore them to their prior state. This category of belongings can include breakable objects, some fabrics, paper products, raw iron, and many other materials, especially when given extra time. This is part of why fast water extraction is so essential: many of these materials can be saved if we remove the water before it has a chance to cause excessive damage.

Materials Resistant to Standing Water

Some objects and materials may be barely affected by water, even over time. These materials include water-resistant metals such as stainless steel, unpolished stone and masonry, some types of wood, hard plastics, and other non-porous materials. However, keep in mind that standing water rarely acts alone in damaging your home. Some of the most expensive damages can come from objects and debris carried in by the water, or staining from dirt and mud particles in the water.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is an experienced local provider of damage mitigation, restoration, and repair services. Our technicians are IICRC certified and are ready after any significant storm to respond to your call for help. Call us at (413) 324-1300.

Water Damage in Pittsfield Properties

2/27/2022 (Permalink)

When your dishwasher breaks and water leaks everywhere, water damage can quickly result. Contact SERVPRO to assess the situation.

SERVPRO Explains Factors in Drying and Restoration Post Water-Loss

Every Pittsfield home is at risk for flood issues. The most residential flooding comes from failed plumbing such a split hose or a broken dishwasher. That means the water is usually clean and free of contaminants, but removal and remediation still takes time and can be costly. A failing dishwasher can flood an entire home in one afternoon.

Restoration of Pittsfield water damage involves drying the structure as carefully as possible while still performing each task as quickly as possible. SERVPRO carefully monitors four factors to ensure we return each home to its normal, dry state without causing any secondary damage.

Temperature – The best environment for every home is the 70 to 90-degree range. If we can use the home heating system, that is the best method since it spreads an even heat throughout. If this is not an option, we bring in space heaters for each affected room and hallway. To prevent secondary damage, we do not allow the temperature to go above 80 degrees.

Humidity – We test each room for air moisture content. If it is too high, the humidity level can warp furniture and prevent or slow drying actions. We lower the humidity by installing a dehumidifier in each affected room. Depending on the moisture content level, these devices can draw out over 20 gallons of water from the air each day. We can safely lower the humidity level by 20 percent each day.

Evaporation – Water converts to vapor, and this process increases significantly once standing water is brought down to less than inches in depth. The longer it stood, however, more was absorbed by carpets and floors. SERVPRO technicians determine which areas of the home were under water for the most prolonged period and set up dehumidifiers, air movers, and exhaust fans to concentrate on those first.

Air Movement – The fans and air movers we use to increase evaporation also force cooler air out of the home while forcing warm air across walls and floors, drying them. Restoration crews carefully monitor the warmth of the air flow to ensure the temperature does not rise too high, too quickly.

Eliminating the effects of water damage is a careful process that takes time. Homeowners may get frustrated, but SERVPRO of Hampshire County is here to explain each step and even help with insurance adjusters. If you need our services, call us at (413) 324-1300 today.

How Quickly Can Northampton Residents Arrange Fire Restoration?

2/20/2022 (Permalink)

Time is of the essence when dealing with fire damage in your home. Contact SERVPRO right away for effective fire restoration efforts. We are here.

SERVPRO in Northampton Offers Expedient Fire Restoration Professionals to Local Residents

A property fire can be among the most emotionally draining situations to affect a homeowner. Not only can fires be traumatic experiences, but they can also leave behind smoke residues, staining, and debris that can take days to clear. At SERVPRO, we understand the stresses that homeowners face when trying to restore their homes after a fire incident. We begin by providing residents with twenty-four-hour contact with our dispatch personnel. Our one-four-eight program ensures that we can arrange service with you within one hour. For emergencies, our technicians can arrive within four hours to mitigate losses. By eight hours, we can provide you and your insurance adjuster with a detailed estimate of cost-breakdown, restoration activities, and salvageable versus non-salvageable materials. We assist residents with:

• Fire Mitigation
• Odor Control
• Home Restoration after Fire

Using fire restoration professionals in Northampton gives your home the chance to recover after a disaster fully. Our technicians have access to over 100 proprietary cleaning products for removing soot, smoke, and stains with various proven cleaning techniques. We also have specialized machines to help restore items alongside our structural cleaning equipment. According to independent research, our Esporta mechanical washing machines can restore up to 90% of textiles that would previously have been disposed of. 

• Esporta washing machines clear away textile contaminants, stains, and residues. Returning textiles are not just clean but food grade safe. 
• Once mitigation, drying, and cleaning are complete, our in-house construction team can rebuild your property to its preloss condition. 
• Fire restoration professionals are fully licensed and trained to deal with any-size disaster in your home. 

If your home suffers a disaster, contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County for fire restoration at (413) 324-1300.

Learn How to Perform Water Removal in Amherst

2/4/2022 (Permalink)

Don't let water damage take over your property, Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300

SERVPRO Can Assist You in Performing Water Removal in Your Amherst Residence

Dealing with water damage from plumbing issues or appliance malfunctions is stressful. Porous building materials can absorb moisture, and standing water can lead to rotting. Calling for help from an experienced firm like SERVPRO is essential.

To perform water removal in your Amherst residence, our team can inspect the affected areas to assess the damage. During the inspection, our SERVPRO team determines the class of water damage. Water damage classes range from one to four, with the higher numbers classifying higher water levels of moisture absorption.

Risks of Water Damage

If you fail to address water damage, it can result in various issues, including:

• Mold infestation – Mold may grow within 48 to 72 hours after a water intrusion incident. This issue could lead to health effects.
• Weakened structural integrity – The presence of standing water can affect flooring, walls, building supports, and ceilings.
• Increased chances of electrical fire – Water may access electrical wiring in walls and appliances and potentially cause a fire.
• Pests and microorganisms - Mosquitoes and microorganisms can nest in standing water.

Regardless of the magnitude of water damage, our technicians provide complete water removal services, including extraction, cleaning, drying, and repairs. Our SERVPRO team can remove standing water using portable extractors, which are flexible enough to be taken into almost any area of a home. We can also use stationary tools to extract water from carpeting and pad utilizing the weight of the technician standing on the device. We attach a vacuum system to the device, and it pulls water through a series of small holes in the base of the unit.

Our SERVPRO technicians also use dehumidification equipment to eliminate water vapor from the air. Reducing the amount of water in the air reduces the humidity ratio. A lower humidity ratio increases the moisture evaporation rate in a building and its contents. As moisture evaporates, the dehumidifier continues removing it from the air until the affected contents and structures are dry.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County to solve the issue when a water intrusion happens in your home. Our 24-hour hotline is (413) 324-1300.

How to Handle Storm Flood Damage in Amherst

1/27/2022 (Permalink)

"We're Faster To Any Size Disaster"

SERVPRO Can Perform Storm Flood Damage Repair in Affected Amherst Residences

After a thunderstorm hits, there is a risk of property damage, including flooding. Storm flood damage needs to be handled well to protect your home and health. Unlike typical water damage, floodwater might contain microorganisms, pesticides, and sewage which complicate the restoration process. When you notice flooding in your residence, call experts from SERVPRO to remediate the damage and remove floodwater safely.

Our restoration experts have the equipment and training required to handle storm flood damage in your Amherst residence. We can inspect your property and mitigate the damage before starting the restoration process. SERVPRO’s flood damage restoration process may include:

• Water removal
• Cleaning structural elements and furnishings
• Drying
• Dehumidification
• Mold remediation
• Replacement or repair of structural elements like ruined drywall and wood.

Our SERVPRO technicians can use moisture meters to find the actual moisture level or content of various materials. Some moisture meters are calibrated to measure certain materials like drywall and wood. Some meters are adjustable for several materials that can be adjusted for drywall and wood. We also use centrifugal pumps to remove water. These pumps convert rational energy from a motor to power to move fluids. They include high-pressure pumps, self-priming trash pumps, and electric submersible pumps.

We can dry the affected areas using air moving and dehumidifying equipment. Our SERVPRO team uses air moving equipment to improve evaporation at the surface level and minimize drying time. When water evaporates from damp materials, the air above the wet material becomes cooler and saturated. The boundary layer of cool, humid air can reduce evaporation. Air movers enhance evaporation by introducing airflow at the surface levels. They replace the cool, saturated boundary layer with drier, warmer air from dehumidifiers.

Our water restoration technicians (WRT) can also use structural drying equipment to direct airflow into cavities and replace the moist, cool air with dryer, warmer air, increasing the temperature of the surfaces and lowering the vapor pressure. This expedites the evaporation rate.

If your home has flooded due to a storm, SERVPRO of Hampshire County can restore it to its former state. Call us anytime at (413) 324-1300.

Where Can Homeowners Turn to For Mold Remediation in Northampton?

1/19/2022 (Permalink)

Look no further, SERVPRO is the restoration company for you.

They Can Trust SERVPRO for Mold Remediation in Northampton

It is concerning to discover a mold infestation in your home. Mold can grow because of excess moisture or water damage. Without proper remediation, a mold infestation can continue spreading.

SERVPRO performs mold remediation in affected Northampton homes. We use advanced equipment and cleaning products when cleaning the mold up from your property. Mold remediation involves cleaning up moisture and mold. The goal is to return the space and contents as closely to the pre-damaged state as possible. We can take several steps to handle the mold damage like:

• Identifying the source of mold and the scope of the damage.
• Containing mold to keep it from spreading.
• Locating and removing the moisture source.
• Restoring or replacing damaged materials.
• Decontaminating the affected area.
• Removing odors.

We take steps to control the mold contaminant at its source during mold cleanup. We aim to keep mold contamination from becoming airborne and spreading from the source to clean areas. For instance, our SERVPRO technicians can place negative air machines close to where demolition takes place to reduce the amount of airborne mold we are exposed to and make the mold remediation process more efficient. A negative air machine pulls contaminated air from an affected area through various filters. It then discharges the freshly filtered air into the interior or exterior space of the structure.

If porous materials like wallpaper, ceiling tiles, drywall, and carpets have mold damage, our SERVPRO restorers can remove and discard them. It is not possible to clean such materials effectively. If we come across porous materials that are surface contaminated by mold spores or dust, we can decontaminate them using HEPA vacuums if dry. If the materials are wet, we can clean them professionally.

Our SERVPRO team can surface clean semi-porous materials that have mold growth like wood through a combination of scrubbing, scraping, and HEPA vacuuming. We can also scrub and clean non-porous materials like glass and tile.

When you need mold cleanup services, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. We can make the mold infestation seem, “Like it never even happened.”

Your Home Probably Isn't Totaled by Fire Damage in Granby

1/7/2022 (Permalink)

If you need a company you can trust, call SERVPRO today for any of your fire damage remediation needs.

Trust SERVPRO for Your Fire Restoration Needs, Big or Small

Large fires can sometimes be so all-consuming as to appear irredeemable to a despondent eye. If you do not know what to look for, it can sometimes seem as though your home has been burnt to ruin and must be entirely rebuilt. However, while this can happen, it is much rarer than most Granby fire damage victims think. The chances are that your home still has structural components, plans, belongings, and foundations that can be worked upon even if all else is lost. If the interior and exterior walls are mostly intact, the structure itself may only require quick repairs. While cleanup may be a long and arduous process, keep the big picture in mind.

For the most severe cases of fire damage in Granby, SERVPRO teams up with local contractors and businesses to bring a large workforce to the job. In addition to tarping, boarding, and room clearing, our mitigation response strategy also allows us to figure out exactly how much help we need for the job before restorations even begin. We can identify the causes of damage, the extent of the problem, the cleanup scale, and the required replacement materials within a matter of days.

How Quick is the Fire Restoration Process for Granby Residents? 

Once restorations begin, things tend to proceed quickly. We first remove debris and belongings from the house, carefully taking inventory of everything we must replace or restore. Once we have cleared the structure, we can begin the cleanup and restoration process, whereby we directly clean and repair any structural damage the fire may have caused. All the while, SERVPRO technicians advise and work with specialized contractors to ensure that everything gets the best care possible. 

Once the home itself has been restored to a condition even better than before the fire struck, we move your now-clean belongings back in and make sure everything functions normally.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County has the personnel and equipment necessary to clean up even the most severe fire disasters. No matter how large or how small the damage, we are ready to respond to your call at (413) 324-1300.  

Can the Interior of My Granby Home Ever Look the Same After Severe Fire Damage?

12/30/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO will get your house back to feeling like home again. Call on our professionals for help after a fire in your home.

SERVPRO Offers Full-Spectrum Fire Damage Restoration Services to Granby Residents, Including Repair, Resurfacing, and Rebuilding Options

Fire damage recovery in Granby can be a complicated matter, involving the employment of many disaster restoration strategies. A typical household fire, even if quickly knocked down, can include the following phases and remedies:

• Safety assessment
• Contaminated water containment and removal
• Debris cleanup
• Residue and surface evaluations and matching with effective cleaning products and methods to eliminate 
• Deodorization
• Repair and rebuilding of significantly burned structures and fixtures

Why Are Fire Damage Residues So Hard to Remove?

Everyday dirt and grime can pose a bit of a problem, but the conditions during which they settle on floors and surfaces are relatively consistent. Sweeping, a pass of the vacuum, dusting or a bucket and mop chases them away in short order. Fire damage in your Granby house can be a different matter. The soiling presented is not just tramped in leaves and garden dirt, food prep leftovers, the odd spill, or dust motes finally clinging to the woodwork. During the fire, the heat and the continuous combustion of a wide range of building materials, fixtures, and contents change everyday items into chemically altered substances. Benign materials transform into toxic, hazardous residues that are both airborne and attached to every surface in your home.

How Did the Fire Damage Inside my House Spread So Widely?

When materials catch fire, the burning heat causes the vapors and incompletely combusted bits of fuel, also known as soot particles, to spread on air currents. Hot air rises, so the pattern often is seen more substantial soot deposits near and on ceilings. The heat and response of the lighter-than-air particles of soot also explain why the soiling occurs one or more levels above the ignition site. If the vents in your HVAC system were open during the fire, soot could travel through the ductwork, emerging far from where the fire burned and thought confined.

My Attempts Only Made the Situation Worse! How Do I Clean Up?

Leave fire damage cleanup to our SERVPRO team of the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC)-trained technicians. Rigorous coursework plus on the job experience under the tutelage of seasoned fire restorers helps our employees recognize the different types of soot commonly seen in household fires and then match the residues with effective propriety cleaners and appropriate techniques. Failure to follow these steps frequently results in smearing and setting in stains and incomplete removal of corrosive residues.

Is It Dangerous to Clean Up Soot?

The air quality inside your home after a fire in Granby can give cause for concern. When we assess the scene, we likely recommend at least partial containment of the hardest-hit spaces to improve the conditions our workers and occupants endure during cleanup. Wrapping the area with 1.6 mil polyethylene and employing a negative pressure air scrubber forces airborne residues through HEPA filters. Our crews also wear personal protective equipment (PPE) to avoid inhaling the residues or allowing skin contact during the project. We suggest you and your family avoid the work areas as much as possible.

How Can You Handle Severe Charring of Building Materials?

We always trend toward the restoration of damaged materials rather than demolition and replacement. This approach is less disruptive and costly in both time and money, but it is not always appropriate for every scenario. As we work on returning soot-encrusted surfaces to preloss conditions, we also encounter circumstances where the underlying material sustained significant damage from the heat and burning of the fire. There are options short of rebuilding, even in severe cases. We also consider a hybrid response when some areas of fire damaged materials can emerge from aggressive cleaning intact and can return to function while another section cannot. Here are some strategies we use:

Blistered and Peeling Finishes

• If brushing the loose finish reveals relatively undamaged material beneath, refinishing or painting can proceed after thorough cleaning and drying.
• Additional layers of charring might respond to controlled removal. We might choose to use an appropriate abrasive technique like fine-grit sandpaper or steel wool until we find undamaged, stable material to refinish.

Charred Structural Components Unable to Provide Support

When the integrity of a structural component or fixture becomes irreparably damaged by burn-through or heavy charring, our rebuilding division can assist with demolition and repair, and reconstruction.

Engaging the services of SERVPRO of Hampshire County gives homeowners a seamless and low-stress restoration experience after a destructive fire. We can handle everything from initial assessment to rebuilding severely burned structures, starting with a call to (413) 324-1300.

Who Can I Call for Water Damage Repairs in Northampton in the Winter?

12/23/2021 (Permalink)

Winter weather can cause ice damming, frozen pipes and many other disasters for your home. We are Here to Help!

SERVPRO Offers Water Removal Services in Northampton Year-Round

Even though the seasons where rainstorms can bring excessive flooding are over, Mother Nature can still bring about problems in the fall and winter months. High levels of snow and extremely cold temperatures can also cause their share of issues. Property damage during this time of year also occurs most often in the late fall and early winter months before people have had a chance to winterize their homes.

Two of the most common causes of water damage in Northampton are frozen pipes and ice damming. The two incidences commonly occur during the first snow, or the first day the area sees temperatures below freezing. The first cold days of the season will tell homeowners in northern states whether their buildings are ready for the winter or not.

Whenever moisture finds its way into your structure, it is wise to seek help from a professional restoration company like SERVPRO. If water stays inside your house for longer than a day or two, other secondary issues can arise. For example, wet building materials can become a source for mold growth or cause your indoor relative humidity levels to rise. To prevent secondary damage from occurring, we can conduct the following procedures:

• Applied Structural Drying (ASD)
• Water Extraction Services
• Emergency Services for Water Damages
• Cleaning Up After a Roof Leak
• Repair Ceiling Leaks

If your pipes freeze when it gets cold outside, they could crack, causing water to leak. Water will force follow gravity to your flooring, but then if the crack does not get repaired, it can continue to flow, making several of your contents and building materials wet. 

If an ice dam forms on your roof, the water could get underneath your shingles if it cannot drain into your gutters. The moisture can then leak into your home and cause issues from your roof to your floors.

If you ever suffer from a frozen pipe or ice dam disaster in the fall or winter, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. 

Is Your Home Office at Risk of Fire Damage?

12/3/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO IICRC certified techs have all the equipment and manpower for every size fire damage restoration service needed for your home.

Fire Damage in Amherst Is A Genuine Risk When Working at Home

Not everybody working in Amherst travels outside of the home for work. Some people telecommute or have a part-time job they run from their home. A home office makes working at home much more comfortable and cuts down on interruptions.

Fire damage in Amherst home offices is terrible news. Even if you are working from your house, you must pay proper attention to workplace safety.

What are some fire risks when working from home?

A home workspace contains several potential fire risks:

• Electronics can catch fire.
• Piles of paperwork or files provide kindling for flames.
• Heaters or radiators can become a fire risk during the winter months.

If you are inclined to burn candles or incense – or even smoking – there is an immediate fire risk in your office.

What can I do to lessen the fire damage risk?

SERVPRO recommends taking some easy steps to reduce the risk of fire damage in your home office:

• Unplug appliances when not in use
• Make sure tools do not have damaged cords or corroded batteries.
• Deal with paperwork and do not allow it to pile up.
• Use fireproof filing cabinets and storage boxes for all your papers and records.
• Never leave a burning candle or incense unmonitored.

How can SERVPRO help?

Even if you are careful when working at home, accidents sometimes occur. In the event of fire damage, we are on hand to help make your home, “Like it never even happened.”

Our technicians assess the fire damage extent and draw up a plan to clean up your office and get back to work.

We use a range of cleaning methods, mechanical and chemical, to clean soot damaged walls, ceilings, and floors. We also clean your office furniture and any soft furnishings such as rugs, drapes, cushions, and upholstery.

Once your home workspace is clean and sound, we work using air scrubbers and, if needed, thermal fogging to deodorize the room and leave it smelling fresh once more.

Do not let fire damage put a spanner in the works. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300.

How do Professionals Restore Residences to an Original Condition?

11/24/2021 (Permalink)

Water damage to your home can be hard to handle. SERVPRO water damage specialists will be on-site within 4 hours of the initial call.

SERVPRO Water Restoration Experts Have Years of Experience Working with Residential Properties in Northampton

When residential properties in Northampton suffer damages, there are usually several processes that must take place before the home is ready for restoration. Mitigation and emergency services are the priority that technicians address in a home, as these can help secure the property or prevent further damage. During this process, SERVPRO technicians can also begin sorting through permanent and non-permanent losses, which keeps the restoration procedure time and cost-efficient; there is no point in restoring items that may later need replacing. Restoration usually occurs once a property is clean, dry, and the removal of permanently damaged contents or structure is complete.

What does water restoration cover?

• Cleaning items to return them, where possible, to a preloss condition
• Resurfacing and refinishing things that may have non-permanent damage
• Replacing items which have permanent water damage

Does water restoration get expensive?

The expenses of water restoration in your Northampton home depend entirely on the extent of the damage. Water exposure is a critical factor in a claim's cost because long-term exposure leads to permanent damage. The most expensive aspects of restoration cover replacement and resurfacing. SERVPRO aims to produce the same results, a preloss condition, by using cleaning methods and technologies. We can stock our vans with advanced equipment like ultra-sonic immersion cleaners to achieve quality restoration for various household items. When we do need to replace things, we do so for cost-efficient or inexpensive materials like sheetrock. Our restoration over replacement methodology ensures that customers enjoy an on-time and on-budget service.

How does mechanical washing work?

• Textiles are suspended in place within the machine
• Water jets rotate around the suspended fabrics at high pressure
• Up to 99% of soils and stains are removed through mechanical cleaning

Working to restore a property to its preloss condition is cost-efficient. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 now.

What Should a Northampton Business Expect During Commercial Fire Restoration Services?

11/19/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO has a general contractor license for all build back issues. Commercial damage restoration is a job for us.

SERVPRO Techs Work Hard to Restore Northampton Properties with Fire Damage

When a commercial property in Northampton needs commercial fire cleanup, it can be daunting to see the soot covering walls and contents. This is a situation where do-it-yourself methods have the potential to cause greater damage as specific applications need to be used on different types of soot removal and surface cleaning.

SERVPRO handles any size commercial fire damage restoration services needed in a Northampton property. The technicians know that every minute the business stays closed for the cleanup, revenue and productivity are lost. With that in mind, SERVPRO techs work to get the job completed as quickly with as little replacement of contents and building materials as possible through their expert techniques for:

• Removal of soot from surfaces
• Controlled demolition as needed for charred building materials
• Addressing water damage through extraction and drying

Another beneficial aspect of a professional fire cleanup is the ability for the technicians to estimate the amount of time the restoration service will take. This time frame allows business owners to plan for employees to work from home and outsource other business tasks to keep their workflow moving until the building can reopen for regular hours.

Controlled demolition sounds destructive, but it is the precise removal of only damaged building materials beyond restoration. If sheetrock is wicked water or has heat damage, the technicians remove the damaged portions and leave the rest intact. This makes the repairs needed a breeze. This SERVPRO location has a contractor license #MA CS-107843 and can perform the required replacement and reconstruction necessary to get the company reopened.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 brings professional commercial fire restoration to local Northampton properties. The trained, certified techs are available 24/7 for any size or type of cleanup needed.

Do Carpets and Upholstery Pose Additional Restoration Challenges After Flood Damage in Granby Homes?

11/1/2021 (Permalink)

Storm damage to your home is very stressful. Let SERVPRO handle all the storm and flood damage mitigation services for your home.

SERVPRO Can Help With Different Aspects of Restoration Including Inspection and Cleaning

During flooding incidents, carpets and upholstery items bear the brunt of soiling and physical deterioration mostly because they are located on or near the floor where floodwaters accumulate. When planning to restore preloss conditions at your Granby home, you need a sound plan to handle such items.

Dealing with upholstery and carpets after flood damage in your Granby home is complicated by the items being made of composite and porous materials. Porous materials readily absorb moisture which can interfere with the glues or cement holding the different materials together over time. SERVPRO performs a preliminary inspection establishing whether restoration is likely to bear fruit.

Restoration of such items affected by flooding takes:

• Cleaning 
• Decontamination
• Repairs

The inspection before taking the above steps focuses on aspects such as the upholstery construction and especially the fabric weave since knowing this helps in choosing a cleaning approach. Inspecting items also helps reveal the extent of soiling, including staining. With the results obtained, our SERVPRO technicians can separate items, identifying what to restore or dispose of.

Cleaning is the main restoration process, and it involves methods like:

• Hot water extraction
• Hand dry solvent cleaning
• Shampoo and foam cleaning
• Showcase

Even though flooding causes significant soiling of various items, it is rarely uniform. The ability to use different cleaning methods ensures that only the right cleaning force is applied for each type of soiling. For example, SERVPRO only uses showcase as a last resort since it is the most aggressive cleaning method.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help you address any issue after flood damage, "Like it never even happened." Call us at (413) 324-1300.

Different Types of Cleaning Jobs Necessary in the Aftermath of Fire Damage in Northampton Homes

10/26/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO IICRC certified technicians have the training and experience in all phases of fire damage restoration for your property.

Hiring SERVPRO Ensures That All Restoration Tasks Are Taken Care of by One Professional Team

Cleaning your property after a fire incident is a crucial step since smoke spreads residues all over the house. The residues vary, ranging from dry to wet or greasy soot. You can get better results if a professional service provider cleans your house after fire damage.

The cleaning processes needed after fire damage in Northampton homes can be separated into several individual tasks to understand better what it takes to restore the preloss conditions. SERVPRO has seasoned fire restoration technicians who can provide a clear breakdown.

Typical cleaning tasks that your home might need include:

• Appliance cleaning
• Books and artworks cleaning
• Cleaning fabrics and fibers
• Cleaning wooden items

Each cleaning task presents a set of challenges requiring the right skills and other resources such as equipment or cleaning products. Our SERVPRO restoration teams present an advantage since they include highly trained technicians who readily adapt to each task.

When cleaning appliances, it is essential to protect electrical components. Therefore methods that over wet the items, such as immersion or pressure washing, are not viable options. Luckily the items are constructed with non-absorbent materials like plastic, metal, glass, and composites, so damp wiping can help eliminate most soils from their surfaces. In case of significant soiling, disassembly may be necessary to inspect and clean internal components.

Another challenging task is cleaning books or artworks since they are paper-based, so most cleaning processes can easily damage them. The items might also be damaged by many aspects of the fire incident, including moisture, firefighting chemicals, heat, or soot. Our SERVPRO technicians help with sorting and cleaning.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help clean your property thoroughly, eliminating all traces of soiling, "Like it never even happened." Call us at (413) 324-1300 for assistance. 

Do Mold Removal Companies Use Chemicals to Improve Remediation in Amherst Properties?

10/19/2021 (Permalink)

Commercial mold remediation is a job for SERVPRO. We use the latest technology and equipment for every service. Call now!

SERVPRO Manages Microbial Growth and Odors Using Different Compounds for Faster Resumption of Operations

Mold is a complex problem that requires a comprehensive remediation process to guarantee satisfactory outcomes. Otherwise, traces of the contamination might remain, or growth might keep recurring. Using the right chemicals can help in killing spores or odor elimination at your Amherst business premises.

Appropriate skills are necessary, whether using chemicals or other remediation approaches. Hiring mold removal companies for your Amherst facility can help eliminate any guesswork in the process. SERVPRO sends IICRC certified microbial remediation technicians to manage the loss at your premises. One of the uniqueness of this is the superior understanding of various chemicals necessary in mold management.

The chemicals useful in mold management fall into different categories, including: 

• Antimicrobials which help stop or at least limit microorganism development
• Disinfectants that destroy microorganisms on contact
• Sporicides which control fungal and bacterial spores, specifically

Knowing the product categories may not be sufficient in ensuring you use the best chemical agents since commercial cleaning products mostly combine several agents because they are designed for general use. SERVPRO has years of experience working on damaged properties, so our crew chiefs can pick products with the right concentration levels.

Having the right products is good, but you can only get excellent results if the appropriate application procedures are followed. For instance, our SERVPRO technicians start with the physical removal of mold colonies using methods such as vacuuming or wire brushing before applying products to control or limit growth.

Other useful actions include:

• Allowing enough dwell time
• Using the right concentration levels
• Avoiding over wetting items

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is one of the best mold removal companies to hire when remediating contamination at your business premises. Call us at (413) 324-1300. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster.

Water Damage in Northampton Fitness Centers Requires Professional Removal

10/4/2021 (Permalink)

Commercial water damage restoration is no easy task. SERVPRO has the manpower and equipment for any size disaster.

Large Capacity Water Removal Equipment Critical to Remediate Northampton Fitness Center

Workout spaces and fitness centers might seem able to shrug off water damages. With cinderblock walls and tile or terrazzo floors, even a significant plumbing break would seem to need only time to drain away. On the contrary, the construction of a commercial building in Northampton intended to provide areas to exercise, play sports, run, lift weights, or swimming has countless nooks and crannies where water can collect. Failing to remove the water promptly can lead to deterioration of structural components and mold growth. 

Consider the Construction

Many commercial buildings use cinder blocks for construction, and fitness centers are no exception. The hollow cells of the blocks trap fluid, ensuring that water removal in a Northampton rec center must occur. Although concrete and cinder blocks seem impervious to water, they are porous and prone to eventual deterioration if waterlogged for long periods. Our crews use thermal imaging or moisture detectors to locate hidden water or higher than normal moisture levels. Ceramic tile is often used as a building material, too, and can permit water to seep through cracked or unsealed grout lines. Building construction uses drywall and ceiling tiles in some areas.

Water Removal

Determining an efficient method to extract water sunk deep inside a maze of cinder blocks is daunting. SERVPRO technicians use several ways to release or remove the water. Holes drilled into mortar lines or the blocks directly can release the water. Extensions on wanded extractors permit technicians to reach down from the top of a block run to suction out water. 

Floor mats using negative air pressure can suction up water from damaged grout lines. Flood cuts in drywall open up large spaces to provide access. Our general contractor license makes rebuilding or repair needed when using these techniques part of the project.

Drying Strategies

Although SERVPRO technicians learn that extraction is the most efficient way to return moisture levels to normal, once we remove the liquid water, effective drying techniques complete the job. We create a perimeter of air movers to accelerate the evaporation of water absorbed into concrete, blocks, subfloors, drywall, and ceilings. Increasing the temperature in the space helps with evaporation, as warm air can hold more moisture. Humidifiers capture the water vapor in the space, and the condensed fluid is stored for appropriate disposal.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is well-prepared to assist when a commercial building needs water removal and rebuilding. Call us at (413) 324-1300 for an assessment.

What Essential Steps Help Clean Up Items after Flood Damage in My Northampton Home?

9/27/2021 (Permalink)

Storm and flood damage restoration service for your home should be handled by SERVPRO. Our IICRC certified techs are trained and experienced.

SERVPRO Can Help You Deal with Contamination, Deep Soiling, and Other Problems Caused by Northampton Flooding

Floodwater interacts with the contents in your house in different ways, including submerging those on the floor. These include carpets and rugs, dripping on vertical surfaces, and absorption through porous barriers. Such exposure affects items uniquely, which determines the steps taken to clean them up. 

What Simple Steps Can Help Ease Content Clean Up?

After addressing other challenging aspects of flood damage incidents in Northampton, such as extracting standing water from the property or removing deteriorated materials, cleaning contents emerges as the other challenging process. There is a need to tackle problems such as rusting, shrinking, contamination, and other kinds of deterioration to restore items to their pre-damaged state. Our SERVPRO technicians perform various steps that help reduce the time or work involved during the actual cleaning process. They include:

• Separating salvageable and unsalvageable materials

Removing unsalvageable items for immediate disposal eliminates clutter and saves time

• Pre-treating washable items

Steps like wetting damp fabrics with clean water help remove debris such as mud

• Partial or complete move-outs

Cleaning contents in a designated area within or away from the affected property helps add convenience

Is There Sophisticated Equipment That Helps With Content Cleanup?

Although it is possible to complete many cleaning actions by hand, it might take longer or lead to unsatisfactory results. Since our SERVPRO technicians strive to remove any soiling or staining from flooding, "Like it never even happened," we utilize various equipment types during the cleaning process, including:

• Upholstery cleaning equipment 
• Pressure washers
• Immersion cleaners 

For the best outcome, a cleaning exercise should address visible soils, remove any traces of contamination in non-porous items and deal with bad odor.  

Cleaning helps in many ways after flooding incidents. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 to help salvage your contents.

Why do Northampton Homeowners Trust SERVPRO for Fire Damage Restoration?

9/20/2021 (Permalink)

Fire damage restoration is a complex task. SERVPRO techs use the latest technology for all disasters.

Hiring SERVPRO for Fire Damage Restoration Can Save Northampton Residents Time and Money

Cleaning and restoration after fire damage is a complex task that requires expertise and professional tools. SERVPRO uses various cleaning techniques during fire damage restoration of your Northampton home, depending on the type of surface involved. The goal is to restore the structure to a preloss condition as quickly as possible. 

Before the fire damage restoration of your Northampton home can begin, the SERVPRO techs categorize the affected materials into the following categories-

• Washable: These materials can be wet cleaned, and the application of a water-based cleaning product does not damage them.
• Non-washable: These are materials that can't be wet cleaned. The application of a water-based cleaning agent might cause damage to such materials. 

How do SERVPRO Techs Use Soda Blasting During House Fire Cleanup in Northampton?

Soda blasting is an abrasion cleaning technique that SERVPRO techs sometimes use to remove soot and smoke particles from your fire-damaged home in Northampton. The method involves propelling baking soda crystals (Sodium bicarbonate) against a fire-damaged surface with the help of equipment called a soda blaster. As the crystals impact the surface, they shatter, dislodging the smoke and soot particles in the process. 

Soda blasting is a safe process that does not involve harsh cleaning agents and chemicals that might cause damage to the surfaces. It is a quick process that is highly effective in cleaning smoke and soot residues from various surfaces, including metal, concrete, and wood. 

Another potential advantage of soda blasting is that the soda blast media (sodium bicarbonate) used during the process can also absorb odor-causing particles and help in the deodorization process.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. We are available round-the-clock to help you with any size disaster.

What Steps Can Hampshire County Residents Take to Prevent Water Damage from Flooding?

9/9/2021 (Permalink)

Owner Kevin Fall gives tips on how to prepare for flood damage.

IICRC-Certified SERVPRO Techs Assists Hampshire County Homeowners with Water Damage from Flooding

Storms, ground flooding, and the subsequent water damage caused by both have heavily impacted residences in Western Massachusetts, especially after heavy July rainfall and inclement weather from the remnants of Hurricane Ida. In the wake of this recent disaster, over 100 homeowners called SERVPRO of Hampshire County for basement flood cleanup.

SERVPRO professionals in Hampshire County remediate water damage from flooding with a combination of 24/7 service, highly-trained and certified technicians, and commercial-grade restoration equipment and facilities designed to tackle small or large-scale disaster cleanup needs. SERVPRO of Hampshire County’s licensed restoration services after a flood include general contracting (license #: MA CS-107843) and residential contracting (license #: MA HIC 180066).

Other certifications local SERVPRO technicians and staff hold include:

• Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) Water Removal Technicians
• OSHA 10-hour General and Construction Industry Training
• Applied Structural Drying Technicians
• Water Damage Restoration Technicians
• Upholstery & Fabric Cleaning Technicians

Precautions for Residential or Basement Flood Damage

SERVPRO of Hampshire County owner Kevin Fall suggests in this video the following for protecting homes, particularly basements, from flooding:

• Keep water away from important fixtures and appliances like water heaters, furnaces, and laundry machines by identifying where water is coming from and keeping vulnerable areas like entryways blocked with sandbags
• Use wet vacuums and dehumidifiers to keep water damage under control
• Preparation is key to minimizing damages. Keep downspouts and gutters clean, with spouts directed away from the home. Clear out storm drains near the property if they are obstructed to lessen further flood risk.
• Homeowners can often salvage basement contents by keeping belongings in storage totes or elevated on palettes. In basements with carpet, the flooring can prove difficult to clean.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County stands ready to offer mitigation services that can make disaster-affected homes look “Like it never even happened.” Property owners can find out more by calling (413) 324-1300.

Our Team Is Available 24/7 To Restore Your Amherst Business After Flood Damage

9/7/2021 (Permalink)

Commercial water damage restoration by SERVPRO is top-notch. Our technicians are ready at a moment's notice.

Restoring Structures with Exterior Block Walls with Flood Damage in Amherst

Many of Amherst's building structures designed as schools for long-term storage are often based on a concrete slab with block walls. Often these walls form the exterior and interior floor plan. The highly durable paint is frequently chosen to protect these walls and give them a more finished, aesthetically pleasing appearance. Although this paint works well to keep rain running off the exterior walls, submersion during a flood can lead to damage.

Block walls covered by typically protective paint on buildings in Amherst can exacerbate commercial flood damage by retaining moisture and prolonging the conditions that harm the contents of such structures. When SERVPRO responds to a customer with a building constructed like this, we explain that we need to bypass the moisture barrier created by the paint. 

A Building's Structure Should Be Taken Into Consideration

The pressure of the water during a flood can affect the stability of walls, including concrete blocks and other mortared bricks. Flood damage can also cause water to permeate the interior of those blocks, especially if paint or other protective coverings become damaged from cracks due to movement or areas where debris scrapes off any paint. 

Once water enters, it continues to spread. Regular drying methods work much more slowly to dry solid blocks. Air passing over the surface does pull moisture out but at a slower rate. We use a technique similar to the one used to drain hollow walls – drilling small holes, called weep holes, in the lowest portion possible of the affected wall. This happens along a grout line, where the mortar is softer and allows gravity to help dry the wall. 

Because brick and concrete blocks can take weeks or months to dry out completely, we might also need to install additional entries into the wall to provide better ventilation. These allow moisture to escape as water vapor, which our desiccant machines can then remove. The spaces these vents create can be filled later and repainted. Our building crew, General Contractor License # MA CS-107843, performs this service so our mitigation teams can concentrate on cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and handling the contents of the building. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County understands that flooding affects your building and your business in a multitude of ways. We work with companies in and near Northampton, Granby, Easthampton, and Ware to mitigate flood damage in all types of buildings. Contact us through our 24-hour services line, (413) 324-1300, year-round for this and other disasters.

What is Porosity and How Does it Relate to Water Damage in Northampton?

8/26/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO technicians are ready 24/7 365 days a year for any size water damage restoration job. Pre-loss condition is what we provide.

How Porosity Affects Drying Strategies for Northampton Homes

Porosity and permeance are both terms that can help to identify the likelihood of water moving through specific materials and contents in your Northampton home. While the literal scale to gauge the porosity of structural elements might be complicated, it is simpler to consider that you can group items into three primary categories based on their permeance:

• Porous
• Semi-Porous
• Non-Porous

Where a structural component or item falls into these groups can identify the difficulty our SERVPRO team might have with preserving affected materials or drying water damage in Northampton homes. Classifying each of the damaged items and structural elements in your home into one of these categories can direct responding technicians to the areas of most pressing importance and which materials do not need immediate action to protect.

Porous 

These are the materials and items that require the most urgent attention. Porous materials have a high permeance rating, which means that they can readily absorb water and allow it to change their composition, deteriorate the material, or allow for hazardous growths like mold and fungus.

Semi-Porous

These mid-level materials can absorb moisture at a slower pace than objects with higher permeance like carpets and drywall. Semi-porous surfaces, like wood, OSB board, and bricks, take longer to absorb direct water exposure. Likewise, pulling the moisture back out of these materials can take longer against more successful water removal approaches common with high porosity structural components.

Non-Porous

As the name suggests, these items absorb little to no moisture at all. When these materials absorb any amount of moisture, it can take much longer to remove it entirely than porous materials. The project manager scoping the job can determine the necessary drying approaches.

Multiple levels of permeance and porosity indicate more significant challenges in drying when absorption occurs. Our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team is ready to overcome these obstacles with extractors, air movers, and specialty drying equipment that can reduce vapor barriers and make drying more efficient. Give us a call whenever you need us at (413) 324-1300.

Should Homeowners Seek Professional Help When the Need for Fire Damage Restoration in Northampton Seems Minor?

8/16/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO IICRC certified techs are trained and experienced in all phases of fire damage restoration. Call now!

Training in the best practices of soot and smoke remediation is why SERVPRO swiftly ensures Northampton homes are clean and intact after fire loss recovery.

In theory, not every household blaze needs expert cleaning intervention, but obtaining professional assessment before Northampton fire damage restoration is never misguided. The residues from even a small fire spread far from the ignition site, causing progressive deterioration to structural components and contents. 

Why Hire SERVPRO Instead of Doing Research and Handling My Own House Fire Clean-Up in Northampton?

Unless you have advanced training in fire damage restoration in Northampton, determining how to perform charring, soot, and smoke remediation takes too much precious time. Mastery of fire and smoke damage recovery strategies during the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) coursework is why SERVPRO invests in this coursework for our managers and technicians. Crews arrive at your home ready to provide emergency services immediately after an assessment, including water damage stemming from firefighting efforts.

How Critical Is Fast Action for Successful Restoration of Fire Damage?

Research demonstrates why SERVPRO’s rapid response after Northampton fire damage is essential. The timeline of fire damage looks like this:

Within Minutes of Combustion and Smoke Drift

• Soot residues float and settle, their acidic composition instantaneously beginning a corrosive action.
• Appliances and plastics discolor, deepening unless smoke remediation commences. 
• Soot and accompanying odors embed in absorbent or porous materials such as drywall, carpeting, furniture, insulation, linens, clothing, and window coverings. These structural components and contents begin to break down.

Within Hours of Dousing the Fire

• Trim, flooring, structural supports, and furnishings made of wood might need scraping and refinishing as the corrosive residues destroy the integrity of the materials. 
• Metal supports, fasteners, and other objects tarnish (rust), losing strength.
• Textiles stain permanently.
• Painted surfaces “yellow.”

Within Weeks of Even a Small Fire

• Uncleaned and untreated structural components, surfaces, and contents exposed to smoke and soot residues need reconstruction or replacement.
• Successful fire damage restoration is now impossible. 

Fast action after fire damage is crucial, why SERVPRO of Hampshire County should advise before you take on proper household fire damage restoration. We are ready to consult 24/7 at (413) 323-3512.

Put Professional Water Damage Experts To Work In Your Amherst Area Home Today

8/6/2021 (Permalink)

Moisture damage from water is no DIY project. SERVPRO has trained professionals with IICRC certificates for any size disaster.

Professional Water Damage Experts

It can be easy to fall behind in general maintenance tasks in your home. Before you know it, a significant storm enters the area, causing severe damage to your Amherst property.

If you find water damage in your Amherst area home, give professionals a call that can make the proper repairs and get things back to normal quickly. It helps to have someone you trust available to answer your call for help 24/7, 365, and we are here to fill that role.

SERVPRO has IICRC certified technicians and all the latest equipment and resources necessary to make your home look new again. All it takes is a single call to our office to begin your home’s restoration today. We address all of your concerns and communicate with you throughout the process to help make the best of unfortunate circumstances. We maintain a stress-free claims process and finish as quickly as possible.

Tools to Locate and Remove Water Damage

SERVPRO technicians use infrared moisture detectors to locate excess water on your property, along with extractors of all shapes and sizes to remove water wherever it might be. Our drying process involves using various equipment, depending on your situation, to get everything dry as quickly and efficiently as possible while limiting any damages you might experience.

If you have a specific section of your home or personal property you would like saved, SERVPRO technicians can provide individual attention to specific areas, ensuring more satisfying results. We do everything in our power to meet or exceed your expectations and return your property to a quality pre-damage condition.

Calling a professional for help with water damage restoration provides you with licensed experts you can trust precisely when you need us. No water problem is too big or too small; our entire team stands ready to answer your call for help, providing unique solutions to a large variety of emergencies that can occur on your property.

Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County for full-service water damage solutions in Northampton, Amherst, Granby, and more. Highly trained restoration experts are nearby and ready to help. Put our experience to work for you today (413) 324-1300.

Remodeling Project Reveals Mold Damage in Amherst

7/30/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO follows strict guidelines when it comes to restoration. Mold remediation services by SERVPRO are second to none. Call now!

Why SERVPRO to Rid Your Home of Mold Even During Renovations

Discovering mold during the demolition phase of a remodeling plan brings progress to a halt. Consult with the mold remediation experts at SERVPRO to manage the mold damage so new construction can proceed.  

You finally take on a remodel of your master bathroom. The work crew pulls up the previous laminate owners installed and stops progress because of mold damage in your Amherst home. It appears a seeping leak at the seal of the toilet saturated the subflooring, feeding a colony of mold. We encounter this situation often and have a team of certified mold remediation specialists available to help get you and the remodeling contractor past this problem. 

Mold is an opportunistic organism. All it needs is a little water to activate and a surface coated with bits of organic material to eat and grow. Oxygen is necessary, but light is not. Finding it under the flooring in a damp environment is familiar to SERVPRO, and our remediators are experts in following the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) protocol for abatement. 

Mold Inspections, Remediations, and Removal

First, the SERVPRO technicians contain the infestation. Since you live and sleep within feet of the affected area, we barricade the bathroom, at a minimum, and consider using a negative pressure machine vented to the outside to prevent particles of mold from drifting into your bedroom or other areas of the house while we work. Next, we remove the mold and any structure it infiltrated. Pressed wood subflooring compromises easily when mold feeds on it, so expect sections to be removed and bagged for proper disposal. 

The next step involves using professionally matched antimicrobial products to sanitize the areas before we arrange new subflooring and reseating or replacing the leaky toilet. Eliminating the leak is the key to successful mold damage remediation. Finally, an air scrubber runs for a designated period to clear all remnants of the mold colony before the barriers come down. The remodelers resume where they left off. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County comes to the rescue when mold damage threatens the completion of a remodeling project. Call us at (413) 324-1300 for expert handling of unexpected microbial growth. 

How Long Does Flood Damage Restoration in Northampton Take?

7/21/2021 (Permalink)

Storms cause all sorts of water damage throughout the house. SERVPRO has all the equipment and manpower needed for all the water restoration needed.

SERVPRO Provides Efficient Flood Damage Support to Northampton Residents.

A flooded property requires immediate attention and can become a hurdle, impacting your everyday life. Water intrusion events are generally sudden and can throw your schedule out. Our services are designed to help relieve stress during restoration and repair by communicating with you thoroughly as well as acting as the bridge between the insurance adjuster and the restoration process. We can help you with:

• Basement flooding cleanup
• Sewage cleanup
• Emergency services water damage

Our goal is to make flood damage restoration in your Northampton home as smooth as possible. This process could include enlisting the help of certified builders and providing you with realistic deadlines. If you remain in the property, we can extract, dry, and disinfect areas of the house in high usage first, such as kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms. Dedicated SERVPRO crew chiefs can oversee the process using their extensive experience.

Sorting through non-salvageable materials and disposing of them is essential to carrying out efficient restoration work. 

We offer additional services such as vapor barrier installation to protect your home from damage in the future. 

Our use of industrial-grade water restoration equipment can help return your home to its preloss condition, “Like it never even happened.”

For expert assistance, contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County for flood damage repairs at (413) 324-1300.

Northampton Flood Damage Drying Techniques

7/9/2021 (Permalink)

After a flood, count on SERVPRO for assistance. Call us at (413) 324-1300, we are available 24/7.

Systems to Remove Flood Damage from Your Home

Excess rainfall can affect nearly every home in some fashion. When it causes streams or rivers to crest their banks, the problem increases significantly and can cause thousands of dollars in repairs. 

Standing water is the primary source of flood damage to Northampton homes, but removing it lessens the problem; it does not eliminate it. To do that, SERVPRO removes moisture from the property and the air. When lowering the air humidity levels, we use either a Closed or an Open system. 

Closed System for Flood Damage Restoration

We seal the affected area from other parts of the home and outside air for a Closed system. Dehumidifiers are the first machines we use for this process. A Closed system is a preferred method for smaller areas with a high humidity level since it is easier to seal off a single-entry point with plastic sheeting or close and seal the doors and windows. Technicians also use the HVAC in a Closed system; air conditioning can significantly help the dehumidifiers speed up the process. 

Flood Damage Remediation Using an Open System

An Open system is more efficient for larger areas. We use fans and air movers to force out the moist air inside the home and replace it with drier air from the outside. However, if the humidity level of the air outside is not significantly lower than inside, this is not an efficient process. Higher temperatures outside are also necessary. 

Although an Open system can work faster, it does come with a set of disadvantages. Additional monitoring is required to check the equipment and keep watch on the open doors and windows to prevent trespassing, theft, and vandalism. If we use the HVAC, then there is an energy loss for every minute it is on. Finally, the weather can turn, and the process must either stop or switch to a Closed system. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County knows that removing flood water is only the beginning of restoring your home to its original state. We are here to get you through every step and explain what we need to do. If you require our help, call us at (413) 324-1300 today. 

Smoke and Odor Control In a Fire Damage Situation in Northampton

6/24/2021 (Permalink)

SERVPRO teams are prepared to handle every level of fire damage, day or night. Call us today, (413) 324-1300.

SERVPRO Handles All Aspects of Cleanup and Odor Control After House Fires

Fire is a complex event resulting from the right combination of fuel, a source of heat, and an oxidizer. It is a combustion process that causes the production of light and heat. In some cases, it can also lead to the production of different types of gases and a wide range of vapors. These gases include carbon monoxide, nitric oxide, and carbon dioxide. 

If a fire damage event has hit your Northampton property, we have professional restoration services to deal with the resulting odorous smoke residues. SERVPRO experts have several years of experience and industry-leading equipment for effective odor and vapor control. 

Fire and Smoke Damage Restoration and Cleanup

The first step in vapor control is to remove the actual source of the odor and then clean the area of residues. This stage involves containing or blocking odor molecules from continuing to migrate throughout the structure. These physical barriers are generally set up with plastic sheets for isolation of the affected areas. 

During a fire damage emergency, SERVPRO technicians identify the materials causing the odor and spray them with a chemical deodorizer. The chemical forms a barrier that protects the source material from evaporating. Our IICRC-approved fire & smoke damage restoration specialists use industry-leading odor counteractants to prevent the odor molecules from further circulating in the air. For chemical containment to be effective, we have to spray directly onto the charred areas using a pump-up sprayer or a fogger. A thermal fogger dispenses heated aerosols that can travel the same path as the heated smoke particles and then bond with them to form an odorless compound.

The second phase is to counteract the odor particles that escaped into the air before the containment stage. This step is vital in a fire damage situation, as it helps eliminate airborne odors before the nose detects them. We can set up mechanical devices to change the chemical composition of airborne particulates. Hydroxyl generators can be deployed while work is ongoing. In the case of severe smoke and soot infusion and odors, there is another piece of equipment we use. This is the ozone generator, but because of the nature of ozone, this can only be placed and activated when no people, pets, or plants are within the structure. Overnight, it dramatically enhances the indoor air quality, IAQ. 

When a fire-damaging event occurs, it is important to protect your property from harmful smoke and odors. As part of the community, SERVPRO of Hampshire County is ready to help get your building back to normal, "Like it never even happened." For any assistance, call us anytime at (413) 324-1300.

Why Is Swift Mold Remediation Crucial to the Survival of Your Amherst Business?

6/16/2021 (Permalink)

If your business is overtaken by mold you need to call the professionals. Call SERVPRO today for remediation assistance.

Fast Mold Remediation Allows You to Resume Business Operations as Soon as Possible.

As an Amherst business owner, you know that time is money and that the longer your business is unable to operate normally, the more money it loses. This is why fast and effective mold remediation services are so crucial to the survival of your enterprise.

SERVPRO’s mold specialists are dedicated to providing your business with the highest quality mold remediation services in Amherst. Their extensive training and experience help them perform a wide variety of mold-related work.

Some Services SERVPRO Offers Are:

• Mold Inspection
• Basement Mold Remediation
• Bathroom Mold Removal
• Attic Mold Removal
• Black Mold Damage Repairs

These efforts not only protect your business structures from the long-term effects of mold, like dry rot and structural collapse, but also ensure that all parts of your facility are safe and pleasant for your customers and employees.

Operating a business in Amherst is not always easy. It requires you to remain forever vigilant against potential threats to its survival. Over time, even seemingly simple little things like a small water leak could cause catastrophic damage prompting its closure. It is your responsibility as an owner to avert this potential negative outcome for the sake of your customers, employees, and bottom line. 

With all this in mind, your neighbors at SERVPRO of Hampshire County are always available to assist you with all of your mold remediation needs. Call us anytime at (413) 324-1300 for help.

Water Damage in the Local Amherst Laundromat

6/1/2021 (Permalink)

Commercial water damage can be quite critical. Contact SERVPRO immediately to get the help you need with water damage remediation.

SERVPRO Technicians are Proficient at Remediating Your Water Damage

Everyone needs a laundromat from time to time. You lined up plenty of washers and even offered a drop-off wash and fold option for busy college students and hardworking community members. All goes very wrong when a defective machine overflows, flooding your dry cleaning and laundry location with several inches of water. A speedy resolution to the problem is to call SERVPRO for efficient water removal services.

With so many different people operating the washers round the clock, an overflow of water needing immediate removal could be expected at your Amherst laundry center. The overworked machines do not cycle out of the filling stage because a valve is corroded and sticks in the open position. Customers fail to oversee the machines and do not notice the flow of water. Within minutes the floor of your shop is inches deep in sudsy water.

Managing this mess on your own is difficult. You have your hands full running the dry cleaning desk and the snack counter that keeps bored customers happy. You and your clientele count on the laundry being open 24/7, so the chance you close to deal with the damage is not one you want to take. The technicians from SERVPRO are a perfect fit for this scenario, trained in fast water removal and proven drying techniques.

A professional restoration company like SERVPRO is also well positioned to determine how to get rid of the water properly and take all necessary steps even when your electricity is shut off. Truck-mounted pumps and extractors do not rely on your electricity for power. The water pulled out of your business is considered contaminated, and SERVPRO contains this “gray water” for appropriate disposal. Submersible pumps and heavy-duty extractors suck up standing water fast.

SERVPRO staff inspects and evaluates your flooring, trim, and walls, looking for areas where the water undermined the integrity of the building materials. If the crew arrives soon after the flood and begins restoration work, chances are good the tile floor and painted walls need air movers and dehumidifiers to reduce the moisture remaining. Our trained technicians scout out any concerning patches where water has been absorbed and then check for possible microbial growth risks.

When you need to get your customer’s laundry back on line SERVPRO of Hampshire County is the answer to washer overflow. Contact us at (413) 324-1300 for immediate assistance in removing wash water and drying out your laundry business.

Subtle Water Damage Builds Up to A Crisis in Northampton

5/28/2021 (Permalink)

Excess water affected your hardwood floor or ceiling? Call SERVPRO 24/7 for certified technicians and proven methods.

SERVPRO Restores Hardwood Floors Damaged by Water

Life keeps homeowners very busy, distracted by work, school, children, and other obligations. Seemingly insignificant amounts of spilled or leaked water slowly harm a hardwood floor, the damage tucked in a corner you rarely inspect. When you focus on a thorough cleaning of the room containing the neglected corner, you notice the condition of the floor with shock. Give SERVPRO a chance to restore the harm and recommend a permanent fix for the excess moisture.

Your home relies on hot water heat, a gravity system that uses century-old radiators to warm your rooms. An undetected hairline crack caused a leak that slowly soaked the hardwood floor beneath the heater, the water damage in your Northampton dining room now spreading out to floorboards beyond the cover of the under-window radiator. SERVPRO has the experience and the skills to restore the harm done and respond quickly to put a stop to further damage.

As soon as you realize the floor is soaked through, you need to consult the experts at SERVPRO. The longer your hardwood floor remains wet, the more likely it is that it suffers secondary damage like rot or a mold infestation. Wet wood risks discoloration, shrinkage, and warping. The team we assign to your home is trained in hardwood restoration and knows the steps to take to dry out the floor and plan for the final restoration.

A long-term leak not only damages the visible floor but can also destroy the integrity of the subfloor and any ceilings or other structures below. Our IICRC certified crew members carefully evaluate the extent of the problem and employ restoration strategies intended to rehabilitate and refurbish rather than tear out the original flooring. We extract any standing water with our powerful water vacuums, and then drying mats and air movers are placed to remove more moisture. If possible, the floor should be dried from above and below to ensure the subfloor does not retain moisture.

SERVPRO water abatement specialists use their water vapor management or psychrometrics training and drying theory to achieve the best result for your valued hardwood floor. Sanding and refinishing wait until the moisture content of the planks or strips is reduced to an equilibrium of 12 percent. Dehumidifiers and the judicious application of heat amplify the action of air movers in approaching this moisture level.

To restore the beautiful floors in your home, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County as soon as you realize they suffer from water damage. (413) 324-1300.

Wait for the SERVPRO Restoration Experts to Start Fire Restoration of Your Northampton Home

5/23/2021 (Permalink)

Fire damage can quickly evict you from your home. Contact SERVPRO for the tools and technicians to remediate the damage.

SERVPRO Offers a Premier Fire Damage Restoration Service to Northampton Residents

Smoke and soot from a fire can ruin the contents of your home. Cleaning these residues and restoring the contents is one of the foremost challenges during the fire restoration of Northampton homes. SERVPRO restoration experts use a scientific approach to eliminate the smoke and soot particles from surfaces and restore them to a preloss condition. 

During fire restoration of your Northampton home, SERVPRO technicians use various cleaning agents and methods to eliminate the soot without damaging the contents. Restoring the contents is often a less costly option than replacing them, and hence SERVPRO experts prioritize content cleaning during fire and smoke damage restoration. 

Content Cleaning Methods SERVPRO Uses During House Fire Cleanup in Northampton 

SERVPRO technicians use several methods and cleaning agents to remove residue layers from the contents of your fire-damaged home at Northampton. Some of the techniques we use are:

• Spray and wipe: An aqueous or solvent-based cleaning agent is applied on the surface in the form of a mist and wiped with a clean towel. We use this method on surfaces that are prone to solvent damage. 
• Abrasive cleaning: Used on surfaces with moderate to heavy soot deposition. Abrasive materials such as scrubbing pads and steel wool can dislodge the soot particles easily. Some liquid cleaners also contain a mild abrasive agent that can scrub off soot and smoke particles resulting from smoke damage.
• Immersion cleaning: Only used for contents that can withstand being completely immersed in liquid during the fire damage restoration process. SERVPRO techs also use high-frequency waves to create millions of bubbles that implode, resulting in a scrubbing effect. 

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for fast and efficient service.

What Should Northampton Homeowners Do After Storms Bring Flood Damage?

5/4/2021 (Permalink)

Flood damage sometimes requires removing flooring and drywall to dry and restore you home. But no worries! SERVPRO is always on the job,

Whether Your Northampton Property has a Leaking Roof from Storms or Something Else, SERVPRO is There to Handle Flood Damage and More!

Significant rainfall in Northampton could lead to flooding and ceiling leaks. Whether you have basement flooding or worry about secondary damage from moisture getting into your home, SERVPRO can help. We’re Faster to Any Size Disaster, giving you peace of mind in knowing you have skilled technicians at the ready!

No matter the severity of a storm, flood damage in Northampton can turn into a hazardous situation. If moisture gets into your home on any level, you run the risk of costly secondary damage or mold and mildew growth, which can bring potential health effects. Stormwater events generally get classified as follows:

• Category 2 –This is when you may have water coming in from a window or your ceiling with low contamination.
• Category 3 –This often happens with basement flooding/groundwater floods, including harmful microorganisms, fecal matter, chemicals, and other contaminants.

Once you call us for flood restoration or basement flooding cleanup, we will:

• Extract all standing water.
• Remove and dispose of all unsalvageable building materials and contents.
• Carefully inspect for hidden moisture pockets.
• Dry and sanitize all structural components.
• Clean and dry impacted contents.
• Perform controlled demolition, as needed. General Contractor License #: MA CS-107843 - Residential Contractor License #: MA HIC 180066

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can be reached at (413) 324-1300 when you need fast, efficient flood damage cleanup after a storm.

Hidden Water Damage Calls for Prompt Repair Within Your Northampton Home

4/27/2021 (Permalink)

Overflows and leaks happen. SERVPRO is always ready for emergency home restoration.

Calling SERVPRO to your Northampton Property Ensures Reliable Water Damage Repair and Cleanup!

There are times when ceiling leaks, light basement flooding, and drips from appliances can bring about hidden water damage. Rather than trying to find the issue in your Northampton home on your own, contacting a professional water damage restoration team is the best way to go. SERVPRO is available 24 hours a day so that you can bring your property back to pre-water damage condition “Like it never even happened.”

Should you have a leak that calls for water damage repair in Northampton, whether from a pipe or appliance, SERVPRO can help! We often get calls for emergency water damage restoration services for issues like:

• The development of mildew or mold from a hidden leak. There could be a slow drip under your bathtub, a cracked hose from your washing machine, or a poor pipe connection.
• During the winter and spring months, ice dams that formed can cause damage in the form of staining or leaks on your ceilings and walls as they melt.
• You could have condensation build-up due to a faulty exhaust pipe in a bathroom, a roof cap issue, or a boost in your interior relative humidity. 

The IICRC-certified water restoration technicians (WRT) at SERVPRO of Hampshire County will ensure you get the water damage repair you need. Call us at (413) 324-1300 for rapid water remediation!

Amherst Residents Deserve Excellent Fire Damage Restoration Services

4/20/2021 (Permalink)

This fire was localized but caused smoke and soot damage throughout the home. SERVPRO was there and made the home "Like it never even happened."

SERVPRO Ensures the Best Results with House Fire Cleanup – Contact us when you Have an Emergency at Your Amherst Home!

Whether you are hoping to relocate or want a nice place to visit, you will find Amherst, Massachusetts to be an excellent choice all around. Nestled within Hampshire County, Amherst is home to five colleges. Within the region, you will find several communities, including North Amherst, South Amherst, and Amherst Center.

Some notable names come from Amherst, Massachusetts, including:

• Emily Dickinson, poet
• Ebon Moss-Bachrach, television actor
• Helen Hunt Jackson, poet
• Kyle Woodcock, pop singer
• Julie McNiven, television actress
• Mascis, guitarist

Exploring Flavors and Nightlife Amherst Has to Offer

Due to Amherst being a college town, you will also find a diverse selection of watering holes and eateries to experience. Whether you want a beverage with friends or an excellent spot for a slice of pizza or breakfast, Amherst has it all.

• Bistro 63 –This is an American-Fusion restaurant and bar on N. Pleasant Street with menu favorites like jambalaya, homemade soups, seafood, and more.
• The Lone Wolf –Located on Main Street, this café is the number one place in the area for breakfast. Be sure to check out the multi-grain pancakes, loaded omelets, crepes, or Southwest scramble!
• Antonio’s Pizza –This pizzeria and Italian restaurant on N. Pleasant Street features gourmet pizza, appetizers, salads, and convenient take-out.

Historical Landmarks and Sights to Check Out in Amherst, MA

You could almost call Amherst a sleepy little town, but this college town is bustling with local adventurers and visitors alike most times of the year. Some of the top sights and historical landmarks in the region include:

• Amherst College –You will find this renowned learning institution, open since 1821, located on South Pleasant Street. 
• Hampshire College –This laid-back campus is situated on West Street.
• Emily Dickinson Museum –Located on Main Street, this specialty museum and birthplace of Emily Dickinson is an interesteing place to visit for a bit of local history. 
• Sunset Farm –Not only does this destination on Brigham Lane feature rolling farmland and cute animals, but there are also occasional art installations, local events, and more to explore.

Professional Fire Damage Restoration Yields the Best Result – SERVPRO is the Answer for Your Amherst Property

Any Amherst fire emergency can be devastating, but there is no need to panic about the clean-up when you have skilled technicians from SERVPRO on the job. We feature IICRC-certified fire and smoke restoration technicians who use proven methods and advanced technology to assure the project gets done right the first time.

Fire damage restoration in Amherst has many moving parts, but there are a few things you can keep in mind while you navigate the house fire cleanup process:

• Have the utilities turned off –Having the electricity, water, gas, and other utilities off allows our inspection and assessment to go smoother.
• Never use your electronics –Utilizing electronics damaged from heat or soot particles before fire restoration takes place can make it worse or even hazardous.
• Don’t turn your HVAC system on –The air movement from heating or cooling dislodges and disperses odorous soot and smoke particles throughout your interior.

Smoke remediation and fire damage restoration are two areas where we thrive at SERVPRO of Hampshire County. Call us 24/7 for emergency response at (413) 324-1300.

Water Damage Restoration after Sump Pump Failure

4/1/2021 (Permalink)

Water damage restoration is no easy task. Call the pros of SERVPRO and let their trained techs do the work for you.

SERVPRO helps Northampton homeowners with pump problems

When your sump pump is working, it is a valuable part of your home. A sump pump handles groundwater and protects basements from flooding. However, like any other device, a sump pump can fail and cause your basement to flood.

If you need help with water damage restoration in Northampton after a sump pump failure, call SERVPRO immediately. Our team will arrive quickly and assess the situation. We can:

• Ascertain whether the water is gray or blackwater and any potential health hazards.
• Remove dangerous debris such as tree trunks or clods of earth.
• Use powerful free-standing and truck-mounted pumps to remove water quickly. 

We will also dry and disinfect your basement and make sure there is no lingering water damage or hidden pockets of moisture.

Of course, it is better to prevent problems if you can. You can help prevent another failure by carrying out regular sump pump maintenance and being aware of early signs that your pump is not working. These include strange noises, your pump slowing down, or is simply not removing water at all.

If you suspect a sump pump failure, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300.

Which Firm Can Homeowners Contact for Fire Damage Restoration?

3/1/2021 (Permalink)

When a fire strikes your business, SERVPRO is the team of professionals you need to call. Their techs are IICRC certified for fire restoration.

They Can Contact a Reputable Restorer Like SERVPRO for Effective Fire Restoration in their Amherst Business.

Fire can cause severe damage to your business. To prevent further damage, taking immediate action is essential. Delaying restoration and content cleaning can lead to irreversible damages. Certified restorers like SERVPRO can help restore your property to its former glory.

When fire damage affects your Amherst business, do not wait until everything falls apart. Our restorers are available 24/7 and can respond as soon as possible to your emergency. We have decades of experience in commercial fire damage restoration using up-to-date equipment, tools, and products.

When we arrive at the affected area, our highly skilled technicians can quickly survey the scene and determine the extent of damage caused by smoke, heat, moisture, and fire. Also, we can:

• Immediately secure your business.
• Dispose of damaged materials safely.
• Clean salvageable items.
• Clean and deodorize your business.

Our restorers have undergone thorough training in using various cleaning products. For instance, we can use a stain absorber mixed with a solvent spotter to clean fragile materials or surfaces that cannot withstand direct application of water-based products or aggressive agitation. 

We can also identify and eliminate hazardous chemicals, gases, and odors using hi-tech equipment. We can use air scrubbers to eliminate airborne particles and odors.

Do not let fire damage paralyze your business. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County for professional restoration at (413) 324-1300. We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster.

After Water Damage Occurs, Where Can Property Owners Seek Assitance?

2/24/2021 (Permalink)

Water damage done to your home is no DIY project. SERVPROs team of professionals are equipped and ready for the job.

SERVPRO Offers Efficient Water Damage Restoration in Northampton Homes 

Unwanted water or moisture can find its way into your home in many ways, including burst or leaking pipes and appliance malfunctions. This can leave your property severely water damaged. To avoid more damage, it is essential to identify and stop the water leak. Besides, acting fast by contacting restoration experts like SERVPRO is vital to minimize damage.

Since water can seep into various surfaces, including confined areas, within a short period, the extent of water damage in your home can be severe if not handled on time. SERVPRO is available 24/7 to perform water damage restoration in Northampton homes. Some of the other signs that you need water restoration services include:

• Discolored or dark spots on walls or ceilings
• Peeling paint
• Mold problem
• Cracked drywall

When we get to your property, we begin the restoration immediately by assessing the damage using hi-tech equipment and innovative techniques. We can use thermal imaging cameras to identify the water source, see how the water traveled, and determine the right equipment to dry areas with high moisture levels.

Water damage may hide in confined areas leading to mold growth. We can access these areas using special equipment. Our team can use structural cavity drying equipment to dry the hard-to-reach areas.

Water damage is best left to professionals. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for a thorough restoration within a brief period. We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster.

A Fast Response to Fire Damage in Amherst Homes

2/19/2021 (Permalink)

Fire restoration is no easy task. Call SERVPRO and let their team of professionals handle the fire restoration process.

SERVPRO Uses the Shortest Time Possible To Restore Properties Affected By Fire Damage 

A town in Hampshire, pioneer valley western Massachusetts, Amherst hosts a population of 37,819 according to the census held in 2010. That made it the highest populated municipality in the County of Hampshire. Amherst is home to the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Hampshire College, and Amherst College. Fire damage in Amherst homes is a problem.

Amherst's Government

A town council runs the town's legislative branch, while a town manager runs its executive branch. The town council, which comprises three councilors-at-large and ten district councilors, appoints the town manager. The entire town elects the three councilors-at-large. The councilors serve for two years apart from the first council, where members serve for three years. 

Places to visit in Amherst

· The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art

This outstanding destination for residents and tourists of all ages features an art room for kids, a curated exhibit, speakers and performances, an auditorium for programs, a library, and a gift shop. Most families enjoy visiting the 40,000 square-foot museum in the middle of Western MA's Five College area. The facility also has a hands-on art studio where visitors can create their own art.

• Beneski Museum of Natural History

At Amherst College, the museum displays minerals and fossils, including vertebrate and invertebrate paleontology collected abroad and locally. It also showcases a wide range of geologic specimens and anthropological material. The facility hosts the largest dinosaur track collection in the world, which dates back to the 1850s.

• Puffer's Pond

This is a widely used natural amenity that residents enjoy spending time around. The pond has updated safety guidelines. It is open to residents and tourists for swimming. Apart from being the largest water body in the town, it is also a popular recreation area for nature walking, picnicking, fishing, canoeing, swimming, and birding. The 11-acre pond average depth is 5 feet and has a maximum depth of over 20 feet.

• Mount Holyoke Range State Park

The public recreation and state-owned area are next to J.A Skinner State Park. The area occupies half of the Holyoke range in the west. Residents and tourists use the park trails for hiking, cross-country skiing, and horseback riding. The recreational area also provides visitors with the opportunity to enjoy picnicking and restricted hunting.

SERVPRO technicians respond within the shortest time possible when fire damage occurs in Amherst Properties

SERVPRO restorers understand how fast the secondary damages of a fire can spread. We respond to our customer's emergencies within the shortest time possible. Our certified team of technicians can inspect your property to determine the extent of the damage and develop the best restoration plan. 

Most fire damage restoration processes begin a day or two after the unfortunate incident. However, the quicker the restoration process begins, the lower the chances of more damage occurring. Before cleaning the affected area, we remove items affected by the fire and separate the salvageable valuables from those damaged beyond repair.

Our cleaning and restoration services usually minimize the cost of fire damage claims. We use safe, unique, but approved techniques as well as products to clean the affected surfaces. We can use an ultrasonic cleaner that uses sound waves to clean our customer's valuables.

Fire damage can be devastating, especially when left for an extended period. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County (413) 324-1300 for professional restoration. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster.

Can My Flooded Northampton Basement Be Restored?

2/4/2021 (Permalink)

Water can build up outside quickly and eventually force its way inside your house causing flood damage to occur.

SERVPRO provides water restoration services in Northampton

Flooding due to weather events can be catastrophic for many. At the very least, the consequences of floodwaters entering your home are disruptive and problematic. Not only is it an issue of functionality or comfort, but there are also real health concerns associated with the debris and organisms brought into your home.

In Northampton, flood damage is assessed and handled by our trained SERVPRO team. Our water restoration technicians train with the best in the industry to resolve imminent issues and anticipate those that could develop over time. At its core, our process requires water extraction, drying, and sanitizing the space, so it returns to its original condition. To complete the process, we may bring into your home some of the following-

• Submersible and truck-mounted pumps
• Air circulators and dehumidifiers
• Thermal foggers

Decide to mitigate your loss by calling our team at SERVPRO of Hampshire County. A quick call to our 24/7 line at (413) 324-1300 can make all the difference in restoring your home.

Who Can Remove the Smell of Smoke in my Amherst Home?

1/30/2021 (Permalink)

You can depend on our SERVPRO teams to clean up and restore your property and personal belongings after a fire takes place.

SERVPRO offers fire restoration services in Amherst

Firefighters serving the Amherst area know that fireworks, electrical malfunctions, and human behavior can all be the cause of a fire. In a short time, flames can escalate rapidly and ravage a portion or all of a home, leaving homeowners in dire need of guidance and assistance. When events like these happen, relying on experts to walk you through the aftermath is the most sensible course of action.

SERVPRO provides fire restoration services in Amherst. Our competent crew is quick to arrive at the scene shortly after homeowners contact our 24/7 line. Beyond discarding unsalvageable items and removing soot and ashes that settle on every surface in the home, our team pays close attention to neutralizing any lingering smells. Some techniques we may apply to achieve the latter goal include-

• Thermal fogging
• Deodorizing pellets
• Air scrubbers

Our team at SERVPRO of Hampshire County tailors the restoration plan to your needs. Call us at (413) 324-1300 and let us restore your home with the latest in fire restoration technology.

Northampton Celebrates its Heritage Every Day

1/25/2021 (Permalink)

You can trust that SERVPRO technicians will handle your water damage crisis effectively and efficiently. Call us today.

SERVPRO helps keep Northampton Homes in Top Shape

Northampton embodies a spirit of diversity of inclusion within its borders. As Hampshire County's county seat, it is recognized for its welcoming environment to artists, musicians, and the intellectual community. It is also known as a welcoming city to the LGBTQ community. As part of the Springfield Metropolitan Area, the city is part of the Knowledge Corridor, a geographic effort to encourage joint ventures between Hartford and Springfield, both on the Connecticut River.

Early American history showed Northampton as the host of pivotal moments for our nation. For example, Shays’ Rebellion, led by Daniel Shays, took place in 1786. This armed uprising protesting taxation practices of the time sought to protect the economic well-being of the general population. Historians often point to this rebellion and its influence on our Constitution.

There is a long tradition of protecting civil rights in Northampton, dating back to the early 1800s. 

Sojourner Truth, born into slavery in 1826, was an abolitionist and proponent of women’s rights. In 1844 Truth joined the Northampton Association of Education and Industry, an organization aligned with her values and search for peace. Her work is widely recognized and certainly influenced the town’s civic attitude.  

Also known as “The Paradise City,” education has always played a central role in its development. Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech was founded in 1867 as the first oral school for the hearing impaired. A few years later, in 1871, Smith College was established. This all-women school continues to graduate notable women each year, including Julia Child, Nancy Reagan, and Gloria Steinem. Not surprisingly, Northampton boasts a college-town atmosphere of intellectual vitality and knowledge sharing.

Cultural Scene in Northampton

There is much to enjoy in Northampton, making it a popular destination for tourists and residents.  A quick getaway to this city may include visits to the following-

• The Academy of Music theatre
• The Iron Horse Music Hall
• Diversity in culinary offerings
• Street fairs and a lively music scene

Of particular note is the Paradise City Arts Festival, which began in 1995 to showcase New England’s talent and crafts. In the city, studios come alive to display furniture, paintings, sculptures, jewelry, and many other one-of-a-kind treasures. Typically held in November and in October, the Three County Fairgrounds becomes the host of many visitors descending upon Northampton on Memorial Day and Columbus Day weekends.

Preservation of Homes in Northampton

Homes in Northampton are evidence of its history, and one can often find structures that have withstood the passage of time. For some of them, any water damage due to leaks or storms can rob them of their ancestry, which is why SERVPRO is available around the clock to begin the restoration process when an accident occurs. Our team trains to apply industry best practices, including-

• Removal of excess humidity in hardwood floors, basements and fixtures
• Document drying
• Replacement of drywall as needed

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is a phone call away. Reach us at (413) 324-1300 whenever you need the best in water cleanup and restoration.

Enjoy a Pint at Open Mic Night Near Northampton Center

1/12/2021 (Permalink)

There's nothing amateur about SERVPRO. We practice our craft so we can restore your home effectively.

Brew Practitioners Stages Weekly Open Mic Night Close to Northampton Center

A mile from Northampton Center, Brew Practitioners runs an open mic night for its patrons and local artists. The Open Mic event runs from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM on Wednesday nights. The pub is a favorite haunt of local artists who wish to show their talent and enjoy a pint before they grab the mic or after. Sign up begins at 6:30 PM. Open Mic participants can entertain the audience through music, poetry reading, comedy acts, or humorous stories.

Brew Practitioners offers eleven different beers on tap.

• Blonde Ale,
• IPA’s,
• Red Amber,
• Brown Ale,
• Stout and
• Pale Ale

Are among the favorites of our customers. A variety of flavors and new beers are introduced throughout the year. For example, an Ebony Maple Oatmeal Stout or Copper Double IPA are brewed during the year. New brews tend to sell out quickly. Artists and patrons should check with the pub for current schedules and hours following current health guidelines in our community.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County provides fire damage restoration services to Northampton commercial business customers and the surrounding area. Call (413) 324-1300. We respond 24/7 to help with all your fire damage restoration needs.

Amherst Massachusetts Railway Society Railroad Hobby Show

12/23/2020 (Permalink)

We look forward to seeing you at the Amherst Railway Society Club.

Amherst Railway Society Club Meetings

The society has been catering to railway enthusiasts for over 50 years. The group was started by a small number of chemistry students and faculty who held a common interest in railroads. They began by sharing stories, photos, and knowledge about the industry.

The hobby show began as a swap meet and grew to add model railroad vendors and even small model railroads for display. Originally held at the University of Massachusetts, the group moved to the Eastern States Exposition in Springfield, MA in 1982. Over 25,000 people typically attend this highly respected show.

The society has built an extensive library of books, videos, and magazines. The organization is also developing educational activities for interested people in the community. The railroad show is typically held in late January or early February of every year, featuring real-life railroads, model railroads, flea markets, art shows, photographers, and travel agencies. Current schedules are yet to be announced.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County provides water mitigation services to Amherst residential and commercial business customers and the surrounding area. Call (413) 324-1300. We respond 24/7 to help with all your water mitigation needs.

Northampton Thrives as a Cultural Attraction and Tourist Destination

12/16/2020 (Permalink)

Enjoy Northampton's history. And know that SERVPRO, like our town, has stood the test of time. Call us for your storm damage remediation.

Enjoy Modern Arts, Historical Venues, and Outdoor Activities in Northampton

The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County. Initially, the first explorers came to the area in the spring of 1654, and John A. King, one of the initial colonists, gave Northampton its name, naming it after his birthplace in England. The area survived various conflicts, a revolution, and religious revivals from the 1650s until the 1770s. Members of the community were present in Philadelphia for the constitutional convention in 1787.

Northampton has always been a progressive community. In the 1800s, Clark Schools for Hearing and Speech and Smith College for women were established. Barbara Bush, Nancy Reagan, Gloria Steinem, and Julia Child are among notable women who attended Smith College in more recent years. Many Irish, Polish and French Canadians settled in the area.

The city declined during the 20th century due to declines brought on by the rust belt phenomenon. However, Northampton has revived, becoming an active cultural center, which is also popular with tourists. There are many eclectic restaurants, a thriving music scene, and an active filmmaking community. Several major films have been produced in the area, such as Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf, The Edge of Darkness, and several others.

Community Support Organizations

The Northampton Chamber of Commerce is very active within the city and the region, providing support to residents and many non-profit groups in the area. There are over 80 groups listed on the chamber's website, including Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hampshire, the Salvation Army, and the Northampton Saturday Farmer's Market, to name a few. The Northampton Lions Club, the Rotary Club of Northampton are also active in the area, providing support to residents and business people in the city.

Main Attractions and Things to do in Northampton

There are many activities for both visitors and residents to enjoy while experiencing Northampton.

• Smith College Botanic Gardens
• Norwottuck Rail Trail
• Thornes Marketplace,
• Smith College Museum of Art
• Historic Northampton
• Academy of Music Theatre
• Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum
• Michaelson Galleries

Visitors to Northampton can enjoy outdoor activities, cultural interest in art and music as well as botany. History buffs may be interested in experiencing what life was like for settlers and residents of Northampton in the early years. Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President, also has his library in Northampton.

Smith College Founded in 1871

Among the best women's colleges in the United States, Smith College enrolls students from 48 states and over 68 countries. Alumnae represent 55,000 students from all 50 states and more than 120 countries. While it only admits women at the undergraduate levels, men are welcomed as graduate students. Smith College offers a rich curriculum, one of the highlights is the Botanic Garden. Self-guided and group tours are available. There are multiple gardens and collections of plants. Visitors often book various times to view this massive collection of plants and flowers.

The Smith College of Art contains over 27,000 objects covering art and culture from various periods and geographies. Over 35,000 visitors enjoy visiting the college every year. The college began collecting art in 1879, which continues to this day.

Norwottuck Rail Trail

The trail is 10 miles or 16.1 kilometers long. The rail-trail is very popular with all types of users, including walking, hiking, running, and road biking. Enjoy views of the Connecticut River while traversing this paved asphalt surface. Grades are gentle, under 5%, and suitable for wheelchair access and strollers. Since the trail is so popular, cyclists and joggers are asked to be respectful of all users.

Presidential Library and Museum – Calvin Coolidge

Calvin Coolidge was the 30th president, serving from 1923 to 1929. The library began when Coolidge began donating items to the Forbes Library. He practiced law and served as mayor before becoming state governor in 1916. He acted as Vice President from 1921-1923 and was elected in 1924 in his own right after assuming his predecessor's presidency. The library holds many of his memoirs and collections from his time in government and as President of the United States.

Northampton Farmers Markets

There are several farmer's markets operating in the area. During the spring, summer, and fall seasons, three farmer's markets are held every week and are very popular with residents. The Tuesday market is held from May to November at the Pedestrian Plaza. The Wednesday market runs from April – October and is held at the Florence Civic Center, behind the Lilly Library. The Saturday market operates from April until November on Gothic Street in downtown Northampton.

The Northampton Winter Farmers market operates all winter, offering fresh produce, specialty products, and locally prepared food. There is usually live entertainment. This market is closed temporarily due to health concerns and guidelines from local health groups.

Minimize Down Time from Flood Damage in Your Commercial Property

Commercial business owners in Northampton dealing with flooding damage always want to minimize their business spending on cleaning up the floodwaters, damage restoration, and repairs. SERVPRO offers services that focus on returning the business to full operations as soon as possible. We offer:

• 24/7 response time
• Highly trained technicians
• State of the art equipment
• Supervision of all repairs and reconstruction (General Contractor Lic: MA CS-107843)

We coordinate any repair and construction services needed, remove the water and debris after a flood, dry your building and contents, and return humidity to normal levels. Our team can begin repairs immediately, reducing the time your business takes to return to full operation.

We make sure subcontractors are scheduled as needed. Every step is coordinated with you to ensure that your commercial managers can plan to reopen in an optimum manner to minimize expenses and maximize revenue flows.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County provides flood damage services to Northampton commercial business customers and the surrounding area. Call (413) 324-1300. We respond 24/7 to help with all your flood damage restoration needs.

Take the Stage or Appreciate Live Local Tunes in Northampton

12/2/2020 (Permalink)

We always look forward to open mic night. See you there!

Join us for Open Mic Night at the Brew Practitioners 

With live music being such a powerful tool in bringing people together in what has been a challenging year for the country, events like the open mic night happening December 9th, 2020, at the Brew Practitioners are more poignant than ever before. Take a night to rest your minds to amateur artists' musical stylings from all over Hampshire County, hosted by Alex Johnson of the locally-renowned Colorway. 

Those wishing to attend or even perform do not need to notify the venue in advance. However, you can expect limited capacities, social distancing, and other safety precautions for those not actively performing. You can sign in to take the stage or begin viewing local talent at 7 PM, and the night is set to conclude at 9. 

Fire damage and odors in your Northampton home can have you singing a sad song, but our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team has the tools and products to make it "Like it never even happened." Contact us today at (413) 324-1300.

Come Out and See Blues at Its Finest in the Amherst Area

11/23/2020 (Permalink)

Don't let storm damage give you the blues. SERVPRO is on call to keep you playing your tune.

Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters to Perform at the Iron Horse Music Hall 

Rhythm and Blues fans recognize the name Ronnie Earl as one of the greats. Along with his band of musicians, Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters will be coming to you live from the Iron Horse Music Hall this November 27th, 2020, beginning at 7 PM. The doors open at 5:30 PM, allowing you to find your seats and enjoy dinner well before the show starts. Ronnie will be sharing the stage with the ever-talented Diane Blue Friday.  

Tickets are available online or by contacting the Iron Horse Music Hall directly. Don't miss your opportunity to see what the great B.B. King has called "one of the most serious blues guitarists around."  

Just because you like the blues does not mean that you need to live them. Our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team can help area businesses to get their doors back open quickly with water extraction for Amherst structures. Contact us today at (413) 324-1300.

Northampton is a City Growing in Every Positive Way

11/16/2020 (Permalink)

We love our community, and are always on call to remediate storm damage.

Enjoy Northampton’s Many Attributes – From Historical to Modern 

The city of Northampton has seen its share of hardships and required adaptation over the decades. From housing the prestigious and nationally recognized Smith College to its arts community, Northampton is a municipality growing in all the best ways. Rising from a low economic point in the 1970s, residents have created a community where people want to remain and raise their families instead of larger areas like Springfield to the south. There are several ways that the town continues to create a positive impact on its residents. 

A Focus on the Arts  

Despite a smaller size for a mid-sized town at around 29,000, Northampton has grown into a cultural and art-centered community in recent years. This revitalization alone can be a great testament to area residents' determination and perseverance following an economic decline that completely bottomed out in the 1970s and would take a few decades to rebuild and restore. As with many hard times, it brought about art in music, theater, and various still media. 

The pinnacle of art exhibitions for the community happens twice a year, with the Paradise City Arts Festival held on both the weekends of Memorial Day and Columbus Day. The festival welcomes various cultures and crafts together in a blend of all things art. This event has been a highly regarded display of local talents and craftworkers annually since the mid-1990s. Live entertainment has also become a staple of the art scene. There are multiple venues throughout the city that host these performances, including the Academy of Music and the Calvin Theater.

The Dynamics of a College Town  

Smith College is a prestigious women's institution here in Northampton that has become a community staple. Its involvement with four other Pioneer Valley colleges makes it a leg of the Five College Consortium with other liberal arts institutions such as Amherst College and Hampshire College. This connection allows students of these five schools to attend courses or programs at any of the others with additional costs. The presence and growth of Smith College in the town have also helped to bolster the evolution of retail, specialty shops, and employment opportunities. 

With the nearly three thousand extra residents brought to the area every semester, the need for part-time employment opportunities and retail locations is evident. Areas of Northampton have grown immensely with the development of the college and its temporarily boarded undergraduates. It is this blend of a younger permanent resident base and the college crowd that allows places like Thornes Marketplace, Campus Center, and Kingsgate Plaza Shopping Center up and running. 

Historic Sites of Northampton 

As much as the community is always looking towards the future and adapting to the country's changing conditions, Northampton officials have also recognized the need to preserve historical properties and architectural styles from succumbing to aging degradation. An excellent example of this is the Elm Street / Round Hill Historic District. Elm Street's one-mile stretch features nearly 140 buildings ranging from homes built in the 1700s to more modern architectural styles. Much of Smith College falls under the historic heading, as the school dates back to 1871. 

Smith College also owns and maintains structures dating back as far as 1725 with the acquisition of the current Sessions House (109 Elm Street) constructed initially by Jonathan Hunt. The Haven House on Smith College's campus was the residence of the American poet/author Sylvia Plath for her first years at the school in the 1950s. Just off of the main strip of historic properties on Elm is the hold of former President Calvin Coolidge, who served as Commander in Chief from 1923 to 1929. 

A Warm Welcome to the World 

Over the past decades, Northampton has become a community more accepting of alternative lifestyles, religions, and orientations. Having a safe and accepting location for community members ensures that they can live out life with joy and pursue dreams created by the top minds leaving institutions like Smith College. Without prejudice and restrictions, artists and individuals create art in all forms, from music and still art to live theater and films such as: 

• The Cider House Rules
• Malice
• In Dreams
• Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? 

Storm Response Team to Help for Any Northampton Disaster 

While Northampton has never had the unfortunate luck of encountering severe natural disasters like hurricanes that can impact the coastal states, there are several types of extreme weather events that can occur here. Blizzards and cold snaps can be structurally damaging or ruin under-insulated pipes in a house. However, flooding remains one of the most destructive forces Hampshire County must contend with for homes and businesses. Between 1950 and 2010, nearly 350 flooding events were recorded. 

How SERVPRO responds to these events impacts the potential damage that homes and businesses suffer from flood losses. We appreciate that mobilizing quickly in a crisis can ensure that beneficial emergency services such as extraction can promptly start. We have powerful water removal tools that we can utilize as soon as our water restoration technicians arrive at the flooded residence. Some of these include: 

• Wet Vacuums
• Submersible Pumps
• Weighted Extractors
• Carpet Wands 

Cleaning is also a vital element to flood removal for Hampshire County homes. With substantial loss incidents, exposure to contaminants and harmful substances cannot be ignored. In some situations, demolition is necessary to prepare the property for recovery. With a general contracting license for residences (MA HIC 180066), we can complete the tear out, repairs, and reconstruction your property requires. 

Flood damage can be a devastating situation for area homes, especially when contamination is a concern. Let our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team help, however possible, by calling (413) 324-1300.

Foodies Visiting Northampton are in for a Treat

11/3/2020 (Permalink)

Our SERVPRO team enjoys attending the Pioneer Valley Food Tours.

Enjoy Personalized Food Tours in Northampton

Pioneer Valley Food Tours offers various tours, food baskets, and even cycling tours to visitors and residents who want to experience locally grown and prepared foods from the pioneer era. Visit shops selling locally prepared cheeses, meats, artesian bread, yogurt, pastries, ciders, and craft beer. Services offered by Pioneer Valley Food Tours include:

• Locally guided walking food tours to local merchants in the downtown area – 2.5 hours
• Guided walking tours focused on vegetarian foods produced in the area – 2.5 hours
• Picnic baskets full of local products for 2 to 4 people
• Custom private tours for families and groups up to 6 people
• Seasonal tours, for example, cycling food tour in the spring of 2021
• Gift Cards

Due to Covid-19 guidelines, they are only booking private tours of up to 6 people and not mixing groups of people for everyone’s safety and protection.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County provides professional mold removal in ceilings to Northampton residential, business customers, and the surrounding area. Call (413) 324-1300. We are available 24/7 to help with mold removal, mold mitigation, and restoration.

What are Best Practices for Handling Oily Soot After a Fire in Northampton?

10/24/2020 (Permalink)

While it might be challenging to handle some damaged surfaces, SERVPRO has the training and skill to complete your fire damage project.

Once Your Northampton Shop Has Fire Damage, Skilled SERVPRO Technicians Quickly Remove Soot and Soiling with Innovative Techniques

Fire moves quickly, especially if the contents of your Northampton business create the perfect environment. Materials combust and leave sediment and residue behind, some of which can be too stubborn and difficult to remove. To ensure you have the best practices in play for cleanup, SERVPRO is available to address all smoke particles and oily soot on all surfaces. Give us a phone call, and a crew will be there within hours because We’re Faster to Any Size Disaster!

What Types of Soiling Am I Up Against?
Once you call us to your commercial property to help with fire damage in Northampton, we start by assessing the interior. Not only is structural integrity and overall loss taken into account, but our skilled IICRC-certified crew also takes note of the types of soiling throughout. Depending on the soil's heavy nature or depth, specific products, techniques, and approaches get selected carefully.

• Lighter Soiling – If you happen to have oil-based soiling throughout your business space, we can use a water-based detergent to help us emulsify and remove. The detergent and soil attach, making it easier to clean the surface and rinse the residue away.
• Heavier Soiling – The more massive the soil, the more significant the obstacle for our crew. However, we look into methods that help us dissolve the soils where water-based detergents will not work. In these cases, we have access to powerful solvents made for various materials that enable us to loosen and remove stubborn residues.

If the damage is beyond repair, we may perform controlled demolition to make your business space like-new again. General Contractor License #: MA CS-107843.

While it might be challenging to handle some damaged surfaces, SERVPRO of Hampshire County has the training and skill to complete your fire damage project. To have a team dispatched to your business, give us a call at (413) 324-1300.

Are Flood Losses Expensive for Homeowners?

10/21/2020 (Permalink)

SERVPRO works with the claims adjuster after a Northampton home flooded

SERVPRO Works with your Insurance Adjuster to Make Sure your Northampton Home Returns to a Pre-incident Condition After Flood Damage.

How do homeowners deal with flooding?

Flooding in Northampton can be a massively traumatic event for homeowners. Not only is the home unsafe, but there is also a risk of losing possessions that may have been collected over a lifetime. We understand that the best method for dealing with a traumatic event is to perform effective and efficient restoration for homeowners. Our technicians have extensive experience dealing with flood losses, which allows us to answer tough questions like where to store contents, prevent further damage, and return a home to its preloss condition correctly. Our crew chiefs or project managers are on-hand to communicate with you directly and ease any concerns you may have about the home's structure or possessions. Our guidance can help you reduce the burden of worry that so frequently afflicts homeowners undergoing flood recovery. That is why we operate our call lines twenty-four hours a day and promise to arrive at your property within four hours of notification of loss to begin work, whenever possible.

How necessary is preparation for flood recovery?

To reduce the impact of flood damage in your Northampton home, it is essential to come prepared. As a homeowner in a flood-risk area, it is wise to take out a separate flood insurance policy, create a flood preparedness kit, and a game plan should a flooding event be imminent. SERVPRO is equally prepared by establishing a fail-safe, tried, and tested method for restoration and mitigation of loss in your property. A crew chief conducts a detailed pre-inspection of your property upon arrival at the site to note any areas where there is potential for loss reduction. Loss reduction could be extracting water or providing humidity control. Crew chiefs also document the number of technicians needed and the type of equipment we require to perform our jobs. Our preparation spans back to our training, experience working on residential properties, and advanced cleaning or drying equipment.

What are the priorities for mitigating losses in a flooded home?

• Protecting the structure from unlawful entry, looting, or trespass and noting potential hazards within the structure like falling ceilings, damaged subfloors, or exposed wiring.
• Pumping out the standing water from the home which can help to reduce the pressure on walls and joints as well as significantly reducing the impact of water exposure on contents.
• Inspecting cavities where water may have migrated, such as crawlspaces, subfloors, and wall voids.

Can floodwaters be pumped out entirely from a property?

While pumps may be the most efficient method of extracting water from a property, these are only useful for reducing standing water levels. Once the water level drops to below two inches, there is a no-longer adequate lift for pumps to remove moisture. SERVPRO technicians resort to extraction equipment to remove residual moisture from home. First, we use a moisture meter to find out the level of water penetration in the material. Contents in the house can be blocked, secure them from water exposure, or taken to a dry, clean area of the home to reduce further damage. To guarantee that our extraction process eliminates of all residual moisture in the affected area, we often remove floor finishes like hardwoods, carpets, and laminate flooring. Getting rid of water efficiently goes a long way to mitigating losses in your property, allowing you to return sooner.

How are surfaces returned to a normal condition after flooding?

• Application of deodorizer or anti-microbial chemicals directly onto the surfaces reduces the chances of malodor or secondary losses.
• Removing the spots and stains from furnishings or upholstery while these contents are wet to ensure stains do not become permanent.
• Applying specific topical treatments to distinctive textiles like carpets or high-value upholstery such as leather and satin.

How do professional restorers dry a property?

Drying the property after a water intrusion event is essential to ensuring that your home does not suffer further losses. Much microbial growth in the house is the result of a recent water intrusion event. SERVPRO brings in humidity controls alongside air-moving equipment to thoroughly dry the property and prevent microbial spores from growing in the environment. Professional drying of the home can also help control odors, which are more perceptible in a wet climate. Our technicians regularly monitor a property throughout the restoration to ensure drying is effective and correlates with our expected timeline.

How are drying equipment combined to improve drying time?

• Air movers are positioned throughout the property to evaporate moisture using heat and ventilation.
• Dehumidifiers, either refrigerant or desiccant, can help to draw the evaporated moisture out of the air and prevent indoor humidity from rising.
• Indoor furnaces can help to provide additional temperature to aid moisture removal.

Flooding can be extremely difficult to overcome without the assistance of qualified restorers. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-5400.

How Does Cleanup Work if Water Gets into Walls?

10/7/2020 (Permalink)

Should your home experience water damage, call SERVPRO. We are always available to restore your home.

SERVPRO Handles Walls Within Your Granby Home Carefully to Facilitate Rapid Water Cleanup 

With any water incident within your Granby home, the walls are susceptible to taking on moisture. Proper steps must be followed to remove any water from behind the walls so that thorough drying can occur. At SERVPRO, we feature highly-skilled technicians ready to handle any cleanup and drying that your property requires after a major spill or leak. Once you call us, we send out a team to your home so that we may begin initial assessment and planning. 

Will All Walls Within My Home Need Attention? 

When you contact SERVPRO to help with water cleanup in Granby, we take the time to inspect all surface areas, including your walls, flooring, furnishings, and anything else impacted by standing water. Even if the affected walls in the loss zone seem undamaged, it is best to open them to help prevent future mold growth, musty odors, and structural decay. We work to: 

• Remove the water from your interior as quickly as possible, including ventilation.
• Take off baseboards, then use drill holes in your drywall to drain out any uninsulated walls.
• Take off the inside surface of walls with insulation a few inches above the waterline. Flooded drywall gets disposed of appropriately according to local guidelines.
• Any paneling without damage can be propped open or get re-installed after detailed cleaning.
• Fully remove and then dispose of saturated fibrous insulation.
• Should water damage result from outside flooding; our team removes any mud, silt, and debris. We treat wall studs and other surface areas with anti-microbial agents. 

In some situations, we use the InjectiDry system for addressing moisture found within the walls in your home. Our crew always adjusts equipment and drying methods as needed to ensure the best results. 

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 when you need help with water cleanup, including potential moisture hidden behind walls.

How Do Homeowners Know if Mold is Growing in Their House?

9/14/2020 (Permalink)

What's underneath your carpet? Mold? SERVPRO is trained to look for signs of mold damage.

The Most Common Reason to Enlist a Professional Mold Inspection is Musty Odors or Visible Mold on Surfaces. SERVPRO Helps Northhampton Residents to Discover and Remediate Mold.

Why is mold growing in my property?

The growth of mold can occur for a variety of reasons. If you notice unpleasant odors in some parts of the home, it is enough to justify a Northampton-based restoration firm's professional inspection. The causes of mold can be tough to pinpoint without mold remediation technicians entering the property. Sometimes, visible mold growth on walls can be an outward sign of infestation within wall spaces, attics, crawlspaces, or flooring. Microbes, like mold, grow in the presence of moisture. That means a mold issue is likely to result from insufficient insulation, the lack of an adequate vapor barrier, or a slow leak in your home's plumbing. SERVPRO has a roster of expert technicians ready to investigate a potential mold infestation.

Is it essential to act quickly after discovering mold?

You should consider a professional mold inspection of your Northampton home at the first signs of growth. Like most infestations, microbial organisms can spread relatively quickly. A mold colony starts life as a spore. These spores can contain many seeds which, in the right conditions, attach to surfaces through hyphae. Hyphae can be restricted to the surface level or penetrate porous materials. In the right conditions, molds can grow through materials, continuing to produce spores for further colony growth. We recommend that you contact a qualified restoration service who can assess the extent of damage by inspecting floorboards, baseboards, or ceiling cavities. SERVPRO technicians hold qualifications from the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certifications (IICRC), which allows us to operate on properties with microbial growth infestations.

How do I discover mold in my home?

• Musty odors are familiar with most types of mold and could indicate an infestation
• Grey, green, or black mold colonies on walls, ceilings, or behind furniture and fittings
• A recent water damage issue could contribute to mold, so homeowners should be extra-vigilant in these situations
• Dampness should be investigated thoroughly for potential microbial activity 

Is it necessary to demo building materials with mold?

The prospect of removing building materials through demolition can be a worrying one for homeowners. We understand that there is much potential inconvenience associated with the noise and space usage of demolition. However, exposing hidden areas of a mold infestation in Northampton may only be possible with the controlled demolition of infested materials. Without inspecting the full extent of damage and the source of the issue, the chance of mold returning is relatively high. As a general rule, materials that are porous or semi-porous suffer adversely from microbial infestation. These materials may include drywall, insulation, sheetrock, or floorboards. In severe cases, the subfloor or building frame- which is usually made from wood- can require replacement. SERVPRO promises to act quickly on any necessary demolition of materials when working in your home.

How do molds spread?

• Airborne spores
• Through porous and semi-porous materials
• By traveling on footwear or clothing

Does demolition of moldy building materials increase the chances of spreading?

Mold spores can be as miniscule as 1 micron in size. The potential for spreading on clothing or becoming airborne is high, given that most remediation techniques involve agitative cleaning or demolition. SERVPRO technicians can set up a containment zone in your Northampton property to control the spread of molds. Usually, these containment areas use air-scrubbers, vacuums, negative air pressure, and impermeable sheeting to prevent potential spreading. Most vacuum remediation equipment uses high-efficiency particulate air-filters (HEPA) to capture airborne spores. Our technicians can set up decontamination rooms to wash clothing and other personal protective equipment to control the spreading further.

What materials are salvageable from mold?

• Certain fabrics can be machine washed using Esporta washing machines
• Non-porous or dense materials which only show surface-level infestation
• Mortar, tiles, or synthetic materials in the home generally respond well to restoration

Are the demolition and replacement of moldy materials expensive?

It is understandable for homeowners to think of mold remediation in terms of cost-efficiency. Our technicians operate on a restore rather than replace the basis. Before removing any materials, we factor in the expense and time associated with replacement. Many household building materials are inexpensive to replace. These materials include drywall or insulation. The best option for expensive materials like hardwood flooring is to clean and restore. We can use sand, pressure washing, or soda-blasting on the surface of the wood. Following that, our team can refinish and re-polish hardwoods to return them to a preloss condition following microbial growth. You can talk with a crew chief throughout restoration to get a full picture of the cost and time frame of remediation in your Northampton home.

Taking a pro-active approach to microbial infestation can help to recover and restore expensive material in the home. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 today.

What Are All Those Holes In My Wall For After Flooding?

9/9/2020 (Permalink)

After a flood incident occurs. You can trust that your home is in good hands with our experienced technicians at SERVPRO.

SERVPRO uses multiple restoration techniques in Northampton homes with floodwater problems.

When floodwater enters a home, it is not uncommon for the majority of the visible water to recede into other areas of the structure, known as "migration." SERVPRO technicians use their equipment to track the migration path and, in some cases, help the structure release the moisture it is holding through actions such as creating weep holes along walls, allowing better drainage of the water.

Why Did My Tile Come Loose After Flood Damage?  

After flood damage in a Northampton property, tile flooring bears the brunt of the loss in many cases. While ceramic tile floors with an intact grout line seal have one of the best outcomes from flood water contact, laminate and adhesive floor tiles tend to have one of the worst. Upon exposure to floodwater, the glue holding down the tiles tends to deteriorate, and the tile delaminates and requires removal. This also calls attention to the probability that water seeped into the subfloor, and it necessitates drying. The techs use most commonly:

• Drying mats
• Air movers
• Industrial dehumidifiers
• Air scrubbers 

There is a certain amount of controlled demolition that is common. With their residential contractor license, #MAHIC180066, the SERVPRO techs bring the knowledge of building as well as safely removing damaged structural elements and readying the property for the needed repairs. 

Mold is a threat after floodwater enters a home. It does not come in with the moisture but can find optimum conditions for naturally occurring airborne spores to germinate. Once this happens, an infestation can spread rapidly throughout the area. The technicians can remove damaged sheetrock or other items and perform abatement as needed to neutralize the issue. The application of antimicrobial solutions assists in inhibiting the setup of mold colonies during the mitigation. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 to handle storm and flood damage in your home. The technicians are available 24/7 to handle any size water cleanup and restoration service needed.  

Want to see more about Northampton?

How Can I Fortify My Home Against Flood Damage?

8/27/2020 (Permalink)

Storms and flood damage happen. Our technicians are ready to go. Call us today!

Northampton Residents Are Worried About Preventing Flood Damage 

Northampton homeowners know the importance of taking good care of their home – and they know that sometimes it’s worth spending a little money now, to save expense and stress later.

When flood damage hits Northampton, homes are at risk of extensive damage. Flood damage repairs can be costly and inconvenient. SERVPRO recommends doing all you can to fortify your home against floods before anything happens, to reduce the possible harm and protect your house.

What can I do to boost my home’s flood resistance? 

Here are some things to consider if you want your home to be more resistant to flooding:

• Apply water-resistant paint to the outside of your property
• Cover pet flaps and vents if it looks like a storm is coming
• Use sandbags to protect your property when the weather dictates
• Consider installing flood-proof doors and windows if you are in a high-risk area

Is there anything else I can do? 

As well as taking care of your home’s structure, SERVPRO recommends keeping on top of home maintenance projects. Things that can reduce your flood damage risk include:

• Dealing with any roof repairs or loose tiles as soon as possible
• Cleaning gutters and downspouts regularly and repairing any damaged parts
• Checking your door and window seals and replacing them if needed

You might also consider hiring a landscape gardener to ensure flood water will run away from your home.

What should I do if flood damage occurs? 

No matter how many precautions you take, you cannot wholly prevent flood damage. If you need flood mitigation, call SERVPRO as soon as you can. We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster, and we know how to repair and restore your home after a flood.

Our professional team will extract water from your home and make it safe again if it has suffered structural damage. We also handle the removal of damaged carpets, and we clean and restore furniture Wherever possible. We will not quit until your home is appropriately dry and clean again, and we even carry out odor removal, so your house smells fresh.

 For help with flood damage, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300.

More about Northampton.

How Can SERVPRO Respond to a Flooded Record Room in an Amherst Hospital?

8/27/2020 (Permalink)

Patient records are vital to a hospital’s operations. Should flooding occur, call SERVPRO.

Records and Documentation for Patients and Clients in Your Medical Facility can be Sensitive and Irreplaceable, but our Professionals can Help with Effective Drying Strategies 

It is critical to protect hard copies of patient information and the respective documentation necessary for your Amherst hospital's daily functions. Flooding presents a direct risk to your facility's storage areas, especially those where this paperwork might have believed to have stored safely. The penetration of water into this room requires immediate action, especially several emergency services that our SERVPRO professionals can start upon arrival., including our cleaning technicians, but also involves our in-house commercial contractors.  

Addressing flood damage in Amherst hospitals and other medical facilities revolves around understanding how severe the disaster has become. From the initial onset of spreading floodwater concerns, the situation continually worsens until the appropriate actions reduce the spread and severity of these emergencies. Content management is a considerable aspect of this initial mitigation service that we can provide commercial customers. Especially with items and stored records, the multiple layers of content management can prove invaluable. The cleaning and restoration of documents, paperwork, files, and other contents include several tasks:  

• Cleaning
• Drying
• Relocation
• Deodorization
• Antibacterial Treatment
• Antimicrobial Treatment

How Does Document Drying Work?  

Freeze drying is among the most common actions taken to recover water damaged paperwork stored in your hospital's lower levels. Penetration of floodwater into these areas can make these documents vulnerable to irreparable damage, so mobile freeze-drying units get help to provide on-site recovery without compromising the sensitive information contained in the files. Freeze-drying works by placing paper products under in vacuum and flash freezing them.   

Often you do not need to remove documents and files from your facility after a flood when it is possible to restore them. Our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team can help protect these files and folders to make cleaning and recovery more efficient after a flood. Contact us today at (413) 324-1300. 

More about Amherst.

Where Can I Get a Sewage Backup Cleaned After Hours?

8/27/2020 (Permalink)

What do you do when your business experiences a sewage backup? Call SERVPRO. We can restore your business!

SERVPRO Technicians are Available Around the Clock, Including Weekends and Holidays to Handle Water Damage in Your Granby Commercial Property 

It can be frustrating to have a toilet backup in your Granby place of business, and more so when it occurs after hours or during a holiday when the company is not open. Anything that absorbs this type of water, known as black water for the contaminants it contains, requires disposal as a biohazard. It is crucial not to have any contact, including aspirating, with this type of water, as it is unhealthy and can contain bacteria and pathogenic elements. SERVPRO techs are available 24/7 to come to your property and return your business to a sanitary standard for reopening. 

What Types of Commercial Water Damage Repair Can a Toilet Overflow Cause?

Once there is a sewage backup in your Granby business, the water damage repair actions need to start quickly. The interior humidity levels rise rapidly. Being in a closed environment can be detrimental to electronic equipment, including printers, computers, servers, and data centers. The techs work quickly to determine the scale that the water has affected and device perimeters to ensure everything gets addressed. Standard beginning actions include SERVPRO technicians: 

• Contain the area to cut down on the spread of odor and water vapor
• Remove any electronics in danger of damage 
• Move out of furnishings and items from the job site area to a cleaning station for inspection and restoration

Are Toilet Backups Preventable?

There are many reasons that a sewage backup can happen within your property. While some can get prevented, it is impossible to 100% insulate your property from this type of disaster. Environmental monitoring equipment can help catch a water damage situation more quickly by alerting you when interior humidity levels rise, indicating the possible presence of water. Some of the most frequently seen reasons backups occur in commercial facilities are: 

• Too much toilet paper causing a clog
• Inappropriate or harmful objects getting flushed
• Cracked sewage pipe
• Toilet malfunctions such as the flush valves or sensors on smart toilets 

What is Controlled Demolition During Restoration Services? 

When sewage-tainted water gets absorbed into the sheetrock on walls, drips through a ceiling to a lower level or seeps under a floor, most of those building materials will be lost. However, whenever possible, the techs try only to remove the deteriorated portion and leave undamaged sheetrock and other articles intact to lessen the amount of rebuilding and replacing needed. If parts of the sheetrock require removal, the interior insulation usually needs disposal too.  

Identifying the areas where the water migrates in a Granby sewage backup event is crucial, along with careful monitoring of the extraction and drying process. The techs can peer under flooring and behind walls using their specialized equipment to determine where the water went and determine the best way to remove it and dry it. They have different types of detection devices, depending on the surfaces they are scoping. 

Prepping for Repairs is Necessary 

Because of the contaminated nature of sewage water, the property needs thorough disinfection before rebuilding efforts can begin so the business can reopen. SERVPRO technicians have a broad array of antibacterial, antimicrobial, and deodorizing cleaners to tackle any size mess or odor. Particularly in companies that serve food or health services to the public, the technicians can test the surfaces after cleaning to determine if any bacteria remain present and reclean if needed.  

Odor control may be needed as this type of water damage has a strong, pungent scent that can get embedded in porous objects such as cushions on chairs. While equipment such as hydroxyl generators neutralize any airborne odorous particulate that floats within the scope of the UV rays emitted, the manual application of a fogging solution also works to eradicate embedded odors. Since this removes foul smells at the molecular level, there is no worry about the odors returning.  

When it comes time for repairs to get made, SERVPRO holds a contractor license (#MA CS-107843) and can handle all aspects of the rebuilding of your property. This construction includes installing insulation and sheetrock on walls and ceilings, replacing carpet or flooring, and painting to name some of the services. Once the techs complete the full restoration process, there are no signs of the previous water issues. 

Do not let the need for commercial water damage repair keep your business closed a minute longer than you must. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. the trained and certified technicians can turn around the situation to make it, "Like it never even happened."

What Can I Salvage After a Substantial Fire in My Home?

8/20/2020 (Permalink)

Not all is lost after a fire. SERVPRO techs have the training and experience to handle all aspects of a fire loss event.

SERVPRO Uses Proven Fire Damage Restoration Methods to Increase Your Chances of Salvaging Belongings in Your Easthampton Home

There is plenty to worry about when you have a fire in your Easthampton home. The last thing on your mind should be whether you have the right tools to clean up the debris and charred materials. Instead of taking a chance that your DIY cleaning may compound the damage, SERVPRO has the right tools and techniques to salvage as much as possible. We work with the mindset that it is often better to try to repair and restore rather than replace, which also helps you lessen the cost of the loss.

How Can You Tell Which Belongings Are Salvageable?

When you call on us for fire damage restoration in Easthampton, we have technicians with specialized instruction through the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). Our team understands that multiple factors are at work that determines your interior belongings and materials after a fire. The way that items are damaged includes their exposure to:

• Flames of the fire
• Heat
• Smoke and soot residue
• Water or chemicals used to extinguish the blaze

In addition to these factors listed above, the length of exposure time also plays a vital role. A fire that gets extinguished quickly lessens damage. However, there is still amplified risk from exposure to fire residues and soot that can cause breakdown or corrosion. Depending on the materials burned, the right methods must also be selected to facilitate the restoration. Some of the more common materials utilized in household furniture include:

• Wood
• Plywood
• Medium-density fiberboard
• Glass
• Acrylic
• Leather
• Textiles
• Plastics, and more

I Have Hardwood Floors, Are They a Total Loss?

We take each Easthampton fire restoration project on a case-by-case basis. Our skilled fire and smoke restoration technicians (FSRT) know how to assess your hardwood flooring to determine the right course of action. Hardwood flooring is generally durable, so our team may have the option of sanding and then refinishing. If the floors are unsalvageable, we will perform controlled demolition to remove all charred materials and replace them with brand-new hardwood flooring.

What Methods are Used for Cleaning Furnishings and Belongings?

Depending on the materials and soiling level, we have a range of dry or wet cleaning methods to try:

• Dry Cleaning –This method works well for clearing away ashy, loose residue, and particles. We use various tools, including dusting cloths, feather dusters, sponges, brushes, and vacuums.
• Wet Cleaning –We use this method for soot and smoke residue that adheres to surfaces. Wet methods work to dissolve, loosen, and suspend using products like mild detergents or low-alkaline surface cleaning agents.

A practical method often used with fire damage restoration is agitation, helping to loosen soiling before removing it. Any dry soot that may not have bonded with a surface can be agitated to make the residue more easily washed or cleaned.

• We have mechanical agitation tools such as rotating brushes that work to remove soot from a heavily soiled surface.
• We use air pressure hoses indoors while we have water pressure equipment for outside use.
• Sandblasting is another form of agitation that allows us to blast away surface soiling and soot to bring about a smooth, clean finish.

How Do You Handle the Wetness from the Fire After Extinguishment?

Any time that water is part of fire-fighting efforts, moisture is often left behind. When this happens, it boosts the chances of odorous elements and mold festering within the fire zone. Without prompt attention, this is a combination that can quickly become problematic and hinder the restoration process. We have our technicians inspect your interior to ensure all water or chemicals from extinguishing the flames get removed before we move to the next phases of drying and deodorizing.

Ventilation is Key

With any fire restoration project, SERVPRO understands that airflow and ventilation help us meet our goals faster. We utilize negative air chambers or containment on an as-needed basis to inhibit soot particles from moving through your home’s ductwork. It also helps keep tracking to a minimum by anyone walking in and out of the loss zone. Additionally, we may:

• Set up air scrubbers with HEPA filters to improve general air quality
• Wipe down surface areas to help eliminate smoke residue traces

Smoke and odor control are also a significant factor for any fire damage project. It is essential not to leave odorous molecules behind that could become a constant reminder of the fire. We utilize a broad spectrum of tools and products to help us stop odors in their tracks, including:

• Thermal foggers
• Hydroxyl generators

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is the team you need on your side when faced with a need for fire damage restoration. Call 24/7 at (413) 324-1300 to have a Green Fleet deployed to your property.

What Steps Are Crucial in Disinfecting Property Flooded by A Storm?

7/7/2020 (Permalink)

What should you do when floods damage your home? Call SERVPROI! We know how to safely remove the water.

SERVPRO Can Help Clean, Disinfect, or Remove Materials as Part of Flood Damage Restoration in Your Northampton Property 

When a storm floods your property, one of the problems you have to worry about is contamination. Failure to decontaminate the affected areas can pose significant risks. It is important to note that you can clean up your Northampton property, but leave traces of contaminants.

Can Contamination Persist After Cleaning?

Cleaning is a necessary part of flood damage restoration when Northampton properties flood. However, several factors influence its effectiveness in removing contaminants, including:

• Whether affected materials are porous or non-porous
• Whether cleaning involves the use of disinfectants or antimicrobial products
• Procedures used in the application of cleaning agents
• Site management procedures such as content manipulation

What is easier to decontaminate, porous, or non-porous material?

Floodwaters contain massive levels of contaminants, such as chemicals and biohazards. In most cases, decontamination is only feasible for non-porous or semi-porous materials such as wood furniture or some floor and wall materials. Porous materials, including carpets and pad, allow deeper penetration of contaminants minimizing chances of proper decontamination. Our SERVPRO technicians remove such materials for disposal for the safety of your family.

Which steps are necessary when decontaminating hard surfaces? 

• Allowing products at least 10 minutes of dwell-time
• Use of products at correct temperatures of at least 68°F
• Ensuring the cleaning solution spreads evenly around the property

Our SERVPRO technicians use various approaches to ensure we decontaminate all areas thoroughly. For instance, to ensure we apply sufficient products on vast areas such as floor surfaces, we use electric or pump-up sprayers for application. We also clean the surfaces we want to decontaminate before applying the disinfectant since the products need physical contact to be effective. Some organic matter can also neutralize the products.

Restoring sanitary conditions to your property after a storm floods it is crucial. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 to assist. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster.

More about Northampton.

Does Drywall in My Northampton House Need Removal When It Gets Wet?

6/16/2020 (Permalink)

When appliances fail, drywall often becomes water damaged. SERVPRO has the know-how to restore your home.

Experienced SERVPRO Managers Assess the Water Damage and Follow Best Practices to Restore Wet Materials in Northampton Homes

Drywall is a common material in many homes, predominant in more recent constructions, but also used in remodeled or repaired dwellings. Because of its porous nature, drywall wicks water quickly. When water spreads across a floor and moves toward the baseboard, the water crawls up the drywall. The composite material crumbles and warps and is rapidly rendered as inadequate and irreparable.

Where Does the Water Go After an Appliance Breaks Down?

If the dish or clothes washer in your Northampton home causes water damage, dealing with the visible water is just one step. You would not be the first homeowner wondering where the gallons of water that poured out went. Contact between the floor and wall joints in your kitchen or utility room allows water to seep through, pooling up between the walls and percolating into the subfloor. Merely mopping up or using a wet vacuum is not enough to address this hidden and now trapped water migration.

How Do the Pros Follow the Water?

SERVPRO technicians use sensitive moisture detectors and meters to outline the perimeters intruding water. We then choose the path of least disruption to reach the water, which can include flood cuts that take the wet drywall out several inches above the waterline, permitting:

• Access to the water, extractable with portable units

• Removal of unrestorable materials and inhibition of mold growth

• Opening of the wet areas so our Applied Structural Drying (ASD) technicians can eliminate moisture inside affected wall cavities

How Is Cutting Up My Wall the Least Disruptive Option?

Replacement of drywall is a straightforward process that our build-back specialists can manage easily. Choosing instead to leave the standing water and moisture behind surfaces to dry slowly, if at all, leads to the risk of severe damage to framing and other supportive structural materials.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County has wraparound restoration services available when water damages your home. Call us at (413) 324-1300 to discuss the best practices we use to return your house to the preloss condition.

More about Northampton.

Contractor Licenses:

General: MA CS-107843

Residential: MA HIC 180066

I’m Stressed Out with Water Damage in My Northampton Home, Will Professional Restoration Help?

6/9/2020 (Permalink)

Let SERVPRO be the pros to help you through the water damage in your Northampton home.

Hiring the Pros for Water Damage Gets You the Prompt, Efficient Service You Need to Restore Your Northampton Home

It can be stressful to handle water cleanup after a loss in your home. Calling in the help of professionals ensures that the cleanup is executed faster and in the most efficient manner possible. With the right combination of techniques and technology, SERVPRO’s water restoration technicians (WRT) restore your interior promptly so your family can get back to your daily life.

What Does SERVPRO Do to Handle Water Damage?

When you call us to handle water damage in Northampton, we treat each call as unique. Our technicians evaluate your interior to plan cleanup around your needs carefully. The considerations that we make include:

• The extent of water loss and damage to your contents, furnishings, and any structural materials.
• Calculations to allow for proper drying based on the saturation of water throughout your contents and structure, along with relative humidity within the loss zone.
• Determining the course of action for deodorization and sanitization based on your location as well as local regulations.

How Do You Handle a Fully Flooded Basement?

When your water incident is significant, we have trucks equipped with extractors that pump out water at high volume. This 300psi extraction allows us to remove thousands of gallons of water rapidly to limit the amount of secondary damage to your property. These pumps also facilitate the removal of debris that may be in the water for expedient, effortless restoration. Water gets disposed of according to local guidelines in a nearby drainage system or collected on-site in a tank for disposal off-site.

Water damage does not have to cause stress and concern when you have experts on your side. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 to have a team deployed 24/7 for assessment of your needs.

To find out more about Northampton, click here.

How Can I Ensure Removing all Water from Built-In Cabinets in My Northampton Kitchen After a Burst Pipe?

6/5/2020 (Permalink)

Water damages wood, especially particleboard if not immediately remediated. Call SERVPRO for fast, effective restoration.

Have Confidence that the SERVPRO Team Follows Industry Best Practices When Completing Your Northampton Water Cleanup Project

Remodeling projects often feature a complete kitchen re-do, with beautiful new appliances and cabinetry to match. Labor-saving devices installed are directly plumbed, so supply and waste lines thread through walls and under and around the cabinets. A crack in the conduit or an ill-fitting connection can create a slow leak, with the water collecting unseen under cabinets and between walls. If the water line finally bursts, the immediate water damage exacerbates the issues that have been building over time.

Is Cleaning Up Visible Water after a Burst Pipe Sufficient?

The puddles in front of the appliances and cabinets of your Northampton kitchen signal water cleanup must occur immediately. If you decide that mopping up the visible water is needed, you are setting yourself up for disaster. Moisture soaks into porous materials, including subfloors, hardwood and particle board, insulation, sound proofing (often wrapped around a dishwasher), and more. Failing to search for migration of the water from the leak potentially results in:

• Weakening of structural materials and fixtures
• Warping of floors
• Rusting and breakage of metal supports and fasteners
• Mold growth and damage

How Do Professionals Find and Address Water Migration?

When SERVPRO assesses your kitchen, we use moisture detectors and meters as well as thermal imaging cameras to locate and measure hidden water, trapped or absorbed under cabinets and between walls. Removal of toe kicks can release water under the cabinets, and if drywall is wet, we might cut sections out to access standing water and enhance the efforts of our structural drying equipment.

Do I Need to Hire a Rebuilding Contractor?

If fixtures, walls, or floors are damaged or partially demolished for water cleanup, our general and residential contractors' licenses permit us to build back affected areas of your kitchen.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County completes all tasks of your water cleanup project from assessment to reconstruction. Call us at (413) 324-1300 for comprehensive reconstruction assistance.

More about Northampton.

Contractor Licenses:

General: MA CS-107843

Residential: MA HIC - 180066

What Kinds of Safety Concerns Should You Have if Your Home Floods After Torrential Rains?

5/20/2020 (Permalink)

It’s rainy season in Northampton. Call SERVPRO for all of your water damage restoration needs.

Rely on the Experts from SERVPRO to Keep Everyone Safe During Flood Damage Recovery in Northampton

When seasonal storms bring heavy rains and high winds to Northampton, the Connecticut River can also rise, exposing your residence to flooding from all angles. Regardless of the source of the water invading your home, the quantities that eventually flow inside can be substantial, causing damage to both the structure and its contents. You need professional help to turn back the pages on the disaster.

How Can You Tell if a Restoration Company Has Your Best Interests in Mind?

After you make the call after selecting a restoration company, it is natural to be nervous. Flood damage to your Northampton home is an intensely personal and stressful experience, and you want to have confidence that your restoration partner always has your family’s safety and welfare prioritized. Our mission is to return our customers’ property to a clean, dry, and sanitary condition, following best practices, including adhering to safety protocols from assessment through the final walkthrough. 

How Does a Reputable Disaster Recovery Company Manage Safety on the Flood Damage Worksite?

The caution SERVPRO exercises when approaching your flooding recovery project has as its foundation the reality that water damage restoration presents dozens of dangers that put both occupants and our crews at risk. We follow a protocol that safeguards all persons on your damaged property while providing premier flood damage mitigation, remediation, and restoration services. In theory and practice, water damage restoration can expose individuals to the following overall risks, and our first action when arriving at your site is to assess for the presence of any or all:

• Slip, trip, and fall dangers, related to slippery and submerged surfaces and debris
• Working in confined spaces, with potential for physical injury or entrapment in rising waters
• Exposure to chemical agents mixed into the floodwaters or used for cleaning and disinfection
• Environmental hazards, including
• Materials such as lead or asbestos
• Potential structural breakdowns such as wall or ceiling collapses and disturbance of supportive framing or foundations by the force of water, silt, and debris
• Electrical hazards, perhaps requiring temporary shutdowns
• Biohazards such as mold and infectious human waste when sewage backs up 

What Is Next, After the Risk Assessment?

Just because risks exist does not mean the project does not move forward. SERVPRO puts into place research-based, commonsense protections and proceeds cautiously under adapted conditions:

• Hands-off water removal occurs with the placement of submersible, gas-powered pumps.
• As debris becomes visible, cleanup is possible.
• Truck-mounted extractors use power from our generators, so electrical shutdown does not delay our response, removing and containing for lawful disposal even vast amounts of contaminated floodwaters.
• When contact with infectious or otherwise contaminated fluids and materials is necessary, crew members wear personal protective equipment (PPE). 

How Are Electrical Hazards Managed After Restoring the Power?

Eventually, we use on-site electricity for our equipment, including smaller extractors and the inventory of machines that assist in structural drying. We employ Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFC) that cut the power when too many current flows. Crew members also inspect cords and plugs regularly for damage and ensure that cords used are managed with zip ties or other strategies to avoid tripping.

• Team approaches to work in confined spaces ensures that no technician is without communication as portable, plugin extractors enter the battle to remove all water.
• Light fixtures and electrical boxes should be water-free before use.
• Metal tools, including measuring tapes, ladders, and more, must not contact working circuits or energized equipment.
• Diagrams of electrical wiring, cables, and power lines must be available before controlled demolition to avoid cutting into the grid.

Crew members avoid:

• Plugging in or unplugging wet appliances or equipment
• Switching on or off any electrical tool or machine while standing on a wet surface

What Approaches Do the Restorers Take with Other Hazards?

Structural Concerns

Northampton storm and flood-damaged structural components can warp, crumble, or collapse. Before beginning flood mitigation and remediation our crews:

• Inspect for gas or other utility line ruptures, reaching out for appropriate assistance if needed.
• Evaluate water for water collected above ceilings or between walls, planning for and implementing a strategy of weep holes or flood cuts to release the water.
• Test floors for weakness, especially if the introduction of heavy equipment might cause supports to fail.   

Hazardous Materials 

• Chemicals or infectious pathogens can be mixed in the floodwaters, requiring proper PPE and containment of the workspace and the fluids removed.
• Airborne hazards mandate the use of negative pressure air scrubbers in work areas, and wrapping of the space in 1.6 mil polyethylene.
• If we encounter asbestos or lead-based paint, our managers must arrange for removal by licensed personnel.

The team at SERVPRO of Hampshire County delivers flood assessment through build-back services. Explore what we can offer you by calling (413) 324-1300.

Contractor Licenses:

General: MA CS-107843

Residential: MA HIC 180066

Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned – a defensive cleaning program

5/19/2020 (Permalink)

Our defensive cleaning program gives your business a way forward by providing your employees and customers ongoing safety and assuredness.

Let us help you get back to business

As our communities re-open in Northampton, we’re all moving back toward a new kind of normal. The expectations of visitors, customers, and employees who come into our establishments have evolved, and staying safe and well is a top concern. The global COVID-19 pandemic has changed what it means to be clean, and we’ve developed a program to help your business meet the new higher standard of clean that is now expected.

Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned is a defensive cleaning program we’re offering to businesses and commercial locations to address the current COVID-19 pandemic. This proactive viral pathogen cleaning program goes well beyond janitorial or carpet cleaning. By choosing Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned, you, your employees, your customers, and your community can rest assured that you’ve selected a higher cleaning standard – you are Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned.

Extensive training and specialized products

As the #1 choice in cleanup and restoration*, we stand on more than 50 years of experience and expertise to help your business become Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned.  Beyond fire & water, SERVPRO professionals are trained and experienced in biohazard decontamination and chemical spills – always adhering to the cleaning and decontamination standards set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local authorities. 

From formulating and creating our proprietary cleaning products, like SERVPROXIDE, at our headquarters in Gallatin, TN, to taking the utmost care while disinfecting, we will ensure you and your business are set up to inspire consumer confidence as the economy continues to reopen.

3 C’s – Consult, Clean, and Certify

When the stakes are this high, you want a partner who has developed an industry leading, proprietary training program, cleaning solutions, and remediation processes over decades. We’ve cleaned up some of the most challenging biohazards imaginable. Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned reflects our unique experiences and capabilities. The program is grounded with our unique 3 C’s: Consult, Clean, and Certify.

• Consult – Every business is different, which is why you’ll be assigned a Cleaning Protocol Consultant who understands your business and will create a cleaning program to meet your specific needs. This program will be developed based on your business type, size of space, amount of high frequency touchpoints, foot traffic and congestion points.
• Clean – Based on your specific business needs, your location will undergo a thorough, deep clean, using exclusive cleaning products, according to protocols set forth by the CDC. Our employees have years of experience, and we will go beyond the scope of work that regular janitorial staff perform. Cleanup procedures generally include cleaning of porous and non-porous surfaces, disinfecting of non-porous surfaces, cleaning and disinfecting of equipment, tools, and/or supplies used for cleanup process, and disposal of hazardous materials.  In the event of a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 event, we will be there cleaning within 24 hours to ensure you get back to business as quickly as possible. 
• Certify - Once your business location has been Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned, you will gain access to proprietary signage, digital emblems, and other collateral that communicates that you’ve selected a higher standard of clean available to help protect your employees and customers. And because we add the day, month, and year to that proprietary stamp of clean, your guests will know that not only did you choose Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned,but that your location is being cleaned regularly at this standard.

Call today for a Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned consultation

We’re Here to Help – 24 hours a day, seven days a week – until life is back to normal in the communities we all call home.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County today at (413) 324-1300 for your Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned consultation.

* #1 Choice in cleanup & restoration based Commercial Attitude & Usage Tracking study. Polling 816 commercial business decision makers on first choice for future needs related to cleanup & restoration work. Study conducted by C&R Research: October 2019

Certified: SERVPRO Cleaned means professionally trained SERVPRO franchises perform the requested cleaning, sanitizing and disinfection services according to proprietary SERVPRO protocols and recognized industry and CDC standards with EPA approved cleaning products to deliver a SERVPRO certified cleaning experience.  Each SERVPRO franchise is independently owned and operated.

Need Ideas or Help with Preventative Cleaning?

5/15/2020 (Permalink)

Remind employees to wipe down their computers. Rely on SERVPRO to clean your lobby and bathrooms.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County Provides Answers

While there has been a certain amount of fear-mongering in the media lately, we can all agree that the most prudent course is to follow the recommendations and orders from our health authorities when it comes to safe practices like social-distancing, hand washing, and keeping touchpoint surfaces clean. These actions will certainly help flatten the curve of infection rates. Does the real question become, “What are the correct ways to clean our Northampton indoor environments?” Here are some excellent answers to this commonly asked question:

• Visit the CDC websitefor real information about environmental cleaning and disinfection (Both Appleand Google also have reliable advice websites)
• Using CDC recommended or EPA registeredcleaning products
• Consider hiring professional help

SERVPRO of Hampshire County’s technicians are well-trained and experienced in Northampton biohazard cleaning that involves potentially harmful microorganisms, including crime and death scene contaminated scenes. We follow the cleaning protocols developed by the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and Restoration Industry Association (RIA), based on the CDC’s recommendations, without spreading contamination.

What else can SERVPRO offer?

• Special cleaning equipment such as powered misting machines and air-cleaning systems
• An inventory of EPA registered cleaning products
• Trained, certified technicians wear proper personal protective equipment (PPE), which protects the occupants of the building as well as themselves
• Both one-time cleanings and regularly scheduled cleaning programs, customized to each location and circumstance
• Consultation services - our experts are available to answer any questions you may have.

Maintaining quality preventative cleaning is a potent weapon in the fight against potential infection. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300.

More about Northampton.

Advice from the medical and scientific community regarding how to deal with the coronavirus is based on present knowledge, which is subject to change as the situation continues to develop. There can be no assurance that disinfectants alone will be adequate to fully eliminate the virus. We are not physicians or infectious disease professionals. Consult your medical professionals for individual medical advice.

What Should I Expect to Replace After Fire Damage in My Northampton House?

5/5/2020 (Permalink)

Fires do not always destroy everything. We try to restore your family treasures. Call us today!

SERVPRO Helps Scope Fire Damaged Materials Determining What to Salvage or Throw Away 

Fire leaves a blend of evident and obscure damages on different materials within a property. The varied nature of damages can lead to confusion on whether to dispose of items that survive the fire immediately or look for ways to save them. Our SERVPRO technicians understand that some items' immediate disposal is necessary because fire affects materials in many ways, apart from the physical changes observed.

How does fire damage things?

When looking through a fire damage site in Northampton homes, the evident signs of loss include soot, ash, and charred material remains, which are caused by flames and heat action in a fire. However, combustion involves other processes, including releasing harmful chemicals like hydrogen cyanide, sulfur dioxide, and tar. Some of these harmful substances find a way into some of the materials within the sections the fire affects.

What items typically require immediate disposal?

• Insulation
• Perishable and non-perishable food
• Cosmetics and medicine

Although the physical damage on the items may not appear significant enough to warrant removal, underlying reasons make it the correct option. For example, food items, exposed to heat or the chemicals produced during combustion, are no longer safe for consumption. For insulation, exposure to fire leads to different problems, including damaging its insulating properties. Another issue with insulation is the accumulation of soot and odor, yet it is not possible to clean it. Our SERVPRO technicians remove the top three to four inches of insulation in case the problem only involves residue deposits.  

What else needs removing?

Fire affects all materials and contents within the loss site. Meticulous scoping is necessary before deciding to throw away or save anything. Our SERVPRO technicians consider three main factors:

• The chances of successful restoration
• The cost of restoration
• The sentimental or other value of the item

SERVPRO of Hampshire County helps in addressing various challenges sparked by fire damage, including making tough decisions on the fate of valuables. Call us at (413) 324-1300. We're faster To Any Size Disaster.

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How Do I Restore Fire Losses to My Northampton Home?

4/24/2020 (Permalink)

SERVPRO can board up and then restore fire damaged homes in Northampton

SERVPRO Professionals Respond Fast After a Fire to Start Mitigation and Recovery

When you ask how fire damage gets restored in any Northampton area home, the answers that you get are much like asking a panel of top chefs for how they might make some traditional dish. While many of the ingredients are the same, the methods and the nuances of individual efforts set each happening apart. Choosing a restoration team means choosing skilled professionals that can appreciate these differences and how to provide the most efficient restoration.

Considering how widespread fire damage in Northampton homes can be, our SERVPRO professionals do not waste time mobilizing to reach your damaged property as quickly as possible. Restoring your home is a collaboration of effort between your initial reaction to the emergencies and how our technicians can begin vital mitigation steps upon arrival.

What Do I Do Once the Firefighters Leave? 

Fires are already overwhelming, but when first responders tell you that their work is done and you can go about the restoration needs, it can feel like an impossible task. It is often better to break this critical time into smaller pieces so that you are reaching out to the right offices at the right times. Your initial response should involve:

•    Calling Our Professionals 

While you might want to reach out to your insurance company first, but there are distinct advantages to choose to call our SERVPRO team before that. The sooner that you speak with our emergency response team, the faster these professionals can mobilize and get on their way to your damaged address. Also, in many cases, your insurance company is going to want an estimate and a thorough evaluation of the property conducted by professionals, which we can do.

•    Calling Your Insurance 

Reaching out to your insurance provider is an important step that should not get forgotten. These are the professionals that are going to be involved in the funding of the restoration that your property needs and can keep you from paying little more than the deductible.

•    Waiting for Qualified Assistance 

While it might be tempting to begin an evaluation of the property on your own, this is not always advisable. Entering your home until professionals have deemed it safe to do so can lead to potential health hazards and structural threats you are not prepared to face. Our professionals get prepared for these possible risks with extensive training.  

When Does My Insurance Company Get Involved? 

You might be wondering where your insurance company fits into all of this, and they are a vital part of ensuring that restoration begins when it should and does not miss vital steps to bringing your home back to its original condition.

•    Initial Phone Call

With the initial phone call that you make to our SERVPRO professionals, we can find out information about your insurance provider. We can interface in these situations to cut through the substantial red tape that can sometimes exist that slows restoration from beginning. However, we are not an insurance company, and we strive to simplify the process, not direct it.

•    Preferred Vendor 

Our SERVPRO brand is recognized among local and national insurance agencies as a preferred vendor in the area. We have established a reputation with these companies for our thorough work and fast response.

•    Experienced Inspections and Documentation

Our professionals work to quickly gather the information that your insurance company needs to approve your damage claim. In many cases, this is photo evidence and documentation of the damage along with our estimations of the work to get done and the proposed costs. We provide the CCIS Content Claim Inventory Service program to catalog non-salvageable items and more to assist our customers.

What Might My Home Need to Look Like it Used To? 

After a fire loss incident, there are several things that your home needs to return to its original condition. Between all of these standard stages, you can see a seamless collaboration between our restoration professionals and our in-house licensed contractors. Some of these needs include:

•    Controlled Demolition

Fires often cause a need for controlled demolition when partial damage occurs to construction materials and structural elements. By only removing part of the material, reconstruction can cost less material-wise and take less time to complete.

•    Surface Cleaning

Removing residues and staining is an essential element to restoring your home after a fire loss as well. With hazards like soot residues, it is vital to carefully clean these exposed materials as not to cause more significant structural loss or health hazards.

•    Deodorization

Smoke and burning odors are among the most challenging obstacles for our team to overcome, and we have several deodorization products and equipment to neutralize harsh odors throughout the entire house.

•    Repainting

Even though we have potent cleaning products and solvents, repainting many of the damaged surfaces and wallboard can help to make it “Like it never even happened.”

After a fire, it can take a lot to make your house look and feel like home again. Let our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team help however you need by calling (413) 324-1300.

How Are Northampton Kitchen Fires Restored?

4/13/2020 (Permalink)

Kitchen fires happen quickly. Never leave cooking unattended.

Cooking Mishaps a Leading Cause of Fire Damage in Northampton

Cooking, we all do it.  It is a primary everyday task many of us in Northampton do one or more times a day. Not surprisingly, cooking mishaps are a leading cause of home fire damage.

One recent instance of such fire damage in Northampton occurred this past Thanksgiving when a deep fryer malfunction started a kitchen fire.  A resident, attempting to prepare a tasty deep-fried turducken for the family’s meal, had walked away for a few moments when the fire started.  By the time she had returned, flames engulfed the entire kitchen counter. Luckily, the fire department quickly extinguished the blaze before it spread to other parts of her home.

In the aftermath of the destruction, the Northampton homeowner faced the seemingly insurmountable task of restoring her kitchen to its pre-fire state.

The countertop and upper cabinets were beyond repair, so she had to replace them, but the lower cabinets had survived and were salvageable.  Looking around, she saw her kitchen ceiling, walls, bottom cabinets, and linoleum flooring covered in scorch marks.  Just as bad was the omnipresent pungent odor that filled her kitchen and the rest of her house.

When planning her restoration efforts, the homeowner came across a listing for SERVPRO and decided to try.  Once our technicians arrived, they quickly went to work on evaluating the situation.  They determined the extent of the fire damage, what type of fire caused it, and the types of smoke and residues involved.  The fire involved different substances, including wood from the counter and cabinets, oil and grease, the turducken, and various plastic bowls and utensils.

SERVPRO workers proceeded to clean off the oily residues and dry ash of the wooden ceiling with wet sponges and a cleaning agent.  They moved down and treated the walls similarly.

Technicians continued downward, cleaning the outside of the lower cabinets and wiping their interiors with dry cleaning sponges.  Next, they removed the scorch marks on the linoleum with steel wool. After completing the work, SERVPRO used foggers to deodorize the Northampton woman’s home thoroughly.

If ever faced with fire damage, find a reputable service to restore your home.  If you need assistance, contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324 – 1300.     

More about Northampton.

SERVPRO - We Are Cleaning Experts

3/18/2020 (Permalink)

SERVPRO is Here to Help during this time of need

During this unprecedented time caused by the global pandemic of coronavirus, this is a reminder to our customers in Hampshire County and throughout Western Massachusetts, that we are specialists in cleaning services, and we adhere to the highest cleaning and sanitation standards.

Specialized Training

We are prepared to clean and disinfect your home or business, according to protocols set forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We have years of experience in dealing with biological contaminants, and we will go beyond the scope of work that regular janitorial staff perform on a daily basis.

The CDC encourages cleaning of high-touch surfaces such as counters, tabletops, doorknobs, light switches, bathroom fixtures, toilets, phones, keyboards, tablets and tables. Other spaces mentioned in the CDC’s guidance for commercial spaces include:

• Kitchen/Food Areas
• Bathrooms
• Schools/Classrooms
• Offices
• Retail Spaces
• Water Fountains
• Shelving/Racks
• Sales Counters
• Carpets and Rugs
• Stair Handrails
• Elevator Cars
• Playground Equipment
• Fitness Equipment

Specialized Products

The CDC recommends usage of a labeled hospital-grade disinfectant with claims against similar pathogens to the coronavirus. Multiple products in the SERVPRO product line carry the EPA-approved emerging pathogens claims. While there is currently no product tested against this particular strain of the coronavirus, we are following all guidelines as provided by the CDC and local authorities.

Call Today for a Proactive Cleaning

If your home or business needs deep cleaning services, call the experts today – SERVPRO of Hampshire County, 413-324-1300 or 413-584-0975. 

We are here to help our clients and customers in and around Hampshire County remain as as safe and healthy as possible. 

Sources:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/guidance-prevent-spread.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fguidance-prevent-spread.html

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specific-groups/guidance-business-response.html

How SERVPRO Keeps Northampton Schools Open After Water a Water Loss Event

2/17/2020 (Permalink)

Water damage can close schools. SERVPRO can remove the water and keep your school open.

Extractors Used by Large Loss Teams Restoring Northampton Schools

When standing water is a concern in Northampton schools because of a pipe bursting above ceiling tiles or some form of vandalism, it is vital to get the right qualified personnel involved as quickly as possible. While the county and districts both offer qualified maintenance and custodial workers, widespread water removal needs might be more than these trained individuals have the equipment or expertise to handle.

Because of the finite amount of time that you have to work with before students and their families are substantially inconvenienced by a loss incident, water removal for Northampton schools should happen as promptly as possible. Because of the 24/7 response of our SERVPRO professionals, we can not only respond to your initial request for assistance quickly but also have boots on the ground and en route to your damaged school within hours of the contact.

Our team can combine our personnel and inventory of equipment with other area branches of our company to provide limitless restoration potential for massive structures like your high school. Though much of the flooring might be tiling that can resist water damages, this feature also helps the water to migrate more quickly throughout the entire level, and even into lower levels of the school through open stairwells.

The right extractor can make a substantial difference throughout the facility, and when used in multiple locations at once, can quickly work to manage standing water concerns. Several extractors can get used to remove several inches or feet of migrating water from flooring surfaces before more focused drying begins, and these include:

• Electric Submersible Pumps
• Gas-Powered Trash Pumps
• Engine-Driven Truck Mounted Pumps
• Wet Vacuums

When substantial water loss incidents take place in your school, fast response with efficient extractors can reduce the migration and severity of the situation. No matter when you discover a water emergency on your campus, let our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team help with our prompt and experienced response. Give us a call anytime at (413) 324-1300.

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How SERVPRO Removes Odors from Northampton Fire Damaged Homes

2/11/2020 (Permalink)

Should your home experience fire damage, know that SERVPRO has the equipment and experience to restore your home. Call us today!

What to Expect from Deodorization After Northampton Fire Losses

Fire losses can leave Northampton homes contending with overwhelming smoke odors following these disasters. Our SERVPRO professionals have numerous deodorization strategies and products that can help to neutralize odors after extinguishing the fire. Knowing how the process works and what you can expect from these phases and techniques can allow you to appreciate each facet of odor removal after a devastating fire.

Odors are not often the most pressing fire damage to Northampton homes, but it does not make it any less dire to address these concerns when the time is right. Even during mitigation, specific deodorizing elements can get introduced that can help to reduce the later time and effort spent removing lingering scents entirely.

Debris Removal 

Our SERVPRO team can begin the removal of debris and ashes from the house during the mitigation phase. While this does not have a direct effect on neutralizing odors, it does remove catalysts to worsen these conditions.

Controlled Demolition

Damaged structural elements and construction materials can also be a source of harsh odors and foul scents. Our in-house team of residential contractors can remove compromised materials and reduce powerful odors in the process.

Cleaning

Removing fire residues from surfaces and contents can also improve the severity of odor damages. Because cleaning and controlled demolition can aerosolize smoke particles and ashes, we can also use equipment like air scrubbers to trap airborne particulates.

Deodorizing Beads

The science of odor removal can involve many approaches, products, and tools to complete entirely. Beads offer a trapping function for moving odor molecules by absorbing these compounds and releasing a pleasant scent in its place.

Odor Removal Equipment 

When other cleanings and restorative actions have completed, our professionals can work on deploying our premier deodorizing equipment. Depending on the severity of these conditions, we can use thermal foggers with high mobility, or hydroxyl generators and ozone machines with a wide coverage area. These devices can neutralize or break down odor molecules on contact.

Clearing out harsh odors after a fire involves strong products and cutting-edge equipment. Our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team can make fire losses “Like it never even happened,” by calling (413) 324-1300.

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Fire Damage and Odor Removal for Your Northampton Business

2/11/2020 (Permalink)

We want to help get you back to work. Call us anytime at (413) 324-1300.

Fire Damage and Odor Removal for Your Northampton Business

Body:

SERVPRO Understands the Importance of Removing Odors and Residues After a Fire In your Northampton business

The last thing you need after the disruption caused by responding to a fire in your Northampton commercial building is the challenge of lingering malodors. When we take on a fire residue removal project, we pay particular attention to the risk factors present for persistent unpleasant smells. Your customers might already be wary about your ability to deliver the same products and services as before the fire. We are sure to banish all sensory reminders using effective means to eliminate odors.

Focus on Residues

Concentration on addressing odors and fire removal in your Northampton commercial building. Efficient cleanup goes a long way toward reducing the pungency of smoke and soot-related smells. Charred and smelly debris must be collected, bagged, and discarded. Odors also reside in the incompletely combusted particles (soot) deposited on surfaces or floating on air currents. Our technicians then use the principles of cleaning to find, identify, and capture fire residues adhered to or settled on surfaces for disposal. 

Deep Cleaning

To accomplish the capture, we choose from among various proprietary cleaning products. SERVPRO technicians match the characteristics of the residues with cleaners, keeping in mind that “like dissolves like.” We adjust temperature and dwell time to make the cleaning process more efficient and might use agitation or abrasion to loosen the odor-bearing soot particles.

Recreate Odor Producing Conditions

One option for persistent odors is to use thermal fogging. SERVPRO technicians load a heated chamber with deodorants and increase the temperature until the substance combusts, creating tiny particles that pair with the malodorous soot bits, neutralizing them. 

Use Hydroxyl Generators or Ozone Machines

Innovative equipment SERVPRO employs for odor elimination includes hydroxyl generators. Hydroxyl generators produce hydroxyl radicals that seek out and break apart odor molecules. They are safe to use around humans and pets. Ozone machines destroy odors by the process of oxidation but require the evacuation of the affected space for some time.

Seal the Structures that Absorbed Odors

Another possibility for odor mitigation when cleaning was not wholly effective is to seal the smell inside the building material or HVAC systems. The choice of a sealant by SERVPRO usually occurs when the surfaces are hard to clean or reach, such as attics, crawl spaces, and ductwork. 

Rely on SERVPRO of Hampshire County to find a solution to rid your commercial property of fire residues and persistent odors. Call us 24/7 at (413) 324-1300 for a professional evaluation of challenging fire damage concerns.

Learn more about Hampshire County.

Flood Damage In Your Amherst Home

2/3/2020 (Permalink)

Let our experts save your flood damaged property

Early Thaws Lead to Flood Damage in Amherst

Extreme weather patterns and sharp shafts in temperature can expose your Amherst home to flooding at previously unexpected times. When heavy snows are followed swiftly by spring-like thermometer readings, the resulting meltdown can find its way into your basement or crawl space. The swings in outdoor conditions and effects on conventional mitigation and remediation equipment make our professional response even more reassuring.

Drying Essentials

Science determines how quickly and effectively we can dry out flood damage in your Amherst residence. The faster our crews can dry out a home, the better the outcome. Lingering moisture prolongs the deterioration process, making it more likely structural components might require removal. Slowed drying frequently leads to the need for demolition and rebuilding. Secondary damage, such as mold, is also probable when drying times are extended. Four factors affect the amount of time needed for drying:

• Temperature
• Amount of water to be evaporated
• Humidity
• Air movement

Colder Temperatures Affect Restoration Approaches

Drying happens much faster in warm temperatures, with the ideal range being from 70 to 90 degrees. If the flood damage in your home occurred in a space, such as an unheated garage, basement, or crawl space, where temperatures are lower, then SERVPRO managers and technicians need to adjust the other variables to enhance the drying time.

Emphasize Extraction

The more water SERVPRO removes in its liquid state, the less time and effort it takes to dry out the space. We are aggressive in completing water removal with pumps, truck-mount, and portable extractors as they are 1200 times more effective than drying alone.

Ways to Increase Temperature

SERVPRO vans are loaded with equipment needed to manage flooding. Heaters are part of this inventory, and we position them to raise the temperature so that evaporation happens more efficiently. Building smaller drying chambers within the affected area with 6-mil polyethylene barriers is a way to direct heat into wet spaces for maximum effect.

Choosing the Correct Dehumidifier

We select from among refrigerant, low grain, and desiccant dehumidifiers to remove the water vapor present due to heat and air movement. In a chilly basement or crawl space, a desiccant dehumidifier might be the best choice, capable of removing water vapor at a much lower temperature.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County offers highly-trained technicians and state of the art equipment to help you recover from flood damage. Call us at (413) 324-1300 to schedule an appointment for your cold-weather flood cleanup needs.

For more about Amherst click here.

Why Fast Water Damage Remediation is Necessary in Northampton

1/29/2020 (Permalink)

Water damage can lead to mold growth. We had to remove the wet carpeting in this home to prevent mold colonization.

Simple Steps That Make A Big Difference During Water Damage Restoration In Northampton

Water spills cause multiple problems, many of which are challenging to address. However, simple steps taken at the right time can help manage some of these problems, easing the water damage restoration process.

Removing wet material odors

Mold development is possible after water damage incidents in Northampton. One of the top signs of mold is the presence of a musty smell in the affected property. However, mold takes at least 24 to 48 hours to start developing. Sometimes, odors similar to mold develop around wet materials, so our SERVPRO technicians apply deodorizers that remove such odors, allaying any fears about mold developing in your property. We use misters or direct sprayers to apply the deodorizers.

Protecting contents

Contents are part of the property, and the water damage restoration process involves constant manipulation of the contents to create room for restoration processes. It is possible to damage the contents in the course of restoration, thus increasing the costs of the loss. Our SERVPRO technicians take simple precautions to protect the contents. For example, we ensure dust covers on upholstery items do not touch wet carpets. We tie up long drapes that touch the carpet to prevent stains. When a water spill originates from an elevated position, we wipe contents with towels to remove any water that splashes on them.

Establishing drying zones

Focusing the available resources on achievable goals helps expedite the restoration process. Since water loss incidents rarely affect the entire house, creating drying zones is one way to maximize available resources. Our SERVPRO technicians establish containment zones by sealing off openings such as doors connecting the wet areas to the unaffected sections of the property with plastic sheets. We can create a drying zone in a single room or several adjacent rooms.

Simple steps can make a huge difference when restoring water damage. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 to help manage the loss at your property. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster.

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Has Winter Flooding Affected Your Granby Home? Call SERVPRO for Fast Remediation

1/8/2020 (Permalink)

This homeowner called SERVPRO when flooding occurred. We removed the flooring and baseboards to restore this flood damaged home.

Drying Adaptations Are Why SERVPRO Succeeds After Cold Weather Flood Damage Granby

Most people think that flooding is a warmer weather type of crisis, homeowners in Granby rarely worry about a flooded basement or crawlspace in the winter. Floods, unfortunately, do not respect the season. Water can collect in your home because of a blocked drain, a freak rainstorm, or mixed precipitation that sends ice-laden power lines or tree limbs through your roof or siding. Meltwater that diverts into your house because the ground is too saturated or frozen to absorb moisture creates a flooding scenario. Drying out your structure after extraction might present challenges when temperatures are low, why working with our experts is an excellent approach.

The “Cold Weather” Problem

Flood damage affecting your Granby foundation level does not get the “bump” in evaporation efficiency available on warm or hot days. The higher the interior temperature, the more water vapor that air can hold. When flooded spaces in a crawl space or unheated basement have temperatures below 70 degrees, quite typical in the winter, the relationship among the critical drying factors is out of balance. Excellent training, experience, and creativity are why SERVPRO can work to adjust:

• Temperature
• Humidity
• Air movement

These adjustments reduce the quantity of excess water in the flooded space even under less than optimal conditions.

Equipment Options

We want to overcome all barriers for fast drying without delay. SERVPRO service vehicles stock different types of air movers, heaters, and dehumidification equipment. Dehumidification options include evaporative, low grain, and desiccant machines. During drying, best practices mandate that relative humidity (RH) remains between 30 and 60 percent. Achieving a balanced drying system positions the appropriate type of dehumidifier to remove as much water vapor as the heaters and air movers create. We must use a closed system when outdoor temperatures are below 60 degrees to avoid wasting effort because the air intake is too cold. Evaporative or refrigerant dehumidifiers have limited application when residual moisture in a foundation or crawl space must need removing with temperatures below 50 degrees.

No one can predict flooding events with complete accuracy, which is why SERVPRO of Hampshire County ensures our team has strategies to dry out structures under any condition. Call us at (413) 324-1300 to consult about the best approach for wintertime flooding.

More about Granby.

Don't Let Commercial Flood Damage Ruin the Holidays for Your Customers in Northampton

12/18/2019 (Permalink)

If melting snow causes flood damage in your store, Call SERVPRO

Contact SERVPRO after Flood Damage in your Store

Although the winter months bring anticipated snow and sleet to the area around Northampton, flooded roads can make driving even more hazardous. Melted snow flowing under snow and ice can run under the doors of your retail store. Responding without any delay to this kind of emergency can prevent your profits from taking a hit at a crucial time of the year.

Families and friends exchange gifts at festive parties and delicious dinners in Northampton, but when commercial flood damage affects their favorite stores, shopping errands get done elsewhere. SERVPRO wants to assuage the situation so your customers can carry out their shopping and do business with you.

Our building crew (General Contractor License # MA CS-107843) helps with flooring, including tile, electrical repairs, and other essential aspects of commercial buildings commonly affected by disasters. Their assistance means the entire project, from start to finish, proceeds smoothly and gets completed more quickly.

We have warehouse facilities to store your inventory, giving us more space to clean and dry out your store and avoid possible damage to any products. Before transporting these items, we do a complete and thorough inventory. Such information also includes departments or sections of your store, which help with unpacking once we return these items.

Our facilities also include areas where we can restore any damaged goods or furnishings. Instead of replacing items damaged during flooding, either by direct contact or through sheer dampness, we can reduce your costs in recovering after a disaster by cleaning many items. Ultrasonic technology lets us use water baths to remove foreign substances from nonporous items. This also deodorizes such items, as well.

Other ways we restore items, either at our facility or on-site at your store, include placing them inside of a special chamber. Work on these items can range from touching up and repackaging to drying, cleaning, and detailing. We collaborate with you to provide the most cost-effective results that boost your store's recovery after flood damage threatens your business.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County also provides mitigation, restoration, and rebuilding services to property owners throughout Amherst, Granby, and Ware, helping stabilize our economy despite natural disasters like flooding. Call us at (413) 324-1300 to make it "Like it never even happened."

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Proven Tips for Efficient Water Removal in Granby

12/16/2019 (Permalink)

: When your tub overflows, don’t despair. Contact SERVPRO for water removal and remediation services.

Considering In-Place Carpet Water Removal and Drying in Granby

When clean water from a supply line leak or an overflowing tub or sink soaks carpeting in your Granby home, a decision must be made on how to extract the moisture. Merely waiting for the carpet to dry over time, even with the help of ventilation and dehumidifiers, risks the ruin of nearby structural components and secondary damage such as mold growth. Pulling up carpeting for extraction is incredibly disruptive to the customer and can cause damage to the carpet fabric and backing.

What Is In-Place Drying?

When discussing options for water removal in your Granby home, in-place drying of carpeting might be a possibility. The drying must complete quickly and follow a protocol that prevents further water migration. Elements of in-place drying include:

• Making initial passes with a regular wanded extractor to stop the water from moving into dry areas of the carpet.

• Transitioning to weighted extractors for aggressive squeezing of water out of both the pad and the carpet.

• Extracting from the center of the room out, moving furniture as needed.

• Monitoring the progress continuously by testing areas of carpet and padding for water content.

• Planning for double or triple time to remove water from the space, balanced by much less time required by carpet and pad removal.

Why Choose In-Place Drying?

Furniture can remain in rooms treated with in-place carpet drying, avoiding the expense and time needed to pack pieces out during mitigation and remediation. In-place drying also exposes the carpeting itself to a lower risk of delamination, stretching, and tearing. Skilled SERVPRO technicians can deliver a clean and dry result to customers under optimal conditions, significantly reducing the need to replace expensive floor coverings.  

Are There Circumstance Inappropriate for In-Place Drying?

Leaving wet carpeting in-place during extraction is problematic in some situations. SERVPRO managers determine if the following conditions exist. If any are present, in-place water removal for carpets with their padding is rarely recommended.

• Timing

More than 72 hours have passed since the water loss.

• Contamination

Any evidence of microbial growth or an assessment of Category 2 or 3 water damage.

• Characteristics of Underlying Flooring

Carpet installed over hardwood or laminate.

Multiple layers of subflooring or evidence of underlying structural damage.

• Characteristics of Padding

The padding has a vapor barrier or is made of organic materials.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County works closely with you and your insurance company as we plan for water removal. To best manage wet carpeting issues, call us at (413) 324-1300 as soon as practical.

Click here for more information about Granby.

Our Fire Damage Experts Can Save Your Amherst Home

12/9/2019 (Permalink)

Our fire damage experts can handle any size disaster.

Deodorization Choices for Amherst Homes After a Fire 

While fire losses can already become a stressful and anxious time for Amherst homeowners, addressing lingering effects like odors fall to the bottom of a growing list of necessary repairs and restorations. In truth, removing harsh odors can help to bring your property back to preloss condition more quickly. It can also help on-site technicians to have a safer environment to work in, and it can help to showcase our ability to make fire losses “Like it never even happened.”

Our SERVPRO professionals approach fire damage in Amherst homes from multiple fronts, allowing us to both deploy effective deodorization strategies where needed as well as working on soot removal, debris removal, and controlled demolition when necessary. The damages in fire losses are interwoven, meaning that tactics like controlled demolition do not just help the structure, but can reduce the sources and catalysts of odor effects. We have a team of qualified and licensed (#MA HIC 180066) general residential contractors to help in phases of recovery for your damaged house.

There are many options for deodorization through our SERVPRO products and equipment. Mitigation seeks to remove the sources of these foul odors while reducing their severity with the utilization of mobile fogging equipment like the thermal fogger. We have multiple deodorization products that these units heat to water vapor to disperse in the immediate area surrounding the portable machine.

For continued draw away from lingering odors throughout specific areas of your home, we can use deodorization beads. These orbs themselves are scented with a pleasant odor but have an attractive quality to odor molecules, where they can trap and bond with the porous bead material. These get positioned outside of the natural airflow channels to increase their longevity on the worksite.

There are many options available to address odors that can exist after a structure fire. As challenging as this might appear, our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team has extensive training in handling odor removal and home recovery after fire losses. Let us help you. Call (413) 324-1300.

For more about Amherst click here.

SERVPRO Says to Amherst Homeowners – Speedy Cleanup is Key to Fire Loss Restoration

11/27/2019 (Permalink)

Following a home fire, SERVPRO reduces overall damages and claims expenses while minimizing the disruption for you.

Emergency Services for Fire-Damaged Amherst Residences

Saying that We’re Faster to any size disaster does not immediately repair and restore a fire-damaged home. While having a fast response is beneficial to you, knowing what to do when we get there is what sets us apart. SERVPRO knows emergency services are vital to protecting the worksite, along with the health and wellbeing of anyone exposed to the structure. We utilize sound practices to prevent additional damage to your home. We also prepare the site and provide a safe work environment before technicians start the mitigation process.

SERVPRO immediately implements emergency services following a fire at any Amherst property. These actions can reduce overall damages, claims expenses, and minimize the impact and disruption for you and your family. We know every loss is different. That means the challenges our technicians overcome can vary as well. Rest assured that as soon as we arrive at your residence, we will provide you with cost-effective services.

Building inspections are important. They evaluate the immediate concerns of health hazards, vulnerable structural weaknesses, or deterioration of exposed construction materials. Likewise, this is the ideal time to install temporary construction solutions like putting up boards and tarps. This process reduces the possibility of additional weather exposure and to discourage intrusions by people or animals passing through the worksite.

There are many advantages to preemptively performing mitigation and restoration tasks as well, such as deodorization and cleaning. There are times when substantial damage displaces homeowners, meaning, they have to live somewhere else during the restoration process. This situation often calls for a pack-out. That is where we remove the contents of your home and do the cleaning and deodorizing at our facility. Initial cleaning helps reduce the concentration of soot and smoke residue. And, it helps prevent odors from getting out of hand with controlled demolition practices.

As challenging as a fire loss can be for you, SERVPRO of Hampshire County can soften the initial blow. Our emergency response services are quick. Contact us anytime disasters strike at (413) 324-1300. With our experience and advanced equipment, we help you reduce the ultimate expenses and severity of fire loss incidents.

Learn more about Amherst.

We Can Save Your Home In Amherst After A Flood

11/19/2019 (Permalink)

Let our crew help after a storm damage disaster.

Keeping the Customer Safe After Flood Damage In Amherst

Flooding from swollen rivers and creeks can occur at any time. We often hear about massive flooding where entire towns are flooded. Then there are the sudden downpours, which flood a local stream. The floodwater is gone almost as fast as the rainstorm. Your home or business may be left with floodwater inside your home, along with mud and debris washed in through open doors and windows.

SERVPRO not only has the experience to deal with flood damage in Amherst and surrounding areas. We also have a highly trained staff. Our team is ready to respond within a minimum of four hours, and the team stays in contact providing updates regarding arrival times and who is arriving at your home.

Staying Safe

There are many things to be concerned about during flood events. During the actual flood, make sure you and your family or employees get to high ground. Always have an evacuation plan and make sure everyone knows what to do. Do not enter floodwaters, even those that are receding.

There are multiple hazards, aside from potential electrical hazards due to the water and potential short circuits. Also, the water in your home could be contaminated. Floodwaters collect all sorts of bad things, from garbage to overflow from sewer systems. SERVPRO encourages our customers to avoid entering flooded building areas. Wait until our team has had an opportunity to review the situation.

Protection and Disposal

Our SERVPRO crew chief and technicians are thoroughly trained, regarding how to handle contaminated debris and items in your home or business. We implement control measures in situations where exposure to these types of contaminants may pose health threats to staff and clients. Clients must remain outside of the area. SERVPRO team members working in the affected area must wear personal protective equipment during the inspection and while completing all decontamination activities. We want to restore your home, “Like it never even happened.” and keep you safe too!

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for 24/7 service. We proudly serve Northampton, Granby, Easthampton, and surrounding areas. We’re Faster to Any Size Disaster.

For more about Amherst click here.

We Manage Renovations After A Flood in Your Amherst Home

11/8/2019 (Permalink)

After a flood call our experts for help!

Why SERVPRO Manages Renovation Better After Flood Damage Incidents in Amherst

A flooding incident in Amherst can leave widespread damages in your property, necessitating renovation. Following correct approaches, when carrying out such an exercise, helps ensure the right outcome. You can involve a professional like SERVPRO because we have extensive experience rebuilding flood damage loss sites.

Cleaning the Property Thoroughly

One outcome of flood damage incidents in Amherst is the soiling of surfaces and materials. The renovation process undertaken must, therefore, leave your home cleaned to sanitary levels. Our SERVPRO technicians take different steps, including using detergents, disinfectants, and antimicrobial agents, to remove contaminants. We even have specially formulated cleaning solutions, which are readily biodegradable, and leave minimal scent helping deal with both soiling and contaminants. We use different approaches to remove stains, including using oxidizing or reducing bleaches. We also start stain removal before the affected fabrics dry to prevent the setting of stains, which would complicate the process.

Dealing with Deteriorated Materials

Deterioration of materials due to water intrusion is another common problem that necessitates the renovation of the affected property. The level of deterioration depends on the types of materials in the affected areas, and the period water sits in the structure. Water damage becomes worse; the longer water sits in a property. Our SERVPRO technicians evaluate and remove unsalvageable materials such as carpets, drywall, and insulation. Carpets delaminate or absorb high amounts of contaminants, while drywall becomes soggy and loses structural integrity necessitating such replacement.

Managing Smells

A flood-damaged home can have unpleasant smells from wastes or deteriorating materials. A complete renovation should leave the place smelling and looking clean. Our SERVPRO technicians perform elaborate deodorization processes depending on the types of sources of smells established. Spraying deodorizers directly in affected areas helps neutralize malodors. We can also use wet fogging, among other procedures, to eliminate the odors.

The damage left in your Northampton, Granby, or Easthampton property after flooding might seem too widespread to fix. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County any time at (413) 324-1300 to help. We aim to remove traces of the loss, “Like it never even happened.”

For more about Amherst click here.

Granby Property Under Water? Or Just Flooded? Call SERVPRO for Fast Cleanup and Restoration

10/31/2019 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Rescues Homes from Flooding in the Granby MA

Flooding is a hazardous situation, even when Granby homes are not contending with contaminated losses. Any homeowner wants to make the most efficient path to get their home back to its original condition, and that often means seeking the expertise and advanced equipment available to professional restorers like our SERVPRO team. Our experience in these situations helps us to finish projects faster than many homeowners could do themselves.

Standing water alone can be a severe threat to a property, but flood damage in Granby homes demands several things to happen quickly. Depending on how the flooding originated, the appropriate steps must get taken to prevent this situation from getting worse. With a team of residential contractors licensed (MA HIC 180066) through the state of Massachusetts, we can offer emergency board-up and tarping services that can reduce the continued penetration of floodwater into the property.

Because there is a limited timetable to protect many of the contents and construction materials exposed to this floodwater, our professionals have a fast response whenever disaster strikes. Our team can often respond to your emergency within hours, even in the middle of the night. This prompt response can help to relocate at-risk belongings and allow our technicians to deploy extraction and drying machines to reduce the harmful impacts in the house.

The SERVPRO technicians that get dispatched to your flooded address have accreditations through the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) in Water Restoration (WRT), Applied Structural Drying (ASD), and some with Applied Microbial Remediation (AMRT) as well. With this range in education and expertise, we can complete tasks efficiently, leaving the formerly flooded home “Like it never even happened,” whenever possible.

We cannot ever give an exact time that our services can begin or end, and that is primarily due to our thoroughness and commitment to providing the highest quality results possible. After a flood, our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team can show you that We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster from the moment that you call. Reach out to our emergency response team anytime at (413) 324-1300.

A Primer on Removing Smoke Odors After Northampton Fire Damage

10/21/2019 (Permalink)

A faulty appliance caused this fire. We were able to restore the home and remove the smoke odors. Call us today!

How to Remove Smoke Smells After a Fire Damages Your Northampton Residence

Fires can ignite anywhere in a home, but most of them start in the kitchen. Even if a fire affects only one room, it can also affect the rest of your house — smoke travels, particularly when an air conditioner or forced-air furnace is running. Unlike a fire, smoke does not destroy objects but covers them with a foul odor and soot. Smoke particles attach to surfaces and become encrusted in porous materials.

The odors may persist in a property for a lengthy period, compromising the quality of the indoor air and, the comfort of the occupants. After a fire damages your Northampton home, you can do a few things to eliminate smoke odors. They include:

• removing materials that combustion or heat has heavily damaged
• removing porous materials like smoke-damaged mattresses
• opening all doors and windows to increase ventilation and fresh air circulation
• washing or dry cleaning all curtains, draperies, and other washable materials
• You can also hang the materials outside to remove the smoke particles embedded in them.

If the odor persists or you are not up to the challenge of eliminating smoke odors in the manner previously described, then you can call SERVPRO franchise professionals. We perform effective fire restoration that returns your home into a smoke-free and safe environment to occupy. We do not mask persistent odors with a fragrance but look for the sources of the scents and eliminate them. Depending on the circumstances, our Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Technicians (FSRTs) employ various techniques to eradicate smoke odors, which may include:

Vapor modification 

Our FSRTs use a blower or fan to dispense aromatic compounds vaporized from sealed plastic containers into the air. The minerals used in vapor modification are non-explosive, non-flammable, non-oily, and non-toxic. The deodorizer also penetrates porous materials such as clothing and upholstery.

Hydroxyl generators 

These generators produce hydroxyl gas that gets into surfaces that cleaning cannot reach. The gas reacts with odor-producing compounds chemically to eradicate the scent.

Air scrubbing 

Our SERVPRO technicians set up air scrubbers to eliminate particulates from the air. Air scrubbers pull air through charcoal filters and capture the scents onto a filter. They recirculate the filtered are back into the building.

Thermal fogging 

Thermal fogging neutralizes smoke scents using fragrance modification. Thermal foggers use petroleum-based deodorizers. These deodorizers fill the affected areas with a mist-like deodorizer.

Ventilation fans

They exchange outdoor and indoor air, exhausting unpleasant smells outside and draw in the fresh air in a home from outside.

When you need smoke odor removal services after a fire in Amherst, Granby, or Easthampton, contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. Our technicians can eliminate smoke odor in your house to make it "Like it never even happened."

More about Northampton.

Effective Water Cleanup for Your Granby Convenience Store

10/21/2019 (Permalink)

Don't take on your commercial water damage in Granby alone.

Let SERVPRO show you the right way in Granby

Convenience stores offer fast grab and go food options for travelers, workers, and residents throughout Granby. The more comfortable you can make these transactions and diversify your offerings, the better potential profits your business can make. With the inclusion of hot foods and specialty culinary selections, your kitchen area becomes a vital component to success. The more this area gets used, however, the more likely it is for elements to get broken or worn down, like water pipes expelling gray water from the sinks.

Gray water is not as potentially harmful or even dangerous as black water has gotten considered to be, but it still requires a fast and deliberate water cleanup in your Granby store. The SERVPRO professionals of our team have accreditations through the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and the American Bio Recovery Association (ABRA) in areas such as:

-      WRT – Water Restoration Technicians

-      ASD – Applied Structural Drying

-      AMRT – Applied Microbial Remediation Technician

-      CCT – Carpet Cleaning Technician

-      Biohazard Recovery and Cleaning

From the time that your doors first open in the morning to when you lock them up well into the night, you have a steady flow of foot traffic. Containment for this water damage prevents the water from spreading throughout the shop floor and potentially injuring or affecting paying customers. The last thing that a bustling business needs is a legal dispute over someone slipping on the hard linoleum flooring, so you can trust our SERVPRO team to cordon off the affected area to get mitigation and drying efforts started as promptly as possible.

As a licensed general contractor (# MA CS-107843) with decades of experience, we can offer multiple layers of recovery options for your store as well after plumbing failures on the drainage of your kitchen sinks. Not only can our professionals work to replace and repair the damaged joints of plumbing and pipes but can also work on linoleum flooring repair if these tiles become damaged. Our reconstruction team helps us to offer our commercial customers a comprehensive approach that gets their business back to normal as quickly as possible.

We strive to provide every customer with a fast and confident response, especially with situations that could potentially involve contaminated or compromised water like the drainage from the kitchen sinks. With our sophisticated extraction and drying tools, you can count on our SERVPRO of Hampshire County professionals to make it “Like it never even happened.” Give us a call at (413) 324-1300.

To learn more about Granby, click here.

Odor Control by SERVPRO Is Essential for Fire Damage Restoration for your Amherst Home

10/8/2019 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Says Keep Your Amherst Home Safe from Fires—Keep One of These in Your Kitchen

Small Grease Fire in Your Amherst Kitchen? Assess Your Fire Damage ASAP

Getting a handle on the fire damage caused by accident in your kitchen is necessary, no matter the size of the damage. Usually, when it comes to small grease-based accidents, items are not ruined. Some of the residues from the fire can be wiped down, and the levels of smoke in the air can be mitigated quickly by SERVPRO technicians.

Measuring the Damage

After a small amount of fire damage, your Amherst kitchen is salvageable. Grease fires are caused by quick flashes of flames from the stovetop. They can be put out with dry powders like baking soda to smother the flames by eliminating an oxygen source. Using water or glass to put out the fire is not recommended, as these can splash and spread the flames. SERVPRO recommends having a type ABC fire extinguisher stored under the kitchen sink cabinet for just such flare-ups. The aftermath of your kitchen fire can be cleaned efficiently.

The most apparent damage is soot and smoke. Particles travel through the air and can stick to surfaces such as fabrics and furniture. A wet cleaning process gets rid of the soot residue from hard surfaces. This involves the use of cleaning solvents and hot water.  We have sponges stocked on our service vehicles for this task. If any oils are left behind in the kitchen after the fire, additional solvents can dissolve the residue.

Cleaning the Kitchen

If your microwave is located above the stove, the bottom might be blackened by smoke. Cabinets, countertops, walls, and ceilings may also be affected. SERVPRO technicians can spray and wipe using specially formulated cleaning products. These cleaning agents are combined with dry or wet towels to clean affected surfaces and remove the stains from the area. Any remaining pungent odor, especially in the case of protein fires, can be neutralized through several different processes. We can set up a hydroxyl generator to neutralize malodorous airborne molecules and also produce a ULV ultra-light volume fogging for penetration into corners and crevices for odor abatement. In the case of significant smells, we can set up negative air pressure utilizing a HEPA filtered air scrubbers to vacate the treated interior air to the outside of the structure. An onboard activated charcoal filter can also reduce unwanted smells.

Handle your kitchen accident by mitigating fire damage right away. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for fire cleanup and restoration services. 

Here is your area.

We Can Help After A Flood In Your Amherst Home

10/3/2019 (Permalink)

Our crew is ready 24/7 to respond to your storm damage emergency.

Get Help When Flood Damage Strikes Your Amherst Home

Severe thunderstorms can bring heavy rains and intense winds to your Amherst home, causing flood damage in critical cases. Unfortunately for your home, the thunderstorm uprooted a nearby tree. As it fell, the branches punched a hole through your window and allowed hundreds of gallons of water into your home.

Upon discovering the water in your home, you need to reach out for local Amherst flood damage remediation services immediately. Leaving the water to its own devices for too long can cause microbial growth, as the excess moisture feeds omnipresent mold spores. Whenever your home suffers any type of water damage, always get help as swiftly as possible.

The other important thing to remember about flood damage is that the waters inside may not be safe to be in contact with. When you get in touch with a professional cleanup and remediation service, like SERVPRO, we can determine what category of water is in your home. Fortunately, your home is suffering from rainwater and a few debris left behind by the fallen tree.

The first thing SERVPRO can do once the tree has been removed is clean up any debris and remove the water from inside of your living room. Our highly trained Institution of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration-certified (IICRC) technicians can use wet/dry vacuums, as well as rover-mounted extractors, to remove the excess water. Rover-mounted extractors are particularly excellent for any carpeted floors, as they simultaneously dry the carpet while removing water.

After removing the excess, SERVPRO can move any furniture out of your living room and bring it to our facility to be dried and cleaned. It can be stored there until the work in your living room is done. Our technicians can make flood cuts along your walls, removing any damaged material to ensure that no mold growth occurs. As a final touch, we can set up drying equipment in your living room. We use devices such as desiccant dehumidifiers, axial fans, flood drying mats, and air movers for drying. These devices help us ensure that the moisture levels are returned to their proper amount.

Once finished, we can put you in contact with a contractor to restore your living room. After we return your things in their preloss state, we can return your home to you, hoping that you feel, “Like it never even happened.”

If your home needs flood damage remediation services, get them immediately. Dial (413) 324-1300 to speak with SERVPRO of Hampshire County. No matter the day or time, our technicians can help.

Our Tips For Cleaning Up After A Fire In Your Amherst Residence

10/3/2019 (Permalink)

Let our crew make it “Like it never even happened.”

Tips For Cleaning Up Your Amherst Residence After Fire Damage

Every day, homeowners in Amherst engage in behaviors that have the potential to start a fire without even realizing it. One of them is the improper use of appliances like leaving them plugged in for too long and failing to check the condition of their cords regularly. Others include leaving candles unsupervised, and improper disposal of used cigarettes. Going through the aftermath of a home fire is an emotional and daunting process.

When your Amherst residence has fire damage, it is vital to ensure that the building is safe, document all the damage, and clean and restore what you can. To get started with the restoration process, check with the fire marshal that your home is safe to enter and note any areas or rooms to avoid. Once you get approval, get note-taking materials and a camera. You should wear safety gear, such as:

•         Close-toed shoes
•         Pants
•         Long-sleeve shirts
•         Safety goggles
•         Work gloves
•         A face mask

Inspect the walls, flooring, and your possessions for smoke, soot, and water damage from firefighting efforts. Open the windows to enhance air circulation and dry wet items like carpet, drapes, and furniture to prevent mold damage. Remove large area rugs for proper drying.

Before you start working on removing smoke odor, you need to remove soot. To remove it, you can take a vacuum machine hose and hold it slightly off the surface of the affected areas or items. You can also use a non-water based cleaner such as a chemical sponge to remove soot from walls.

Although there are many ways to clean up your home yourself, remember that hiring a restoration company like SERVPRO is the best route to take for specific tasks. Our fire restoration experts know the best ways to get your residence to its pre-fire condition. We know where to check for the destruction that is not immediately apparent like under floors and inside walls. We can also inspect the items in your home to know which ones to save and which ones to replace.

Our technicians can remove smoke residues by agitating surfaces using brushes, towels, and air as well as water pressure. Agitation helps dislodge residues from surfaces and distribute cleaning products across surfaces. We also use multiple products that can produce chemical reactions to remove smoke residues.

Our SERVPRO crew also removes lingering smoke odors. A significant issue with smoke scent is that it can travel easily throughout your home, including through air ducts and walls. If the smoke gets trapped in air ducts, it can cause recurring odors months after the fire. We can thermal fog your home to neutralize the smells. Thermal foggers dispense solvent-based products in large volumes. The fog consists of minute particles of deodorant solutions, which pair with and neutralize the odor-causing particles.

To deal with fire damage in your Northampton, Granby, or Easthampton home, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. We have the expertise to make the incident seem“Like it never even happened.”

For more about Amherst click here.

Become Familiar with Signs of Northampton Home Water Damage

10/3/2019 (Permalink)

Regardless of the room affected, water damage can cause extensive problems and needs thorough remediation. Contact SERVPRO right away.

Stopping Primary and Secondary Water Damage in Affected Northampton Properties

A water spill leads to a wide range of damages. Primary damage happens soon after exposure while secondary damage takes time. Most forms of secondary damages are challenging to fix or even irreparable. Stopping both categories of water damage depends on several factors, including understanding the effects water has on different materials at different times. Common primary and secondary damages include:

•   Wet contents and building materials

•   Soiling on surfaces

•   Discoloration

•   Warping, buckling and other alterations in wood

•   Staining

•   Mold development

The instantaneous nature of primary water damage in affected Northampton properties means turning off the sources and removing any standing water are the best ways to stop it. However, it might not be that easy to accomplish these steps. Alternative approaches, such as establishing the most vulnerable materials, and taking immediate steps to save them before moving to the resilient ones, can help. Simple actions such as removing area rugs, books, and clothes from the floors can help prevent the difficult task of dealing with discoloration from running dyes and even stains.

Apart from contact, exposure time also plays a role in determining the types of resultant damages. The longer materials remain exposed to water, the more it penetrates the structure of the material if it has low permeance. For materials with high permeance, longer exposure breaks down the material compromising its structural integrity. Materials such as drywall discolor and crumble while wood swells. Our SERVPRO teams help deal with this aspect by using advanced water extraction equipment that can handle thousands of gallons within a short period.

Even with the best effort, some severe damage might still happen. For example, buckling or cupping on wooden floors or furniture stains on carpets. Our SERVPRO technicians assess the extent of the damage to determine whether remedial action can help save the affected material. We can sand-out cupping to save wooden floors. For carpet stains, we start removal processes while the carpet is still wet.

Restoration efforts after water loss should address both primary and secondary damages. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 to assist. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster.

Click here for more information about the city of Northampton.

We Take The Proper Steps In Handling Grandby Water Damage

8/6/2019 (Permalink)

SERVPRO has trucks loaded and ready to be dispatched on a moment's notice. Our crews and equipment are ready 24 hours to handle your flood damage.

Water Damage Granby – A Burst Water Pipe While on Vacation

The homeowner left for a week-long vacation and came back to a water nightmare. The owner made arrangements for someone to look after their home while away, as per the instructions and requirements of their home insurance policy. Their friend found their basement full of water on the day before the owners were to return. Fortunately, he turned the water off and immediately called the owner who called for help. 

Our SERVPRO team responded to this water damage emergency in Granby and quickly took control of the situation. Since the owner was not home, our technicians met the homeowner's friend and also the insurance adjuster. We provided an assessment of the situation and the steps that needed to be taken immediately to minimize the damage. Approval was given to proceed. 

Our team immediately initiated the following steps: 

• Verified that it was safe to enter the basement which had approximately one foot of water in it
• Used a portable water extractor to remove as much water as possible
• Used a squeegee attachment to remove water from all hard surfaces
• Removed area carpets for further drying
• Removed all materials on the floor for further drying and recovery
• Extracted water from the subfloor 
• Dehumidifiers were set up along with air movers to enhance the drying process

There was over one foot of water damage in the basement. As a result, the lower portion of the drywall and insulation in the walls was also replaced. Fortunately, this was a tiled floor which did not require restoration. Although the restoration activities continued after the homeowner arrived home, the initial emergency was under control, and recovery/restoration efforts were well underway. The growth of mold was minimized due to the fast response by the SERVPRO team and the homeowner's friend. 

Our SERVPRO team prepared a complete report of the steps taken, final moisture readings, and the restored items. Some items, such as paper-based documents and photographs, cannot be restored to their original condition. We restore these items to the best condition possible. 

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for 24/7 service. We serve Northampton, Amherst, Easthampton, and surrounding areas. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster. We aim to restore your home, "Like it never even happened." 

See more about Granby.

SERVPRO:Who Else Could Handle Properties Stricken By Disaster in Northampton? 

7/23/2019 (Permalink)

If disaster strikes and you need help call the professionals at SERVPRO today for all remediation needs.

Why Northampton Residents Trust SERVPRO With All Types of Restoration Services

There are only so many things Northampton property owners can do to prevent damage from water, fire, storms, or mold. When the unexpected occurs, you need help right then, not during the next business day. When you contact SERVPRO, we are locally based and arrive soon after your initial call. When water accidents happen in a home, it is vital that cleanup efforts begin as soon as possible. Even a small fire in a home has the potential to leave behind significant odors and spread soot if not properly mitigated quickly. 

Fire damage in Northampton homes has the potential to occur in any room, in places such as within walls or a garage with improperly stored lawn treatment chemicals or paint. Once it does, fire spreads quickly, and as it burns, the air expands and drives soot into porous objects. The end result is a leftover lingering smoke odor that requires professional mitigation to get rid of.

Containment is crucial for a fire loss area because the majority of fire cleanup sites are not total losses. Often only a single area is affected, and the rest of the home needs protection from soot from the fire-damaged area. SERVPRO technicians frequently turn to traditionally effective containment methods such as heavy gauge plastic over doorways and vents or the use of negative air chambers. Both are useful for halting the spread of soot and odors. 

We thoroughly clean away smoke residues and remove any charred fire debris necessary. In some fire damage situations, there is little in the way of restoration due to extreme loss; however, because we hold licenses as both residential #MA HIC 180066 and general contractors  #MA-CS-107843 in the State of Massachusetts, we have the expertise to clean up fire damage and rebuild your home restoring it to its preloss condition. 

When water damage occurs in a Northampton home, our emergency response team is available 24-hours a day because when you need water cleanup, the faster water extraction begins, the more potential to reduce the amount of loss in the home. 

We use different types of water extraction equipment to remove moisture during several passes to lessen drying time. We have equipment for specialized tasks such as water removal from upholstery and carpet; these are used in tandem with our moisture detection equipment so even if water migrates behind baseboards or under flooring, we find and remove it. 

For carpeting and area rugs, if the water cleanup begins within 24 hours, there is a good chance the floor coverings have restoration potential. Our certified Carpet Cleaning Technicians have training in specialty drying configurations such as floating the carpet to dry it both above and below in place to limit the disruption in the home during water damage restoration services.

SERVPRO technicians set drying goals before deploying our air movers and dehumidifiers. This part of mitigation is essential because any excessive moisture invites mold spores to germinate and bacterial growth. We take air measurements during and after drying the water-loss affected areas to ascertain the humidity in the room is below favorable conditions for mold infestation. After drying, all hard surfaces receive a hand-cleaning with our professional-grade antibacterial solutions to ensure any part of the home that required water cleanup is left sanitary and ready for habitation.  

Storm damage in Northampton residences brings water damage to a new level of cleaning challenges for SERVPRO technicians. Tree limbs ruin roofs and break windows allowing rainwater to enter. Flash floods are not uncommon when intense storms bring large amounts of rain, or the Connecticut River breaches its banks. Groundwater has a rating as a category three biohazard, and due to the potential for contamination, homeowners should not come into contact with the water until we test it for bacteria, toxins, or sewage.

Much like water damage in the home from a plumbing failure, our technicians perform water extraction quickly. Unfortunately, unlike in a clean water spill, carpeting affected by groundwater is not a candidate for sanitization and reuse in the home and must be discarded. We use different types of cleaning solutions depending on the surfaces cleaned for the best outcome.

Water odors can be a significant issue after flood damage in the home. SERVPRO technicians put in immense amounts of time becoming trained and certified in various restoration sciences, so they have the expertise to handle any task, including odor control. 

Sometimes time-release gel pellets are enough to handle residual water odors. When the odors left behind are significant, our technicians use equipment such as ultra-low-volume foggers that neutralize odor-causing molecules. 

In Northampton homes, mold damage occurs as a result of three factors coming together to form perfect conditions for spore germination and growth:

• An area with maintained humidity over 45%
• Temperatures 70-degrees Fahrenheit or more
• Consumable organic materials such as sheetrock or wood

We carefully contain mold infestation areas for remediation using plastic or negative air chambers, much like when we handle fire damage cleanup to limit the spread of soot. Mold spores exist naturally and when conditions are right, germinate and turn into colonies that spread quickly. Professional mold remediation is crucial to stop the cycle of mold infestation.

Not only do SERVPRO technicians perform abatement of the mold colonies, but we also assist homeowners in stopping the conditions that allowed the mold to flourish. After completion of mold remediation, we give the homeowner a report detailing not only the actions we did on-property but also the necessary repairs or actions to halt any further mold growth. 

Why SERVPRO? When Northampton homeowners require restoration services and need fast cleanup assistance, it's a smart choice to outsource the task to a company with certified professionals that can not only mitigate damage but also provide any reconstruction necessary as a seamless service. This all-in-one assistance lessens the stress of having to coordinate both cleanup and repairs to your property as well as having a streamlined report to submit with your insurance claim to expedite the process. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County stands ready to assist our friends and neighbors in this area with any needed restoration services from damages incurred by fire, water or mold. Call us at (413) 324-1300, and we can make the loss in your home "Like it never even happened."

Click here to learn more about the city of Northampton. 

A Flood Can Spell Big Trouble For Your Home In Granby

7/16/2019 (Permalink)

If you need a second opinion or our sophisticated approaches, give our SERVPRO of Hampshire County rapid response team a call today at (413) 324-1300.

Can You Fully Restore Flood Damage To Your Granby Residence?

Flooding in your Granby residence does not always have to be widespread and traumatic, depositing several inches of standing water throughout the property. Many instances of flooding only affect one single room of your house or even the crawlspace beneath the main floor. These circumstances, while less immediately destructive than flash flooding with high volumes of water, have the potential to still be as damaging and severe if not addressed quickly. As a homeowner, you might want to know if this is a situation you can handle on your own, or if you need to seek out professional assistance.

As much as you might expect a plug of our SERVPRO mitigation and recovery services for flood damage in Granby homes, there are many of these scenarios that you can handle without our experienced team. Understanding how to judge these situations can improve not only your success with the recovery of your property but also the full-time period and investment made in your efforts and those of a professional restoration team (should this later be necessary.)

You first need to understand how widespread specific effects have become, starting first at the source of this damage. For breaches to blockwork, you can often apply hydraulic cement with a trowel over the vulnerable area to stop the flow of water so that you can begin extraction and drying efforts. Other penetration points in the exterior of your house become matters of discretion into your abilities with emergency construction solutions like tarping over compromised roof areas until the breach can get repaired.

As for extraction, while our SERVPRO team might have multiple options of various sizes and strengths to suit every water removal and drying effort, you can often make do with a wet vac and conventional drying methods. This approach is only going to work provided that wall cavities and other inaccessible areas have not become damaged by moisture and require additional specialized equipment.

When you are assessing your ability to handle flood damage in your home, it is a choice that needs to get made quickly and confidently. Damage can continually worsen until the affected areas get thoroughly dried and managed. If you need a second opinion or our sophisticated approaches, give our SERVPRO of Hampshire County rapid response team a call today at (413) 324-1300.

For more about Granby click here.

The Guide to Water Damage Remediation in Granby

7/3/2019 (Permalink)

Water damage remediation causes lots of headaches. Contact the professionals at SERVPRO today for help.

Professional Drying Equipment for Water Damage in your Granby Home

All moisture contains within it some amount of microbes or other bacteria. When there is a water spill in your residence, this can cause staining of fabrics, furnishings, and fittings. We run a professional restoration service for the removal of water, staining, and bacteria after experiencing a property issue. Our call lines are open twenty-four hours a day, and we can arrange a service for you with a local water technician within four hours from notification of loss. 

One of the critical duties in dealing with water damage in Granby is in the assessment phase. Different scales of contamination have a significant impact on our approach to returning your property to its preloss condition. Acting quickly is essential because as moisture comes into contact with pre-existing dust or bacteria in the home, the scale of contamination can become increasingly severe. A clean water emergency can quickly become a grey or black water issue- which requires demolition and replacement of certain materials like carpets or drywall. 

SERVPRO technicians are equipped with the latest restoration technology to ensure a comprehensive service. Moisture does not stay in one place and naturally migrates from wet to dry. This phenomenon can result in moisture seeping into the subfloor, wall cavities, or crawlspaces. Using thermal imaging cameras, we can trace this process from the source to any possible affected areas. Moisture meters can then be deployed to ascertain the level of saturation in furnishings, floors, or fittings. 

The quickest way to controlling microbial growth is by thoroughly drying the affected area. Portable extraction units can remove larger quantities of water from carpets, furnishings, and flooring. Once the apparent signs of water are removed, SERVPRO can deploy rapid air movers to increase the temperature of surfaces and encourage evaporation. Dehumidification equipment helps to remove the moisture from the air and discourage mold growth. In the majority of situations, proper drying of the property removes malodor, when it does not, we can deodorize using air fresheners, pellets, or thermal fogging equipment. 

Property restoration issues are time sensitive. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County (413) 324-1300 for professional assistance. 

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Call the Experts in Fire Damage in Northampton For All Your Remediation Needs

6/28/2019 (Permalink)

The leftover residue from fire damage can be extremely burdensome to deal with. Contact the professionals at SERVPRO for help.

Fire Damage Mitigation In Northampton

Restoration costs associated with fire damage on your Northampton property are only a fraction of what it might be to replace or rebuild. With that in mind, always have a cleaning and restoration expert test for cleanability after a fire occurs. It helps to have someone looking at things from a repair perspective, rather than someone who falls back on replacing items if things look worse than they thought.

You also want someone that's on your side, keeping an eye on your policy limits, a company that works with your insurance company to ensure quality results. Having fire damage in your Northampton area home does not mean you lose everything you have worked so hard to obtain. A highly-trained restoration expert can often save many of your home’s contents, even those you may have thought were a total loss.

SERVPRO’s test for cleanability helps locate all of the smoke and fire residues caused by the fire. It also determines whether these residues are cleanable, or if they existed before the fire occurred. Through this process, our technicians learn enough about all existing damage to provide you and your insurance company with an accurate estimate. 

SERVPRO provides you with an estimate that lists all restoration procedures needed to return damaged areas to a quality preloss condition. It also shows which items remain salvageable and which do not, as well as a full list of undamaged items, and those that remain questionable. It is our goal to help recover every item possible, reducing any losses you might experience through quality restoration.

SERVPRO technicians explain the testing and cleaning services we provide in full-detail. We want to give you all of the information you need to make informed decisions about your property. Pre-testing allows us an opportunity to discover everything we need to know, including how long it might take to perform our services, what supplies we need, and any additional equipment necessary to move forward.

Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County for full-service solutions to fire damage on your property throughout the Amherst, Granby, and Ware areas. Our Fire & Smoke Restoration Technicians (FSRT) are available 24-hours a day, 7-days a week, year-round to help mitigate fire damage in your home. 

Click here to see more about Northampton. 

The Best Way to Dry Northampton Water Damaged Basements

6/14/2019 (Permalink)

Water damage in basements is a common issue. Call SERVPRO for solutions.

Removing Water from Saturated Northampton Basements 

Basements are a common location for water loss incidents for Northampton residents. While many times, natural disasters can first penetrate this lower level of your residence and cause widespread pooling of water and saturation of structural elements and construction materials, this is only part of a potential problem that exists. The basement is also one of the primary hubs for your plumbing system and is an ideal installation location for your water heater, washing machine, and other water-fed fixtures like utility sinks. 

We can appreciate how vital water removal and recovery efforts are for your Northampton home, and the clock begins moving for us at the time that you first report this disaster. We have ready trailers stocked with advanced drying and extraction tools, ensuring that the appropriate protective processes begin as soon as our team arrives at your address. Our SERVPRO professionals have extensive training in Applied Structural Drying and Water Restoration, allowing us to approach loss incidents with confidence and experience. 

One of the first steps that we must take when we arrive at your home is to locate the source of the water damage. From faulty appliances to compromised plumbing, we have to stop the flow of water so that extraction and drying efforts can be more effective after that. We can work to repair the source of the damage should the cause require the application of hydraulic cement or another approach that does not require full repair or reconstruction efforts. 

The SERVPRO technicians that arrive at your house come with our experienced contractors as well. These individuals can help to identify the best permanent solutions for preventing excessive moisture and water damage in the lower level of your property again. From the installation of sump pumps to the regrading of concrete flooring, there is little our experienced team cannot do to help. 

While the basement might be a commonly water-damaged area of your property, our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team can work around the clock to make its effects “Like it never even happened.” Give us a call anytime at (413) 324-1300.

Read about Northampton here.

Let Our Professionals Help With Flood Damage Preparation For Your Amherst Home

6/5/2019 (Permalink)

Our goal is to leave your house, “Like it never even happened.”

Is Flood Damage Preparation In Amherst For You?

Surprises never stop when you are a homeowner. When you think all home improvement jobs are done, you are surprised by a new part of your home needing attention. It is not uncommon for homeowners to learn that they are vulnerable to flood damage, even when their home is not located in a designated flood zone. The best you can do is prepare and align your resources and hope that you will never need them. Pay close attention to recommendations issued by your insurance company and the federal government, but make sure to assess your local resources as well.

If you are concerned about flood damage in Amherst, reach out to us at SERVPRO and let us explain our approach to restoration after a water event. Aside from having a team on call 24/7, our technicians hold an Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). Combined with on-the-job experience, our crew brings to you the latest in the industry to address any flood damage to your home. Call us, and our Green Fleet will arrive at your home to take action.

A big concern when there is flooding is the presence of black water. Flood water carries pathogens and debris which pose a risk to your family. When it comes in contact with your home and belongings, we need to take action. As it permeates your most porous possessions like upholstery and carpeting, it threatens your health. Our SERVPRO team acts quickly to remove any unwanted materials and dispose of them according to environmental recommendations. Simultaneously we bring in high-power pumps to extract water and restore moisture levels in your home. Knowing the proper order in which to eliminate floodwater residue helps minimize your material loss and disruption to you and your family.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is your best ally when disaster strikes. Call us at (413) 324-1300 as part of your emergency preparedness plan and let us be proactive in protecting your home. Our goal is to leave your house, “Like it never even happened.”

Click here for more about Amherst.

Call Our Certified Professionals For All Your Northampton Fire Damage Restoration Services

5/29/2019 (Permalink)

Fire damage started in the attic of this home and an electrical short was the cause. We arrived as soon as they called because we are available 24/7.

Full Restoration of Fire Damage in Northampton Home

When there is fire damage to a property, it is vital that it has professional mitigation as soon as possible. The longer odor-causing soot remains on surfaces, the more it spreads and permeates porous objects.

Our SERVPRO location handled a fire damage remediation in Northampton for a house with both water and smoke damage over half the property. When we arrived on-site, we contained the entryways and registers in each of the affected rooms to stop any further spread of soot.  

We used portable pumps and extractors to remove the remaining water. Then our technicians used controlled demolition techniques to remove the charred sheetrock and contents too damaged by fire to restore. Our goal is to limit loss for homeowners by restoring the structure and contents through our proprietary methods whenever possible. This commitment to service is why we go methodically through rooms to determine the restorability potential for items.

After the completion of debris removal, we turned our attention to soot removal. Using both portable and hand vacs both with HEPA filtration, we cleaned the residue from the floors, surfaces and ceilings.

Soot particles range from large enough to see to microscopic. We use air scrubbers with HEPA filters to cleanse the affected areas of lingering soot by capturing these odor-causing particulates.

Even after removing charred items, ventilation and cleaning with HEPA filtration, a pungent odor often remains after fire damage, and masking and covering up does not work. We have equipment such as ozone machines or hydroxyl generators that remove fire odors at the molecular level.

Another odor control method we use is thermal fogging. Our technician used an odor-neutralizing heated solvent delivered as a fog. The fog is used to penetrate every place the smoke permeated to remove deeply seated odors thoroughly. In many cases, the combination of multiple methods of odor removal is necessary to eradicate all smoke odor.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 when you need help with fire damage. We can handle damage of any size to residential or commercial properties. Our certified technicians can make your fire loss "Like it never even happened."

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Your Coffee Shop In Amherst Can Be Restored To Pre-Damage Condition By Our Water Damage Specialists

5/14/2019 (Permalink)

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County, and we can handle all phases of the restoration needed to make your water loss “Like it never even happened.”

Commercial Water Cleanup Does Not Hold Up Grand Opening Of Coffee Shop In Amherst

When planning to open a new business, water damage before your grand opening was probably not part of the plan. Fast action is on your side, the more quickly the mitigation of water loss begins, the more potential for full restoration of your property and contents.

A not-yet-opened coffee shop and bakery found themselves in need of commercial water cleanup in Amherst. The culprit was the incorrect installation of a water supply line into an espresso machine, and it came loose and released water. The incident happened overnight, and the counters, floor mats, and boxes of supplies were affected. After turning off the water, the owner called us.

Wet tile flooring is excellent for keeping sanitary conditions in a business, but is dangerous when wet. During the initial call to SERVPRO, we advised the property owner not to move water-logged items such as the floor mats and await our arrival due to the danger of slip and fall accidents. We arrived a short time later to the property, and while one technician handled the water removal using a portable pump, another team cleared the counters, moved supplies and removed the floor mats for drying in another area. The shop supplies were wisely stored in plastic bins under the counter so most of the stock unaffected by the water.

Our technicians scoped the shop with moisture detection equipment to determine if the migration of water had occurred under flooring or within the wall behind the counter. Fortunately using both probes and thermal imaging, we found no additional issues requiring remediation efforts. We set up multiple air movers and dehumidifiers to bring the moisture levels in the room below 45% and dry all surfaces quickly. We followed up with complete cleaning and disinfection of the areas affected by water to ensure they were sanitary and ready to serve customers.

Our SERVPRO location has a general contractor’s license, and we suggested the necessary repairs for the water supply line to complete the restoration of the shop. The property owner asked us to complete the repairs so the cleanup would be a seamless operation from start to finish.

The longer commercial water cleanup waits, the more damage it is doing. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300, and we can handle all phases of the restoration needed to make your water loss “Like it never even happened.”

Click here for more about Amherst.

We Provide Our Expertise In Dealing With Water Damage In Northampton

5/3/2019 (Permalink)

We utilize the latest technology in moisture detection devices to locate and measure the moisture content in your home.

You Need Quick Water Removal in Your Northampton Home after the Washing Machine Hose Bursts

Washing machine hoses are a common cause of water loss in homes. The hoses become stiff over time and are subject to leaking, cracking, bursting and bubbling. The water pressure running through the hoses can eventually break them, and force water out at full pressure.

Since the supply lines to washing machines are usually always on, water from a burst hose can pour until you notice it and turn off the main water line in your house. This can be a significant amount of water, so you may need water removal services for your Northampton home. The water can damage the flooring, wood, cabinets and other building materials permanently after several hours of exposure. When there is water in your home, you can contact the professionals at SERVPRO to assist you to remove it and dry the affected areas.

We can provide expert guidance on how to deal with the water damage and fix the problems quickly. Our technicians can use pumps or wet/dry vacuums to remove the water. We’re Faster to Any Size Disaster and can start water removal as soon as possible to prevent further damage to your home and furnishings. Once we remove the standing water and vacuum the absorbent surfaces, we begin drying and dehumidification to clear up any moisture that could have remained after water removal.

Our SERVPRO technicians also clean and sanitize all the affected belongings to prevent bacterial and mold growth. We can use antimicrobial agents to treat drapery, clothing, and carpeting. If structural items like walls and subfloors require cleaning, we use the appropriate products to clean them to make them look as good as or better than they did before the water loss. We also evaluate all contents exposed to water or high humidity for cleaning needs.

Our technicians also offer restoration services, which involve replacing materials like insulation and drywall and repairing hardwood flooring. If the damage is not serious, we may just replace a few panels of drywall. A serious case may require the replacement of an entire wall.

When water has pooled in your home, SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help you extract it quickly and dry the affected areas. Contact us at (413) 324-1300 and let our water damage restoration professionals restore your home to its pre-water loss condition.

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If A Cooking Appliance Has Caused Significant Fire Damage To Your Amherst Kitchen Our Experts Can Help!

4/23/2019 (Permalink)

If you need our professional disaster cleanup for your home or commercial space, give us a call today at (413) 324-1300.

Mitigating Cooking Appliance Fire Damage In An Amherst Kitchen

Thrifting is a budget-friendly way to stock your kitchen with durable appliances, but sometimes those appliances end up not working as well as you might like. A vintage electric waffle iron can end up sparking and catching fire when plugged into an ungrounded kitchen outlet. Worse still, the resulting high heat and fire damage can cause leftover plastic takeout containers to melt in your overhead cabinets. Between cleaning up soot, heat damage, melted plastic, burnt waffle batter, and the foul odor from your now-singed waffle iron, it can be overwhelming to consider where to even start with the cleanup.

If your latest thrift shop find ends up causing fire damage in your Amherst home, SERVPRO technicians can ensure that your kitchen is restored to its pre-existing condition. “Like it never even happened.” After our professionals come to your home to assess the extent of damage to your kitchen, we can get right to eliminating the sources of odor from both dry and wet smoke.

The first step to eliminating foul odors from fire is to thoroughly clean residues from the fire, whether they be soot, burnt food particles, or melted materials. Our SERVPRO team can also clean the vents in your kitchen with agitating tools such as brushes and augers so soot and other odor-causing materials can be vacuumed up and thrown away. The thoroughness of this cleanup processes both on surfaces and inside cabinets also helps to minimize staining as well as control odors.

Deodorizing can be accomplished with a variety of equipment. One method that is favored for effective odor mitigation is thermal fogging, which releases a solvent-based smoke that binds with particles to eliminate odor through chemical reactions. Air scrubbers equipped with HEPA filters can catch particles as small as 0.3 microns that have settled on surfaces in your kitchen.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is available 24/7, so we can be Faster to Any Size Disaster. If you need our professional disaster cleanup for your home or commercial space, give us a call today at (413) 324-1300.

Click here for more about Amherst.

Commercial Water Damage in Northampton? It's Easy If You Do It Smart With Team SERVPRO

4/14/2019 (Permalink)

When your real estate office has water damage, many things can be compromised including potential sales. Contact SERVPRO to remediate the damage.

SERVPRO Beats Commercial Water Damage in Northampton Real Estate Office in Time for Open House

The adage "You never get a second chance to make a good first impression" is very true, especially for a new real estate company just starting. A short time before the open house to announce their opening, a water supply line in the company breakroom broke under a sink and spilled water for hours before it was caught the following day.

SERVPRO received the urgent call to clean up commercial water damage in a Northampton realtor office. They had already advertised their grand opening to the public and did not want to delay their open house launch party.

Extraction of water is the foundation of drying. Our technicians got to work immediately using wands and weighted extractors to push the water out of the low pile carpeting just outside the breakroom which was only mildly affected. Inside the breakroom, water was still standing and was quickly eliminated by SERVPRO technicians.

The drywall behind the water supply line was not significantly affected, and removal was not necessary. As a precaution to ensure air flow could occur during drying, our technicians drilled weep holes in the wall under the sink areas around the line break. After extraction, air movement and controlled warmer temperatures in the affected area initially around 70F to 80F are crucial for proper drying.

To ensure faster drying, SERVPRO chose to use desiccant dehumidifiers along with our traditional dehumidifiers to capture maximum humidity the air movers bring to the surface. The desiccant method works by absorbing moisture into a solid substance on a rotating wheel such as zeolites, activated alumina or silica gel (the same material you might find packed in with electronics). The wheel delivers the humid air to a collection port and repeats the process.

Through these drying methods and a complete wipe down with our professionally formulated cleaners to make the premises smell fresh and clean, there were no signs of the water loss and the opening was not delayed.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County knows commercial water damage can happen any time day or night. Our emergency response teams are available 24/7 and arrive at your location within hours after your call to (413) 324-1300.

Click here for more information about the city of Northampton.

Did You Know That Your HVAC System Can Cause Water Damage to Your Granby Office?

4/1/2019 (Permalink)

Have your HVAC system checked regularly to ensure that the drain is not plugged.

Commercial Water Damage Restoration in Your Granby Business Building

Water which comes from your HVAC system in your Granby doctor’s office can cause severe damage to your system. The water can get into your ductwork, pipes, air conditioner or furnace. Unchecked water can create severe corrosion or short your electrical components. Leaks in your HVAC system cause damage if they are not caught in time, which is why regularly checking it can help you to detect early signs of an issue before there is a more significant problem.  

Water damage of any kind in your Granby business can disrupt your daily operations, so you want to get it taken care of as soon as possible. At SERVPRO, we understand that time is of the essence, and we have the training and tools to help you restore your building as quickly as possible.  

Check the drain lines of your HVAC system regularly. Water is a natural component of your air conditioning system. As humid, hot air cools, it creates condensation on the evaporator coil. The condensation drips into the condensate pain, which empties outside through the drain line. The drain line can sometimes become damaged or clogged, causing leaks.  

When your HVAC system is leaking, SERVPRO techs can find the issue and restore your building. Our primary goal is to preserve and protect your structure and the contents such as equipment. One of the first things we check is carpeting and padding that got soaked from the water. Delamination is possible and something we check for right away. If delamination has occurred, the carpeting is not repairable.  

If the pad is too damaged, it can be discarded and replaced. Padding can break apart when it becomes wet. However, most padding is not very expensive, and the cost of removing and replacing it is many times less than the added costs of drying it in place.  

Some HVAC systems utilize a condensate pump to help drain off any condensation that may be created by the system. The collected water collects into a reservoir, and after filling to a particular point, the pump switches on and pushes the water through a drain line. If there is a clog, again, you may be dealing with a leak.  

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help you restore your business building in Amherst, Ware, or Hadley anytime you need us. Reach us by dialing (413) 324-1300, so please do not hesitate to reach out to us as soon as you notice an issue.

Granby was incorporated in 1768.  Read more here.

Let Our Crew Restore Your Granby Home After A Flood

3/28/2019 (Permalink)

At SERVPRO of Hampshire County, our goal is to help every homeowner return their residence to a safe condition for occupation.

Restoring Flood Damage Effects In Granby Homes

The Granby community’s location near state parks and two major highways make it ideal for travel and business. That location also makes us vulnerable to flooding from nearby rivers and swamps, however.

No matter how high or low the water reached, Granby flood damage needs removal and restoration as quickly as possible. SERVPRO restoration teams train extensively with the latest equipment to handle every type of water intrusion and its effects.

The beautiful wood floors in so many of our homes are extremely vulnerable to flooding. They are underwater almost immediately and remain so until removal of all surface flooding and thoroughly drying the floorboards. Removing the majority of the water with one of the pumps in our inventory is relatively simple. It is drawing off the rest that often proves difficult.

SERVPRO technicians have to balance removing the water quickly against causing additional damage to the wood surface. Drying out too quickly can crack and splinter or even warp the individual boards until they lift away from the subflooring and twist away from each other. To keep this from happening, response team members use extraction wands with a built-in heating device to apply a low heat while removing moisture between the floorboards.

If they note swelling, then technicians carefully puncture the stain or varnish to increase the rate of evaporation. If needed, they also set up a dehumidifier to draw moisture from the surrounding air. The drier air also increases the evaporation rate without harming wood floors.

Finally, technicians examine the sub-flooring for floodwater. If any water did seep in, they remove it with an extraction wand. To remove excess humidity, they use an air mover with a hose to force warm, dry air into the crawlspace which forces out the damp air to preserve the sub-floor framework and underside of the floorboards.

At SERVPRO of Hampshire County, our goal is to help every homeowner return their residence to a safe condition for occupation. We're here to help you. Call (413) 324-1300 to get started.

Click here for more about Granby.

Why Hiring a Professional for Your Amherst Water Removal Emergency is Essential

3/22/2019 (Permalink)

When you are faced with water in your home, your best defense is to call the technicians at SERVPRO to assess the damage and start remediation.

SERVPRO Technicians Arrive Quickly to Remediate Your Water Damage Emergency

No matter the cause, things can get hectic when a water damage disaster in Amherst strikes your home. You are suddenly faced with cleaning up a big mess, which can be very daunting. When you are thinking about all the cleanup to be done, you usually are only thinking about how much work it is going to be, and not how difficult it is. There are several reasons why hiring an expert for your water removal emergency is the best decision. 
 
Water emergency stressors can hit you hard. Life in your Amherst home does not stop, and your daily responsibilities keep going, but now you are faced with the enormous task of water removal. It is why you need to trust our experts at SERVPRO to handle everything for you. You can go on dealing with your everyday life while we clean up the mess and repair your home. 
 
Remember, the process of getting water out of your home and cleaning up is much more complicated than you might realize. Therefore, if it is not done correctly, the water damage can be greater, and the potential for a total restoration can be compromised. It is best to let our technicians handle it instead, as we have the proper training and equipment to do the job right. 
 
The key to properly drying your home and its contents are to start immediately. Our professional staff uses the best drying equipment and arrives at your residence quickly to limit the damage done. By starting as soon as possible, the structure of your home and your belongings have the best chance of recovering. 
 
After we get rid of all the water, the danger is not always gone completely. Moisture in the air and hidden spots in your home can create further havoc. Our experts have the tools such as moisture meters to find this hidden moisture and rid your home of it. We can also detect, remove and prevent dangerous mold which can cause health effects. 
 
SERVPRO of Hampshire County offers 24-hour water removal and damage repair in the areas of Easthampton, Northampton, and Granby. So, don’t hesitate to call us anytime by dialing (413) 589-8975 so we can help restore your home back to normal. 

For more information regarding Amherst, click here

How Ignition Occurs on Different Materials, Leading to Fire Damage on Granby Properties

3/22/2019 (Permalink)

We are the professional fire damage experts you know and trust. We will restore your home back to pre loss condition.

Learn How Ignition Occurs on Different Materials and Causes Fire Damage in Your Granby home

There different types of fires that can cause fire damage to Granby properties. The specific type of fire depends on the nature of fuel that is burning. Separating fires this way makes it easier to choose the best firefighting method. Some fire extinguishers, for instance, are more effective on certain types of fires than others. Keeping this in mind can go a long way towards controlling the extent of fire damage to your house and its contents. 

If you are faced with a fire damage situation in Granby, you can bet on SERVPRO to restore your property. We have a long history in the restoration industry, and our competent technicians are certified by the IICRC to deliver industry-standard services. Using advanced products, tools, and equipment, coupled with a rich experience of dealing with clients from all over the country, we can return your home to pre loss conditions as quickly and efficiently as possible. 

Ignition is considered the first step of the process of combustion that ultimately leads to fire damage. If the source of fire is an external ignition, it may occur as forced or piloted ignition. If it is the result of reactions happening in the actual combustible material plus the resulting heat release, it may occur as self or auto-ignition. 

The impulse to ignition significantly relies on the ignition temperature (the lowest temperature at which ignition can occur upon heating a material). SERVPRO professionals can help determine this parameter using special test methods, making it easier to distinguish between the auto and piloted ignition temperature causing the fire damage. Different materials have different ignition mechanisms, depending on whether they are solids, gases, or liquids. 

Most solid materials derive energy from outer ignition sources through radiation, convection, or conduction (sometimes by a combination) or by heating up as a result of heat-producing processes occurring that trigger decomposition internally on the surfaces. Liquids require the formation of a vapor space above them that is capable of burning, for ignition to occur. The air in this space mixes with the gaseous decomposition products and vapors being released, subsequently causing a flame.

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When a fire occurs, the damage to your property can continue long after extinguishing the flames. If you act fast, SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help combat the fire damage before it leads to permanent losses. Call us anytime at (413) 324-1300.

For more information regarding the town of Granby, click here. 

Mold Damage Remediation in Easthampton

3/21/2019 (Permalink)

If you see or smell mold in your home, it is time to contact SERVPRO to investigate, determine the cause and remediate the damage.

SERVPRO Technicians Follow a Proven Process When Dealing with a Mold Infestation

Mold spores are in every home in Easthampton. No amount of regular household cleaning removes them, and that is perfectly normal. Spores only become active when there is enough moisture to allow for expansion, and they only grow when there is enough food and a temperature between 68 and 86 degrees. 
 
Mold damage threatens Easthampton homes only when those three factors happen together in the same place. By the time most homeowners find mold or suspect there may be a problem, the colony has grown quite a bit, and a professional company like SERVPRO is needed to remove the threat. 
 
We start by containing the spread. The immediate goal is to prevent the mold moving into unaffected or clean areas of the home. Our first action is to seal off the air ducts. It prevents accidentally spreading airborne spores to other rooms, and if there is mold in the ducts, this keeps it isolated until we can clean them. The second action is to seal off the affected areas with plastic sheeting over windows, entryways, and doors. 
 
Next, we remove the active mold and spores. The goal at this point is to clean mold from both personal and structural property in the affected area if at all possible. SERVPRO technicians wipe down every surface with cloths or sponges and use vacuums with HEPA filters to trap and prevent spores from spreading outside the sealed area. 
 
Since our cleaning actions have stirred up the mold spores on surfaces and in the air, the next task is to wait for them to settle. When enough time has elapsed, technicians wipe down every surface again using dry cloths and sponges. We repeat this step until our air content meters test out at normal levels of dormant spores. 
 
Our last task is to lower the humidity and dry the property inside the affected areas. Technicians accomplish this with dehumidifiers to draw moisture from the air, and smaller devices called air movers which blow warm, dry air across damp surfaces. By removing the excess moisture in these areas, we lower the risk of the spores becoming active and growing a new colony. 
 
Every action we take is designed to return residents to a safe, clean home. For SERVPRO of Hampshire County, this is never just a job. It is how we take care of our neighbors. If you need our services or have a question on how we can help; call us at (413) 324-1300 today. 
 
For more information regarding Easthampton, click here

Our Flood Damage Specialists Explain The Damage Wind Can Do To Your Amherst Property

3/11/2019 (Permalink)

If you ever suffer from ruined building materials after severe weather, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 24 hours a day.

Commercial Flood Damage Experts In Amherst Talk About Issues With Wind

During a violent storm in Amherst wind is a condition that can cause a disaster to take place. If the winds get to a high enough speed, problems could occur that force you to call in a certified commercial flood damage restoration company such as SERVPRO. Many storms that blow into town can bring with them swirling winds that have gusts or maximum speeds that can be dangerous and cause issues on your property. We have all seen on TV what winds that get close to 100 miles per hour can do, and the results are usually not pleasurable. Any time the area starts to get windy, there is a good chance that the breeze will cause your restaurant extensive commercial flood damage.

The presence of wind can be dangerous to humans, animals, and buildings. Any damage caused by severe weather is usually best treated by professional commercial flood damage technicians in Amherst like our team SERVPRO. Any time wind speeds get high, things attached to your restaurant building can blow off from being attached and cause other damage. Things like signs or outdoor decor items outside your restaurant can get blown away from where they were attached and damage your building. Even if these items don't damage your building, losing things on your property or attached to your building can cost your business and your insurance company money.

We know that whenever a storm ruins materials at your place of business that it is important to get things repaired quickly so that your business can continue operating as normal as soon as possible. One thing property damage to your restaurant's building can cause your company is a loss of revenue if your diner cannot keep operating as usual. Losing customers due to loss of functionality can get costly.

Whenever we arrive at your cafe after the storm takes its toll on your company's structure, we figure out how we can fix the problems without forcing you to close down or lose any customers what so ever. If you ever suffer from ruined building materials after severe weather, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 24 hours a day.

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How Ice Dams Cause Water Damage in Amherst

3/8/2019 (Permalink)

Is there an ice dam forming in your home?

Fast Winter Water Damage Repair in Amherst

You probably look up at the stars, but seldom consider looking up when you're at home. Most homeowners do not think about overhead spaces in their Amherst homes. An attic is a convenient storage place for old furniture, but seldom a source for concern. The attic above your head can suffer accidental winter water damages when an ice dam causes leakage in your crawlspace. If that happens, it's important to act quickly to mitigate the damages. SERVPRO is available 24 hours a day so that you can reach us right away. That's why we're Faster to Any Size Disaster.  

Winter water removal can be tricky in Amherst, and our IICRC certified technicians can handle it so you can get back to your life quickly. There are four keys to getting your home dry quickly, and we can address them all.

The amount of water you need to have removed effects how long it takes. SERVPRO Professionals take the time to extract as much water as possible. Doing so is 1200 times more efficient than dehumidifiers alone.

Temperature affects how rapidly your space dries. We bring in specialized equipment and heaters for unheated attics to speed up the process.

Humidity is the next challenge. The best way to remove the remaining water is to evaporate it and then use dehumidifiers.

Air movement is the last crucial factor. A humidifier can only remove water from air that reaches it. We use the proper ratio of humidifiers to air movers so that you can get back to enjoying your space sooner.  

These are not the only concerns when you need water removal and damage mitigation in your attic. SERVPRO Professionals can arrange to move your belongings to a dry area. Water damage raises humidity, and that means smells are transmitted easily. We have technicians that specialize in deodorizing and even upholstery cleaning. We take care of everything so you can feel “Like it never even happened."  

When accidental winter water damages have you looking up answers, there's no need to stress. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

Read about the history of Amhurst here.

Did You Know Increasing the Humidity in Your Home can Lead to Mold Damage?

3/4/2019 (Permalink)

Our SERVPRO of Hampshire County team is here to make your mold infestation "Like it never even happened."

Increasing the Humidity in Your Home can Lead to Mold Damage over the Winter in Granby

While the air becomes much drier over the colder months of winter in Granby, elevating the moisture levels too much can cause problems. Slight amounts of water vapor increased through the use of vaporizers can help people breathe more comfortably, especially during the night. However, repeated use of boiling water to achieve the same purpose, especially if continued daily, can backfire.

We want to caution the residents in Granby about having too much moisture in the home, as this can cause microbes to proliferate and cause damage. Such mold damage can happen anywhere inside your Granby residence. While we can remediate this problem anyplace it occurs, we also know that preventing microbial infestations costs less than home restoration costs.

Keeping temperatures cooler in your home and using layers of clothing while awake and extra blankets during the night keep the air from becoming overly dry feeling, and thus reduces the need to add moisture to the air. Doing these things can also reduce your heating costs, and add up over the winter. Using the oven can also keep your home warmer, at least near the kitchen, without adding too much moisture to the air. While some moisture does escape the oven and enters the air, it is considerably less than boiling water to cook produces from the stove.

Another area of the home that regularly produces steam is the bathroom. Showering daily may seem like a good way to get some humidity into the air, but instead, this allows mold damage to escalate. Running the exhaust fan during the shower and for a few minutes afterward ensures that all of the moisture gets released outside. This is especially important because the bathroom is one of the most prone areas in your home for developing mold damage.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is always ready to help remediate mold damage when you have a problem in your home in Hadley, Ware, or Belchertown. Contact us by calling (413) 324-1300, and we can have your home free of excess mold, “Like it never even happened.” as well as provide you with additional ways you can prevent mold growth.

For more on Granby, click here. 

Proven Tips to Remediate Fire Damage in Northampton

2/24/2019 (Permalink)

When a fire affects your home, there are so many things to consider: smoke, odors, residue, debris, and water. Contact SERVPRO for our expertise.

Why Choose SERVPRO? Your Northampton Homes Needs Immediate Restoration After Fire Damage

Northampton residents enjoy the benefits of living in a small town but with quick access to I-91 can go anywhere in the state within just a few hours. Add in the water sports and activities popular along the Connecticut and Mill Rivers, and our community is an amazing place to live. It takes a disaster like a flood or fire to knock down a smile for even a few minutes.

That’s not to say removing the results and restoring a Northampton home after fire damage is an easy task. There is demolition, disposal, smoke residues, and odors which need immediate attention after firefighters finish their task of stopping the fire. That is why SERVPRO should be the first call you make after contacting your insurance agent. Our restoration specialists train to meet all IICRC standards and have access to a nationwide inventory of equipment, cleaning agents, and knowledge related to restoring everything not excessively damaged by a fire.

Response team members quickly remove property ruined by the fire to eliminate further contamination from smoke residues and ash as the property deteriorates. When needed, personnel bag or wrap items to avoid spreading the damage and make it easier to complete disposal. As the process begins, an inspector examines structural property like drywall panels, framing, and other support structures. Where needed specialist can demolish and remove these items as well.

Next, SERVPRO team members work to remove residues and the odors they exude. They first establish fans in the home to increase circulation and force out air containing malodors. As the fans turn, specialists use a wide variety of cleaning agents to break up residues and remove them from affected surfaces. For thick layers or residues on surfaces like rock and some marble, they use a stiff brush or a powered agitator to break the residues free.

If there are still odors in the home after we finish residue removal, it may be necessary to introduce a counteragent. For mild odors, it may require spraying surfaces to eliminate them. If the odor penetrated structural property like ceiling beams, specialists use a fogger machine to generate a cloud of particles that can penetrate as deeply as the odor to bind with and eliminate them.

As a locally owned office, SERVPRO of Hampshire County does everything possible to help return our neighbors to a clean home, safe for occupation once again. If you have suffered any level of fire damage, call us today at (413) 324-1300 to schedule a visit and get started on the restoration process.

Click here for more about Northampton.

Your Amherst Home Can Be Restored By Our Experts After A Mold Damage Disaster

2/6/2019 (Permalink)

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can clean your home when a mold infestation has broken out.

Mold Damage Restoration In Your Amherst Home

In most homes in Amherst, mold is a big issue, but many people do not realize it is a problem. Everyone looks in the obvious places like under the sink, at the shower curtain, or in the basement when they think mold could be an issue, but mold can grow just about anywhere the conditions are right.

Finding mold and mold damage in your Amherst home requires immediate attention, so the growth does not continue to spread throughout your home. Mold can even cause health effects, so it is essential you ask for the assistance of a professional mold remediation company right away. Our team is ready 24/7 to help you, and with our training and tools, we can have the mess cleaned up for you quickly.

When we arrive at your home, we assess the situation and how severe the mold infestation is. We always use protective gear when it comes to cleaning up the mold to protect all our staff. SERVPRO workers wear eye protection and chemical resistant gloves and have various respirators available depending on how severe the infestation is. For small areas, we can use an N95 or greater filter respirator, while a half-mask respirator is used for larger contaminations. Fore extensive contaminations a full-face respirator can be used, along with a full body suit.

There are one thousand types of mold which can be found growing in homes. One of the most common types is aureobasidium. It can grow on painted and wooden services and develops in a black, brown, or pink color. Cladosporium can grow not just in warm conditions but in the cold as well. It frequently grows in indoor materials like upholsteries, carpets, and fabrics. You can find it inside cupboards as well and under floorboards. It is either olive-green or brown.

Mucor grows in larger patches and is usually white or greyish. It can be found closer to air conditioning machines and HVAC systems. Damp carpets can also offer a conducive spot for the growth of Mucor spores. Ulocladium grows well in wet areas and water. It usually is dark in color and can grow in homes that have undergone severe water damage in places like bathrooms, basements, kitchens, and windows in high condensation.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can clean your home in Ludlow, Westhampton, or South Hadley when a mold infestation has broken out. You don’t want to hesitate to call us at (413) 324-1300, as the mold continues to multiply and spread throughout your home until we take care of it.

Click here for more about Amherst.

Our Professionals Know When Snow Melts Your Granby Home Is At Risk For Damage

1/23/2019 (Permalink)

If this water vapor remains, mold and other problems related to elevated humidity become much more likely to plague your home.

When Snows Melt, Flood Damage Mitigation Experts Restore Homes In Granby

Depressions around your Granby home's exterior can hold more snow, and drifting can add several feet of snow and ice to what already exists. Once this begins to melt, water can slip into your home quite easily. If your home rests on lower portions of a hillside, freshly melted snow can increase the flow.

SERVPRO technicians are ready to remove flood damage in your Granby residence with efficient techniques and protect your home from further problems. Flooding picks up soils and other debris, including organic matter from trees, your and neighbors' yards, and even the street. We use special cleaning equipment to remove not only the water but also the sediment left behind.

Our drying methods rapidly remove the moisture that evaporated from the standing water and entered the air inside your residence. If this water vapor remains, mold and other problems related to elevated humidity become much more likely to plague your home. We explain to our customers that helping them save money includes helping them prevent possible damaging situations, as this is much less costly than restoration through cleaning or replacing of materials.

With flooding, odors quickly become noticeable and make a home inhospitable. Odors continually remind occupants that the house is now dank and damp, a breeding ground for pathogens and other microbes. Achieving normal humidity of the air and moisture content of flooded contents reduces the odors, but many remain. Our IICRC-certified Odor Control Technician (OCT) uses industry-recognized methods to eliminate these odors at their sources.

While still-damp environments, including even those barely moist, are not ideal candidates for treating through ozone, our hydroxyl generators do not have the same precautions. We can safely use them in such environments, as well as while these areas remain occupied by our workers and others helping to get your home's condition back “Like it never even happened.” Neutralizing odor-causing substances with easily formed chemical bonds, the new molecules disintegrate in new ways that do not produce odor. Additional methods, such as thermal fogging, once your home is arid again, add to the effectiveness of our odor control treatments.

Contact us, SERVPRO of Hampshire County, at (413) 324-1300, so we can help you move beyond flood damage and its terrible effects. Our professionals have the experience and advanced equipment needed to mitigate all of the effects caused by flooding.

Click here for more about Granby.

Curious About Our SERVPRO Commercial Fire Restoration Process? Read About It Below!

1/11/2019 (Permalink)

We are dedicated to restoring your bakery from fire damage "Like it never even happened."

Commercial Fire Odor Restoration Process for Your Northampton Business

A fire in your Northampton bakery can prove to be quite costly. Plus, the longer you wait to repair the damage, the costs rise even higher. The settled smoke and soot are acidic and continue to create additional damage until they are cleaned up. Another aspect is the odors left behind after a fire.

Commercial fire odor restoration for your Northampton business is essential. You need to use an expert in fire damage restoration to ensure that the odors are properly handled. At SERVPRO, our technicians are specially trained and know what to do, and most importantly, what not to do.

The first step in deodorization of your residence after a fire is to remove the source of the odor. Charred structural materials and debris which is contaminated with smoke residues continue to give off odors of smoke if they are not removed.

SERVPRO staff can then clean surfaces which have odor-causing residues on them. These small particles keep generating odors until we clean them. We check adjacent rooms from where the fire started as well, as the odors can penetrate through walls and travel to other spaces. The whole structure at times plus the contents might need to be cleaned to remove the smoke odors entirely.

Next, we distribute a deodorizer to the affected surfaces in a manner that is similar to how the smoke penetrated the surface. A deodorizing fog or smoke is most effective in this case. Using deodorization methods which replicate the nature of smoke are very useful in smoke and fire damage deodorization.

Lastly, we may need to seal surfaces that were exposed to malodors. It might not be required in all circumstances, but it can be needed for situations that have severe damage. If odor removal would be too costly or impractical, sealing could eliminate the problem. Two common sealing situations are sealing duct surfaces in air handling systems that are inaccessible or painting walls. The building is then ventilated to ensure the odors are gone.

Locally Owned Company with National Resources

At SERVPRO of Hampshire County, we understand what it takes to remove smoke odors from your business in Belchertown, Hadley, or Granby after a fire. Give us a call at (413) 324-1300 as soon as the fire is out so we can clean up your property and prevent further damages.

For more on Northampton, click here. 

We Are The Crew To Call To Restore Your Amherst Home After A Mold Infestation

1/3/2019 (Permalink)

When you reach out to us, you can rest assured your home is getting the best care.

Mold Damage Remediation In Your Amherst Home

When you have detected a mold problem in your Amherst home, you do not want to hesitate in getting it handled. Professional help is needed to clean up the mold and to stop it from spreading further. The quicker this is done, the better since mold can cause health effects and quickly grows to other areas.

Mold damage remediation for your Amherst home is essential to have done by professionals like our staff at SERVPRO. Our specialists have the expertise and advanced equipment needed to get the job done correctly and promptly.

One of the most popular methods for mold remediation on semi-porous and non-porous surfaces is blasting. Blasting systems give a very thoroughly clean without needing much manual labor like scraping, scrubbing, or wire brushing. There are several different media blasting methods which can be used, including water, baking soda, and grit.

We can use dry-ice blasting to remove larger areas of mold or lightly charred raw lumber such as attic crawl spaces after a fire. The pellets of carbon dioxide are under pressure and shootout and scrape the residue from the surfaces. The solid pellets then pass into a gaseous state, which leaves a minimal mess.

Grit and sandblasting are thought of as more aggressive methods and are used most frequently for coatings, rusted surfaces, and preparation or floor cleaning. It can disturb mold spores but might be too aggressive. It can also break up the mold spores into smaller particles, which can then pass through your HEPA filtrations system and contaminate other areas of the home.

Soda blasting, on the other hand, has been found to be quite useful and is a popular method that SERVPRO techs use for mold remediation. It doesn’t cause much damage to the surface being treated since it is softer than other blasting media. Any debris that is made from this process is suctioned up as it is progressing. We also create containment barriers with plastic sheeting to isolate the circulation of mold spores and debris from spreading.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County uses the best methods for mold remediation in your home in Granby, Ludlow, or Hadley. When you reach out to us at (413) 324-1300, you can rest assured your home is getting the best care.

Click here for more about Amherst.

Some Warning Signs of Damaged Pantry Items After Flooding in Your Northampton Home

12/23/2018 (Permalink)

When your home pantry or other household items are affected by flooding, it can be hard to figure out what is salvageable. Call SERVPRO.

The Question of Food After Flood Damage in Northampton

One complication of flood damage in Northampton that can often be overlooked is food. Depending on where and how you store your food and how extensive the flood damage is, your pantry could stay fully stocked, or you could find yourself eating out for days or weeks in the future. While this may seem like a trivial concern, the value of the food in most homes is significant enough for SERVPRO to be concerned about it. Follow these tips to save on meals while restorations are underway in your home.

Put Perishables in Coolers
Many cases of flood damage to Northampton homes knock out power to specific objects, rooms, or even entire buildings for days at a time. On top of that, in some circumstances, even working appliances can represent a safety risk if they remain in use. Until a SERVPRO professional checks to make sure your home electrical systems are safe, you might be best off storing perishable items like meats, dairy, and vegetables in coolers full of ice. Be sure to bag and wrap individual items to prevent them from being soaked in water as the ice melts.

Don't Toss Out Cans
Canned goods that have been soaked in flood waters may still be perfectly safe to consume. Although it may be unsafe to open damaged cans, those that clearly have no dents, cracks, or holes can be saved and eaten later, even if their labels are marred. This advice also applies to bottles, packages, and other sealed containers that successfully resist damage.

Get Rid of Ruined Items
We cannot save or restore ruined food items. Any open or damaged packages or perishable items that may have encountered floodwaters should be thrown away to avoid the many health risks that can come with their consumption. In general, if you have any doubts as to whether or not a food item has been contaminated, you should err on the side of caution and throw it away.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help to mitigate and reverse the effects of flood damage in your home. For our professional services and advice, call us 24/7 at (413) 324-1300.

Click here for more about Northampton.

How Our Specialists Take Care Of Your Smoke And Soot Damaged Easthampton Home

12/3/2018 (Permalink)

Smoke travels into clean air spaces and can race through the home during a fire.

Professional Cleaning Techniques For Soot And Smoke Residues In Easthampton

Smoke travels into clean air spaces and can race through the home during a fire. Mostly composed of carbon, it deposits residues on cooling surfaces it comes into contact with, leaving behind what is colloquially known as soot. Soot though is an umbrella term for smoke residues and does not take into account the different types which are vital to understanding if you want a professional restoration of your home.

When we remediate fire damage in Easthampton properties the first step we take is a thorough inspection. SERVPRO has technicians that are IICRC certified and trained in the patterns of smoke as well as the way it travels through the home. This training makes us one of the leading restoration providers in the local area and ensures you are not going be left with nasty surprises further down the line.

As well as carbon, smoke residues can carry the essence of the materials that they burn. When synthetic materials burn, they leave behind what we refer to as wet smoke — a sticky, odorous substance that can be difficult to remove and easy to spread around causing further damage. SERVPRO uses chemical wet cleaning techniques to help remove wet smoke. We may also use abrasives which can damage paintwork. Thankfully, we are also capable of repainting your walls and ceilings after service is completed.

When fires are extinguished water can compound the damages. Dry smoke, which is created by the burning of natural materials like wood has a crumbly texture similar to powder. Unfortunately, when the dry smoke settles on fabrics and is then exposed to water, it can be absorbed making cleaning complicated. By using foam cleaners, SERVPRO can lift soot out of fabrics using the process of osmosis where it can be wiped away.

House-fires are inherently unpleasant and stressful for all homeowners. We operate a 24-hour call line to support you anytime day or night. We also stick to the SERVPRO promise of sending a technician to your property within four hours of notification of loss to help put your mind at ease.

You need a restoration service that knows what it is doing. Contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County anytime at (413) 324-1300.

Click here for more about Easthampton.

Mold Damage in Your Home? Trust SERVPRO to Remediate The Mess

12/2/2018 (Permalink)

The technicians at SERVPRO of Hampshire County have the certifications and training to remediate mold from any home.

Why SERVPRO can Provide Expert Mold Damage Remediation to Amherst Homeowners

The appearance of mold in your property can be worrisome. We have all heard horror stories of the enormous costs involved in mold remediation and the harm it can do if left unchecked. As talented technicians with decades of experience in the industry, we can confidently tell you not to panic. Mold spores are a part of every home environment and even contain beneficial properties like penicillin. It is only when these benign spores come into contact with moist surfaces that they begin to proliferate requiring professional attention.

Discovering mold damage in Amherst properties is not uncommon. Humidity levels, rainfall or internal structural issues like leaky plumbing can all be a factor. It is not difficult to find a host of restoration services either. However, like most home restoration work, finding someone you can trust is paramount. At SERVPRO we always "do what is right by the customer" first, rather than adding expenses for unnecessary procedures like laboratory mold assessments.

We work with local technicians at SERVPRO providing training and allowing them to complete their IICRC certificates in a range of restoration methods. Being equipped with the latest industry expertise means they can use advanced techniques to tackle the affected area of your home. One technique we use is soda blasting which is useful for the remediation of porous materials that have mold growing below the surface.

We also hold IICRC certificates for applied structural drying. This qualification allows SERVPRO technicians to accurately assess the best course of action in each mold remediation service we complete. In cases of severe mold damage, it may be necessary to sand-blast the structure. This abrasive method removes heavy-set damages leaving behind a smooth, sturdy and most importantly sanitized surface. As part of our service, we can liaise with your insurance adjuster to make the whole process as effortless as possible for our customers.

Locally Owned Company with National Resources

The costs of home restoration can spiral with an untrustworthy service provider, use SERVPRO of Hampshire County for an honest appraisal. Call us at (413) 324-1300 today to arrange service.

For more information about Amherst, click here.

Your Best Guide to Westhampton Water Damage Remediation

11/19/2018 (Permalink)

When water damage affects your kitchen or any other room in your home, it is time to contact SERVPRO for effective water removal services.

Mitigating Water Damage in Your Westhampton Kitchen

Entertaining guests often requires the use of your kitchen in your Westhampton home. While they might never see the area where their dinner party meal was prepared, you know how well you maintain it. Long absences can allow slow leaks to ruin cabinet and cupboard interiors, causing wood rot and rust.
 
In your home, any amount of water damage in Westhampton can cause health effects, primarily when located in the kitchen. Water increases the size of the pores in the wood, and this expansion allows microbial activity to flourish. Rusted areas can also affect you and your family's health. Water damage is more than highly unsightly. It is also unsanitary. SERVPRO can mitigate the damage caused by water leaking under cabinets in your kitchen. At the same time, we can also mitigate any water damage discovered in your bathroom.
 
We know you take pride in your property and we want to help you protect your investment. Water damage not only affects the immediate area, but it can also quickly spread by seeping into other structures or by condensing in other places after initially evaporating.
 
To detect these locations we look at your residence as a whole. We use moisture detection equipment to locate where the water that damaged your cabinetry traveled. Infrared imaging devices show us changes in temperature, a common indicator of unwanted moisture.
 
To achieve an appropriately arid interior environment, we bring in our powerful air movers. These direct air toward our desiccant machines after whisking moisture out of damp surfaces. Materials in your home can appear dry while still retaining moisture. We take readings of the moisture content until the material in question reaches a healthier, acceptable amount.
 
Wiping down the surfaces soiled as part of mitigation water damage helps remove anything that might continue to spread damage. We sanitize the affected areas in your kitchen and take note of anything requiring reconstruction or replacement. We do our best to keep these needs minimal by using the latest techniques developed for mitigation professionals. When we finish a job, the homes once again look “Like it never even happened.”
 
SERVPRO of Hampshire County's technicians train on-site and achieve several IICRC certificates, keeping them prepared for any job, large or small. We serve the entire area of the Hamptons, as well as Amherst, Ludlow, and Ware. Call us when your home sustains water damage in any location. Our 24-hour service line, (413) 324-1300, is always ready to take your call.

Click here for more about Westhampton.

SERVPRO Provides a Studly Service to Fire Damaged Homes in Easthampton

10/23/2018 (Permalink)

Don't Dispair After a Fire Loss in Easthampton--Call SERVPRO for Cleanup, "Like it never even happened."

Fire Damage Technicians in Easthampton Talk About Treating Burnt Studs

If a fire ever breaks out on your Easthampton property, it can cause a variety of problems. Some fires burn very hot and grow extremely quickly, which can cause extensive fire damage. Fires that have plenty of oxygen and burn hot can destroy more items inside your home but the smoke created is a dry smoke which is relatively easy to wipe off most surfaces. When a burn smothers at low heat and is oxygen starved, then it might not burn as much but the smoke created is wet which makes it tougher to remove. During most fire damage situations, our SERVPRO technicians mitigate problems caused by both heat and partially combusted materials or smoke.
 
The first step to any restoration process is to secure the work area, then come up with an initial estimate. During the first write up, our SERVPRO estimators inspect the fire damage on your Easthampton property and determine what should be considered a loss and what can be salvaged. Many times items that only receive smoke damage can be cleaned and deodorized and do not require replacement. However, if heat affected structural components severely, extensive reconstruction work could have to take place.
 
During the initial estimate of the damage, we inspect the entire property and figure out which materials got charred by the fire. Drywall often protects studs from getting burnt, but if the blaze gets hot enough, the wooden studs making up the walls of your house can become partially or entirely burnt. If wall coverings appeared to be charred, they usually get removed so that the studs can be checked out. The general rule is if the charred wood is deeper than a quarter inch, then the studs must be removed and replaced. A visual inspection, when done with the customer and the insurance adjuster, generally can conclude quickly how to proceed and what to toss.

If there is charring that is only on the surface and not quite a quarter inch deep, it is possible to treat the structural components and avoid removing them. When mitigating surface charring, our SERVPRO team often sands or sandblasts the burnt material off of the surface. We can also use dry ice pellets that are directed under pressure at the blackened surface to braid it down to clean, raw wood. The affected wood then gets sprayed with a specialized sealant paint that traps in any foul odors created by the burn. If you ever notice that a fire burns items on your property, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 seven days a week.

Our local fire department is ready to serve.

Our Commercial Mold Damage Tactics Will Help You Restore Your Amherst Business

10/8/2018 (Permalink)

Prevention is the best way of battling commercial mold damage and reduce chances of making unnecessary losses.

Strategies if your office experienced mold damage

Prevention is the best way of battling commercial mold damage and reduce chances of making unnecessary losses. We can learn from this year's National Preparedness Month (NPM) theme which states that: Disasters Happen. Prepare Now. Learn How. The secret to preventing mold growth is controlling dampness and inadequate ventilation within the indoor environment. If you do not take the right action, the wetness can biologically degrade the items in your Amherst office suite.

To protect your employees from possible health effects when your Amherst office experiences commercial mold damage, our SERVPRO technicians perform appropriate cleanup activities. To begin with, we have to determine whether the remediation process can proceed while your office is still operational - which is possible when a small section of the building has the contamination. We also have to identify the wet or condensation spots in the building and correct the source of the moisture as soon as possible.

If our SERVPRO technicians discover the window sills of your office have mold growth, we have to come up with a tactic for stopping the problem. Such a problem develops typically when the room is poorly ventilated, and that means we may advise you to install an additional room fan once we complete the cleanup procedures. The use of a programmable dehumidifier which keeps the humidity of the room between 30 - 40 percent can also be a good solution. Using disinfectants when cleaning the sills can also do away with favorable conditions for mold growth.

The remediation activities can disturb the mold colonies and make the mold spores airborne. We have to put in place containment measures to prevent occupant exposure to mold. Keeping the site under negative pressure and using duct tape to affix a polyethylene sheeting to ceilings and floors. We also have to switch off the HVAC systems and replace their filters.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can offer emergency restoration services to your commercial property at any time of the day. Call our highly experienced technicians at (413) 324-1300 to find out more about our solutions.

Click here for more about Amherst.

How SERVPRO Can Help You Recover From A Fire In Easthampton With Our Cleaning And Restoration Services

10/2/2018 (Permalink)

It is essential to remove the soot from your draperies and carpets during fire damage restoration before any attempt to deodorize or clean items.

Professional Fire Damage Restoration Solutions For Residents Of Easthampton

Cleaning your property after a fire damage incident requires a keen assessment of the damage left behind as well as the level of destruction. While we all know how important it is to notify your insurance agency and the owner of the structure if you are renting, you need to work with restoration professionals to prevent further damage. Usually, our team starts to restore your Easthampton property once we have determined it is safe to re-enter the building.

It is essential to remove the soot from your draperies and carpets during fire damage restoration in Easthampton before any attempt to deodorize or clean items. Soot is oily and to remove it, our SERVPRO technicians can use a heavy-duty vacuum. There are chances of forcing the soot into fabrics if the vacuuming is not done correctly. After removing the soot from your carpets, we cover them to prevent soil and other particles from tracking in during the clean-up process.

When cleaning the soils and other residues from surfaces, there are key cleaning elements we consider: time, chemical action, agitation, and temperature. For instance, when we introduce heat, it breaks the surface tension and allows better penetration of water-based solutions. When that happens, it enhances the dissolving of soils. Agitation may be necessary when we need to free and wash away residues from surfaces. Some of the cleaning methods that use agitation include sandblasting, wiping, scrubbing, and air pressure washing.

After a fire, the smoke that penetrates into various areas of the building may leave behind offensive odors. Covering this smells with a fragrance has never been a good idea since with time the problem can reoccur. To solve this challenge, our SERVPRO technicians perform deodorization. Usually, we analyze the situation at hand before choosing the deodorization technique that works best. When we need to apply disinfectant and fungicides, we may decide to use Ultra Low Volume (ULV) Foggers. Using thermal Foggers can be an option when dispensing deodorants in large volumes.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County responds immediately to all commercial and residential cleaning and restoration needs. Call us today at (413) 324-1300, and our highly trained technicians can make your property “Like it never even happened.”

Click here for more about Easthampton.

Help! Help! SERVPRO to the Rescue for Water Removal and Restoration in Westhampton Properties

9/24/2018 (Permalink)

A Riding Rover Extracts Water from Westhampton Carpets--Just Another Great Device SERVPRO Deploys

Getting Rid of Water Damage in Westhampton

Excess water can be caused by natural disasters, structural issues or even something as simple as a leaking pipe. The result tends to be the same, pooling water that threatens both your interior design and contents. Calling in a professional restoration service not only ensures an efficient clean-up but can also guard against the risk of secondary damages occurring.
 
Homeowners experiencing water damage in Westhampton, rely on local services to arrive onsite quickly. At SERVPRO we have extensive experience in dealing with these types of incidents and the expertise, training, and equipment to help. We can send a trained and certified technician to your property within four hours of notification of loss, typically less.

On arrival, our technician can conduct a brief but thorough visual inspection. One purpose of the visual inspection is to ascertain the source of water and make sure it is shut off. Another is to verify no evidence of electrical equipment that could prove hazardous during the service. In some cases, we may look to cordon off or establish clean rooms for contents cleaning.

The priority is removing excess water. We can do this by bringing in portable water extractors and use them in tandem with industrial-grade wet-dry vacuums. A technician may place rapid air-movers and dehumidifiers to thoroughly dry certain areas and lower the risk of secondary damages caused by mold growth. If you are aware of any pre-existing issues making us aware of them during service can result in a quicker, more efficient service.

SERVPRO does offer a pack-out service for contents in cases of extensive damage, but usually, we can work on-site using clean rooms. By applying a range of chemical wet and dry cleaning methods, it is possible to restore a large number of your contents including valuable items, upholstery, fabrics, and furniture.

One of the main issues homeowners experience after water damage is the unpleasant odors that can last long after the initial service has been completed. At SERVPRO we are committed to deodorizing your home before our task is complete. Using foggers with odor neutralizing chemicals can help to restore your home to a clean, livable condition, "Like it never even happened."

If you are experiencing property damage, contact SERVPRO of Hampshire County now at (413) 324-1300 for an assessment and remediation.

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Tips For Safer Water Removal In Northampton

9/12/2018 (Permalink)

Using the right equipment for water removal in Northampton is an integral part of safety.

Tips For Safer Water Removal

You probably only think of the damages standing water can cause to the structure and contents of your Northampton property. However, the removal process poses some personal hazards too. You can slip, trip and fall when performing various actions as moving items within the area affected by the water. Accessing confined spaces also presents other hazards. Observing safety procedures is therefore essential when restoring your water-damaged property.

Using the right equipment for water removal in Northampton is an integral part of safety. For example, someone using a bucket would have to move up and down the property to remove water. Using a water extraction pump eliminates this unnecessary movement diminishing the additional hazards such as tripping. Our SERVPRO team is equipped with different types of pumps to match the requirements of each removal exercise. We have both portable extraction wands convenient for confined spaces and the truck-mounted extractors for fast removal.

You should consider electrical hazards during the restoration of a water-damaged property. When water pools and reaches electrical outlets, you should turn off the power immediately to prevent the dangers of electrocution. This also means shelving any plan to use electrical equipment to avoid destroying them. Our SERVPRO team is equipped with portable generators so we can still operate our electric equipment even after turning off the mains. With such fallback equipment, it is possible to carry out the removal process as planned.

Some steps in the restoration process can cause damages, which the process is supposed to prevent. For example, using the wrong tool such as the carpet wand instead of a squeegee wand on hard floors can cause problems. Floating the carpet is an essential step during drying. This step involves passing air beneath the carpet to quicken the drying process. However, if overdone it might result in the carpet delaminating.

You should call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413)324-1300. We are available 24/7 to offer you the assistance and advice necessary for a safer removal process.

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Flood Damage Specialists in Easthampton Describe Psychrometrics Drying Goal Theory

9/3/2018 (Permalink)

Flood Water Extraction and Drying Are Cornerstones of SERVPRO Storm Services in the Easthampton Area

SERVPRO Provides Skilled Storm Damage Cleanup and Drying of Flooded Properties in Easthampton

Many times when a severe thunderstorm hits the Easthampton area, problems with your property can occur. If the wind blows a rock or branches into your roof or a window, then it is likely that flood damage can happen at your place of residence. Once water gets inside a structure, many building materials and contents can get ruined. If structural components stay wet for an extended period, then the problems can get much worse. If organic materials remain wet for more than two days, your flood damage situation can turn into a mold remediation project.

Whenever our SERVPRO technicians receive an emergency call after a storm, we begin the restoration process immediately. We know that quickly removing moisture from your flood-damaged property in Easthampton is essential when it comes to preventing secondary problems. First, we patch the hole in your roof or broken window so that no more rain can enter your building, if not too extensive. Next, we extract all of the standing water and moisture present in porous materials such as carpet and upholstery. After the extraction phase, we then set up drying equipment to dry out wet building materials as quickly as possible.
 
Depending on the severity of the disaster, and September is Disaster Preparedness Month, our SERVPRO team sets up different amounts of air movers and dehumidifiers that create an ideal environment for rapid structural drying. We then monitor moisture levels inside the materials and take humidity and temperature readings to make sure our equipment is working efficiently. If things are not working as we would like, we can adjust the ratio of air movers to dehumidifiers, and shift their positioning to maximize efficiency.
 
We take relative humidity RH readings to give us an idea of how much moisture is in the air. However, relative humidity readings are not the best gauge because air can hold a more substantial amount of water at higher temperatures. We then take temperature readings so that we can figure out the exact grains of water per pound of air or specific humidity SH. Specific humidity can be determined by using a psychrometric chart. The chart tells us how many grains of water are in a pound of air using recorded temperature and relative humidity readings. These are tools for controlling the rate of evaporation and a successful conclusion for the established drying goals.
 
If you ever notice problems that have to do with moisture inside your home, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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Professional Methods To Restore Your Easthampton Home After Experiencing Fire Damage

8/22/2018 (Permalink)

You need to know the options you have when your property experiences a fire damage incident.

Professional Methods To Restore Your Home

You need to know the options you have when your property experiences a fire damage incident. The idea is to put the right measures in place and act quickly to avoid the need to refinish and replace what professionals can easily restore using professional methods. We do not rely on a single cleaning method when restoring your property since different contents and surfaces may have the soot particles. We're going to cover some of the methods we use when addressing such events in Easthampton.
 
When our SERVPRO technicians are pre-cleaning light-to-medium soot particles during fire damage restoration in Easthampton, we might decide to use dry cleaning. During the technique, we use feather dusters to brush or lightly wipe surfaces to remove dust. Vacuuming as well as using a dry cleaning sponge is part of dry cleaning. We usually use this technique before introducing additional wet cleaning procedures.
 
If the soot particles are moderate to heavy, then wet cleaning can be a good option. In this process, we use an appropriate cleaning agent or water to do the work. This process is best suited for the contents which cannot experience any additional damage even after being thoroughly saturated by the cleaning agent. Spray and wipe also happens to be a wet cleaning process and when we use the method, we use a clean white towel to wipe the surface. We prefer to use spray and wipe when we need to control the quantity of the cleaning agent and when too much saturation may affect the surface or materials we are restoring.
 
If agitating the surface is necessary when removing the smoke particles, then our SERVPRO technicians may use the abrasive cleaning method. In this process, we may use a cleaning agent that contains abrasive ingredients or use an abrasive material when applying the cleaning product. If we have to use this method, we are careful not to damage surfaces with the abrasives.
 
SERVPRO of Hampshire County can restore both your residential or commercial property and return it to its preloss state. Call us at (413) 324-1300 and learn the options you have in our 24-hour emergency services.

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Summer Storms Can Bring Flood Damage To Your Amherst Home

7/30/2018 (Permalink)

Water from the rains come gushing into your guest bedroom, and before you know it, the room is flooded, and your furniture is soaked.

Summer Storms Can Bring Flood Damage

Summer brings warm weather, vacations, and outdoor barbeques, but it also brings seasonal storms with it that can cause intense flood damage to your home. Lightning, thunder, whipping winds, and heavy rain are all a product of these severe storms and each one can have a significant impact on your residence. When lightning strikes a tree outside your house and causes it to plunge through part of your roof, the situation can seem like something out of a nightmare. Water from the rains come gushing into your guest bedroom, and before you know it, the room is flooded, and your furniture is soaked. It is imperative to reach out to professionals as soon as you can.

In order for a contractor to fix the new hole in your roof, the flood damage in your Amherst home must be dealt first. The contractor cannot work with sopping wet patches of material. The sooner you get a professional restoration company into your home, the better, as they can remove the flooded water and dry out the space.

When SERVPRO arrives at your house, the first thing we can do after our investigation is put a tarp over the hole of your roof so no further moisture can get inside while we work. Afterward, our technicians can clean up any floating, and potentially dangerous, debris from the tree that fell into your home. Once we are dealing with just the flooded water, SERVPRO can then bring in advanced trade technology so that we may remove it.

Our techs use devices like wet/dry vacuums and portable pumps to remove the flooded water from your guest room. To assist in removing water from the soaked carpet and drapes, we can use an extractor to remove the moisture. An extractor has a heating element that further helps to dry fabric materials as it pulls the water away from them. Additionally, SERVPRO can use tools like ventilation box fans and air movers to dry out your floor and the area of your roof that had been damaged by the rain. The very last thing that we can do for you is to put you in contact with a contractor that we recommend so they can fix the hole in your roof.

When an accident befalls your home, never hesitate to call for help. Get in touch with SERVPRO of Hampshire County by dialing (413) 324-1300. Our experts always make it a priority to arrive at your home as swiftly as we possibly can.

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A Clothers Dryer Is Sometimes the Culprit in a Granby House Fire

7/10/2018 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Says Keep Dryer Filters and Ducts Clean to Prevent House Fires in Granby

Granby Home Owners Call SERVPRO for Fire & Smoke Damage Cleanup

Fires can start wherever heat builds up inside your Granby house. This includes the laundry area. Dryer fires often happen when lint accumulates and then ignites. The airways get blocked from the appliance through the elbow leading to the venting duct. This heat can ignite and also put undue stress on your dryer's performance as it raises your electrical bill. While threads and other items generally become caught in the lint trap, it is possible for defects to cause problems. When objects have sharp points or edges, they can make small holes in the mesh, letting larger fibers through and into the ducts. Other times, a lighter left in a pocket can ignite inside the dryer, and spread from there.

Clothes dryer fires can ignite areas in your Granby laundry room or travel through the ducts from the dryer to the vent. Wherever fire damage spreads inside your house, SERVPRO quickly restores everything so you and your family can get back to your regular routines, “Like it never even happened.”

Removing fire-damaged ducts and other materials helps us uncover the rest of the damage more easily. Cleaning as much as we can to restore it back to usable condition keeps costs lower than replacing specific elements. However, when we cannot attain safe conditions with restoration replacements become our only option. Smoke from burned clothing can become very offensive. We eliminate these odors with thermal fogging as a last restort throughout your home. Hydroxyl generators typically can vanquish the foul-smelling airborne particulates. Smoke-killing agents perform the task of eliminating the particles that produce the smoky smell your family continues to breathe in, making the air clean again. Removing any residual water that was used to put the fire out also needs to take place. Preventing mold and mildew growth after a fire protects your house even further. Microbes do not care if the materials they consume carry an offensive odor.

Moisture from your washing machine may also play a part if electricity was cut off after the fire. We work with you to get everything back to normal and in healthy livable conditions. We want your family to live in a safe environment, free of damages that can easily cause harm or injury.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can make your home's problems with fire damage a thing of the past. Call us at (413) 324-1300 to let us know of your situation, and we can explain how we can help you accomplish this in a fast and efficient manner.

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Professional Mitigation After Commercial Fire Damage Keeps Your Granby Business Going

7/3/2018 (Permalink)

Granby business owners need commercial fire damage mitigation after a blaze takes place in their company offices, warehouses, or factories.

Professional Mitigation After A Fire

The situational changes that occur after a natural disaster could easily put many companies out of business, so government agencies use disaster relief funds to prevent this from affecting the area's economy. Individual businesses in the Granby area do not receive such assistance when they sustain damage, however, but a fast response can help them remain a part of our city's economic framework.

Granby business owners need commercial fire damage mitigation after a blaze takes place in their company offices, warehouses, or factories. SERVPRO experts know how to get everything back to normal again with safe conditions for employees, customers, and the public in general. Eliminating the damage to your property also involves the re-creation of a safe environment.

Our local technicians can get your business, regardless of its size, complexity, or industry, back into operational condition again. We're a part of a nationwide network of over 1,700 SERVPRO companies across America, each of which also always stands ready to help business owners near them. We assist property owners in every industry, including government agencies.

Our ability comes from our dedication to serve our customers. This dedication starts before your business becomes damaged and needs our services. We know we cannot protect all businesses from every possible disaster, but we can help business owners become more prepared in the event one does happen. We do this through our Emergency READY Profile Plan, which we offer without charge to businesses located in our area. Contact SERVPRO to find out more about how this program can make restoration and recovery faster and with reduced losses.

When fire damage affects a business, we take all the damage into consideration. Safety remains a priority, from start to finish. We take care of removing damaged and charred materials, including glass and other sharp objects. We remove the water and foam used by firefighters. Cleaning up reveals how much of your business survived, and can provide a starting point for rebuilding. Often, clearing the area brings relief to business owners, as well. Discussing the future and how things can look again often helps develop new ideas that can help your business thrive once it reopens.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can restore your business after fire damage so you can get things back to normal. Call us so we can help you through this devastating event. Our local number, (413) 324-1300, is always available so you can receive answers when you need them the most.

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Cleaning Out Mold Damage In Easthampton

6/13/2018 (Permalink)

Stopping mold growth and cleaning up the damage requires professional service.

Cleaning Out Mold Damage

Easthampton homeowners deal with the same disasters as anyone else. Our proximity to large bodies of water, however, increases the threat of flooding, and also brings an increased risk of mold growth whenever water finds its way inside the structure.

Since it is impossible to keep the Connecticut River from cresting its banks, stopping Easthampton mold damage means cutting off the source of water inside the home. SERVPRO response teams train to follow a mold growth to its origin point and then eliminate the moisture source. Regardless if it is outside water from flooding or a puddle that collected under a laundry room sink, our specialists can dry the affected area inside, and then remove the mold spores and growth.

In most cases, removing mold means killing active spores and cleaning them off of nearby surfaces. Technicians use a variety of anti-fungal agents to eliminate the threat, allow the area to dry, and then use sponges and cloths to wipe away the dry mold. If there is a significant amount, they may need to use a mild cleaning agent to break up any clumps of spores.

In areas like attics or basements, SERVPRO technicians also have the option to use industrial vacuums with HEPA filters. These filters are designed specifically to capture and collect mold spores and can lift even a single, microscopic spore from any surface. Every spore we remove, on a cloth or in a filter, is carefully bagged before leaving the affected area to prevent accidentally contaminating clean areas of the home and disposed of according to State and Federal regulations.

If the mold went unnoticed long enough, spores could grow into a surface. When this happens, one of our inspectors carefully examines the items to determine if they can be cleaned or require disposal. If the mold is on personal property as a piece of furniture, it may be possible to clean and remove the mold. As an example, an upholstered sofa can be cleaned using spray or foam cleaners, dried, and then vacuumed using HEPA filters.

If the items are building materials, our technicians remove the affected paneling, ceiling tiles, or sheetrock and dispose of them. In most cases, replacement is far cheaper than attempting to cut out affected portions and patch them. Replacement is the usual response of most major insurance companies as well.

Stopping mold growth and cleaning up the damage requires professional service. SERVPRO of Hampshire County has helped our neighbors restore their homes and businesses for many years now. Call (413) 324-1300 today and let us help you too.

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Smoke And Soot Damage Removal For Your Easthampton Restaurant

5/29/2018 (Permalink)

Easthampton Pizzerias Count on SERVPRO If the Wood Fire Gets Out of Control

Keeping Businesses Open in Easthampton After Fire & Smoke Damaging Events Is Our Business--Call SERVPRO

There are multiple perils to your Easthampton restaurant every day. As the owner of this establishment, part of your responsibility is making sure that you take the necessary precautions and preventative measures to ensure that most of these potential threats never actually affect your building or business. One of the most considerable risks with cooking elements in a building is the possibility of kitchen fires breaking out from unattended dishes or unexpected flare-ups.

Regardless of how the kitchen fire started in your Easthampton restaurant, contending with the fire damages can seem a little overwhelming. As the owner, your focus is providing excellent food to the customers, and for those customers to have a quality experience when they come in. To overcome the effects of this fire in your facility, you need professional restoration services from certified technicians like ours at SERVPRO.

While the effects of the fire might present themselves in several different ways, commonly the most significant threats to preparing food and retaining customers is the soot and smoke damages. Soot damage can often get wiped and scrubbed from surfaces it has seated on, but other areas might require the use of spot specific vacuuming and other specialized equipment.

Smoke damages often present themselves in your building as lingering sediment in the circulating air and a persistent noxious odor. Fire suppressant systems can reduce these losses. This smell is anything but inviting to the customers hoping to get a meal in your restaurant, so it is a critical component of the restoration process. Air scrubbers with HEPA filters can catch any dirt and debris in the air as the activated carbon filter helps to eliminate odors. Our SERVPRO technicians can employ thermal foggers to neutralize the foul odor in cases of extensive fire and damaging smoke events. This fogging can get used in the dining area as well on fabrics, carpets, and upholstery. There are limitations, and often hydroxyl generators are also an excellent choice to purify the air of malodorous scents.

Overcoming a kitchen fire in your restaurant does not have to shut down your business for good, or possibly even for a short time. You can always count on the experienced hands at SERVPRO of Hampshire County to restore the damage and get your business back on track. Give us a call 24/7 at (413) 324-1300.

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Mold Damage Prevention and Restoration in Amherst

5/24/2018 (Permalink)

Mold can spread very quickly when there is excess moisture. Contact SERVPRO at the first sight or musty smell for remediation services.

Certified SERVPRO Technicians Attack Your Home's Mold Infestation at the Root Cause 

Mold damage can gradually destroy your contents once it grows on your furnishings, walls, and other hidden locations. Usually, controlling moisture is the secret behind preventing and managing the destruction it causes. There is a genuine concern that exposure to mold can lead to health effects and therefore, as a resident of Amherst you should not take chances once you suspect contamination.
 
There are several tips that our SERVPRO team recommends to property owners to prevent mold damage in Amherst. To begin with, try fixing your faulty plumbing system as soon as possible. Another tip is to inspect whether there is any form condensation or wet spots in your home and correct the source. On top of that, carrying out regular HVAC inspections and maintenance is encouraged. Despite the many precautions we observe to prevent this challenge, we cannot completely stop it from happening.
 
When our SERVPRO experts are at the site, we identify the damaged materials and degree of damage which helps us to plan for the remediation work. When planning, we also select the appropriate PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) as a safety measure. When we suspect mold contamination in your HVAC system, we stop its operation to prevent it from spreading the spores.
 
Before we can start capturing the mold spores through air filtration or any appropriate procedure, we put in place containment measures. We may use physical barriers to isolate the area as well as establish negative pressure to prevent the spread of the spores. During containment, we also switch off fans, cooling and heating systems.
 
Cleaning procedures are part of the mold remediation process, and our SERVPRO technicians select a cleanup procedure dependent on the materials and the surface with the contamination. When cleaning carpets as well as upholstered furniture, we may use steam cleaning. In most cases, we discard porous materials with deep mold penetration since it is hard to make them entirely clean. Damp-wiping materials and surfaces with detergents is also crucial at this particular stage. After that, we perform deodorization to address the odor challenges as well as spread antimicrobials that prevent the possibility of future mold growth.
 
At SERVPRO of Hampshire County We're Faster To Any Size Disaster be it water, fire, mold or storm-related. We are a proven industry leader, and you can get in touch with us by calling (413) 324-1300 at any time of the day.
 
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When Your Granby Chain Restaurant Needs Professional Restoration Following a Kitchen Fire

5/4/2018 (Permalink)

A fire in your restaurant can leave behind severe damage and smoke odor leaving you in need of professional fire damage restoration services.

SERVPRO Works Quickly to Restore Your Business after Fire Damage

Your Granby franchise restaurant might not have slowed down much since you first opened your doors, but that does not discredit the possibility that even a minor disaster could derail this successful run for a short time. As much food as is cooked in the kitchens of your establishment, you ask a lot of the focus of your employees and the continued performance of the ranges and ovens that prepare the food for hungry customers in the dining area.

Even a small kitchen fire in your eatery can have widespread effects for both the employees you have hired and the customers that come to your restaurant. Fighting any of these fire damages in your Granby franchise can prove challenging on your own, not to mention incredibly time-consuming compared to the efficiency of professional restoration.

Our SERVPRO team can quickly identify the full extent of the damage that your restaurant faces and addresses these concerns in order of importance based on what keeps your establishment closed to the public and what concerns are most pressing to you the owner. In even small kitchen blazes, lingering smoke damage and a noxious odor can prove nauseating and unnerving to patrons, so this is a step that must get completed in the fire damage restoration process.

To deodorize the building, our SERVPRO professionals utilize thermal fogging. This process breaks apart smoke odor molecules and neutralizes them on contact. The chemical solution that comprises the fog is odorless, so no scent is left behind from the deodorization efforts.

Your restaurant is never going to get prepared for the possibility of a kitchen fire that requires professional restoration. Fortunately, our helpful SERVPRO of Hampshire County technicians can walk you through the entire process and work to ensure that your doors do not stay closed a moment longer than they need to. We can appreciate your need to serve your community, as we share this same obligation to you. You can reach our emergency response team 24/7 by calling (413) 324-1300.

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Protecting Homes from the Effects of Stormy Weather with Water Removal Services in Westhampton

4/24/2018 (Permalink)

Don't Sleep on a Park Bench After a Storm in Westhampton, Call SERVPRO for Water Removal

Rapid Water Extraction Mitigates Storm Damaged Homes

Storms can bring tremendous amounts of water into Westhampton rather quickly, and at times cause minor flooding in lower areas. When this water ends up inside a home, it can create problems for the homeowner. Rainwater can end up in a house other ways, too.
 
Residences that sustain heavy rainfall might need water removal services. Besides flooding in Westhampton, rain can end up inside a home from roof leaks.  During winter, ice dams can create loose shingles where water can come into the attic area. Strong winds can create gaps in siding which can also create problems during spring storms.
 
SERVPRO's IICRC-certified employees can bring this problem to a halt quickly. We not only remove the offending water, moisture, and humidity invading your home, but we also repair the places, for minor and fast closures, which permitted it to enter, keeping water from future storms entirely outside. When the structural damage is significant, then an outside contractor must rebuild the damaged house components.
 
In the unfortunate event that a tree lands on your home and makes holes in the roof, we can provide emergency services to remove the tree and then tarp the area, so damage remains minimal. Yard debris also causes problems, so we understand when customers desire that we eliminate this type of mess.
 
Removing the water from inside your home occurs with appropriate equipment and tools. When water evaporates into the air, SERVPRO can remove it with the equipment that finds it in the air. Absorbent materials also hold onto water, so we increase the environment's temperature and help it re-enter the air again, making it easier to extract. For huge messes like floods and caved-in roofs, we use larger equipment such as our truck-mounted pumps. No matter the size or kind of job, we have industry-leading equipment designed to solve the situation.
 
SERVPRO of Hampshire County technicians come from the families of Amherst, Ware, Belchertown, and others in our surrounding areas. We want to help those in our communities recover from storms, floods, and other water-related disasters with water removal services. Call us at (413) 324-1300 when your family home or business sustains such damage. We can help make it "Like it never even happened" for you in a fast and efficient way.

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What You Should Do When Your Easthampton Pizzeria Has a Small Fire

4/11/2018 (Permalink)

Don't let fire damage in your pizzeria close your doors for long. Contact SERVPRO for effective fire damage remediation services.

SERVPRO Arrives Quickly to Remediate Your Business Fire

Even a blaze of small magnitude can cause fire damage on your property. The nature of making and serving food at your establishment makes it slightly easier to have a fire break out. Food preparation takes place at all points of operation which means that a stove or pizza oven is running more often than it is not during open hours. Fortunately, should a fire have occurred, professional help is nearby to handle the cleanup and damage restoration.
 
An electrical shortage due to faulty wiring can cause a blaze to outbreak in your pizzeria and leave behind commercial fire damage in Easthampton. The fire can scorch the walls, floors, and countertops of your kitchen while also damaging the appliances. That kind of mess is merely too big to try and clean up yourself, but our IICRC-certified technicians can handle the trouble while allowing you to keep your doors open.
 
SERVPRO understands how essential it is to keep your doors open for business. Our technicians can work on cleaning up the soot that had adhered itself to the structures in your kitchen when it is best for you. We can operate during hours that your pizzeria is closed to the public. We can stay out of sight and out of mind while remediating your property.
 
SERVPRO knows that sight and smell are both essential tools to be used in a kitchen while preparing food. We can use advanced tools to dislodge the soot and neutralize the smells in your kitchen. When cleaning scorch marks, we can apply a variety of methods depending on the affected material, including chemical cleaners. We can use thermal foggers to remove stray odors, which penetrate the odorous particles and eliminates them. SERVPRO strives to return your business to its preloss state, including the way it smelled.
 
When a fire breaks out on your property, do not wait. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300. Day or night, we can rush to your property and begin the remediation process when it best suits you.

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Water Removal Projects in Ware

4/7/2018 (Permalink)

If your home has two inches or more of water, SERVPRO uses submersible pumps to quickly and efficiently extract the water.

Rely on SERVPRO for Water Removal Services after Water Floods Your Home

Any time a pipe breaks, water possibly leaks into your Ware home. The presence of water can cause many things inside the house to get ruined. Unwanted moisture is also a way mold forms inside a building.

Any time water unexpectedly floods your home, extraction and drying within 48 hours becomes a necessity. SERVPRO's water removal technicians in Ware have all of the necessary extraction and drying equipment that helps prevent mold growth. After a water problem, if moisture levels do not get returned to preloss conditions within 48 hours mold likely develops.

The first step in mitigating any problem with moisture is to fix the issue at its source. If the initial problem was a pipe break, then water gets shut off so that it stops flowing into the structure. We then call in a plumber to fix the pipe break so that water does not leak once it gets turned back on.

After we keep water from flowing into your home where it is not wanted, we begin the extraction phase. During extraction, we attempt to pull out as much water out of your house as we possibly can. If there are more than two inches of standing water inside the building, then we use a submersible pump to suck up the water. To vacuum water out of upholstery and carpet, we use a heavy-duty extractor equipped with specialized tools made for getting the moisture out of fabrics.

Once the extraction process is complete, we begin the structural drying step. To dry the structure, our SERVPRO restoration team first uses monitoring equipment to test affected areas to determine how wet an area is. We always get readings of the area that was affected and areas of the home that were unaffected and compare the two numbers. The difference gives us an estimate of what equipment and how much time is needed to properly dry out the structure.

The dry-out process does not get completed until all moisture levels have returned to preloss conditions. Throughout the drying procedures, we use different types of moisture meters to test levels in various materials. To make sure your home gets dried out correctly after water issues call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 for help 24/7.  

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Mold Damage Cleanup and Safety in Your Easthhampton Home

3/30/2018 (Permalink)

If there is a leak under your sink, it is likely mold will begin to grow in 24-48 hours.

Call SERVPRO at  Any Sign of Mold Damage in Your Home

Finding a leak under your kitchen sink in Easthampton is terrible enough, but when you also find that mold has been growing, you want to take action. Mold thrives in these moist, dark environments, and only needs a bit of time – about 24 to 48 hours – to begin growing. Once it starts, it just keeps going, spreading even to other areas of your kitchen if left long enough.

Mold growth and mold damage in your Easthampton home of any amount should be taken care of right away. It does not go away on its own and can eventually cause health effects for you and your family. Cleaning it on your own is not recommended, as regular household cleaners are not enough. That is why our staff at SERVPRO are ready to help you at any time. As experienced and trained mold remediation specialists, we can handle your mold problem, so it does not come back.

Our first step in remediation is to determine how severe the problem is. We inspect the area and talk to you, so you understand what is going on at all times. We may ask you if you have had previous problems with mold or noticed any strong, musty odors anywhere else. We need to know when you think the water damage first occurred as well.

SERVPRO workers are careful to protect themselves while working with mold by wearing PPE, or personal protective equipment. For a small area such as under your sink, an N95 or higher filter type respirator can be used. For more extensive areas, a half-mask respirator and cartridges are used. Chemical resistant gloves are always used, and we also wear eye protection.

We can quickly create a barrier around the mold damaged area when a small growth of mold is found. The main reason for doing so is to keep the mold contained in the area where we are working. We do not want it spreading to clean sections of your home while we are stirring up the mold spores during the cleaning process.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County works carefully and thoroughly to get rid of a mold infestation in your home in Ludlow, Ware, or Westhampton. You can be sure that when you contact us at (413) 324-1300, you are getting help from a knowledgeable and experienced company.

Click here for more information regarding Easthampton.

Hidden Mold Damage in Your Granby Home

3/11/2018 (Permalink)

Mold growth can be overwhelming. Contact SERVPRO at the first sight of mold for an investigation and remediation efforts.

SERVPRO Locates the Source of the Mold Infestation Before Remediating the Damage

Sometimes, you can have mold growing in your Granby home and not even realize it. One way in which this can happen is if you have a slow pipe leak. Pipes are usually out of eyesight and buried under flooring or behind walls. If one of them starts leaking slowly, you probably won’t even realize it for a while, and in the meantime, mold also has a chance to grow.
 
If you have discovered mold and mold damage in your Granby home from a hidden leak, the faster you get it taken care of, the better. Your home continues to sustain more damage the longer the mold and moisture are present, so get in touch with our technicians at SERVPRO when you see a problem. We have the training and the tools to take care of the problem for you quickly.
 
Upon arrival to your home, we do a careful inspection of your property for visible signs of mold. It feeds on water and cellulose and can be hidden from plain sight, so we use various technologies to find hidden water sources and mold.
 
SERVPRO techs also use various containment procedures to stop the mold from spreading. We might use containment methods that are advanced such as negative air chambers, so the area which is contaminated is isolated with barriers, plus negative air pressure to stop the spores from spreading to clean areas of your home. All cooling and heating systems or fans are turned off to stop the spread of the infestation.
 
Specialized air filtration equipment is also used to catch microscopic spores from the air. We use HEPA vacuums and air scrubbers to stop the spread of mold as well during the remediation process.
 
Our process of remediation depends on how much mold growth there is and what kinds of surfaces the mold is on. We use antimicrobial and antifungal treatments to get rid of the colonies of mold and to stop new ones from forming. Removing and getting rid of porous materials that are mold-infested, such as carpeting and drywall, can be necessary when massive mold growth is present.
 
Restoration may also involve minor repairs like painting, replacing drywall, or installing new carpet. Major repairs include the construction of various rooms or areas in your home.
 
No matter how small or large your mold issue is, SERVPRO of Hampshire County ensures they are thorough in cleaning up your home in Belchertown, Ware, or Hadley. Get in touch with us as at (413) 324-1300 as soon as you see a problem so we can help.
 
Click here for more information on the city of Granby.

Restoring Your Home and Your Life after Flood Damage Happens to Your Ware Residence

2/21/2018 (Permalink)

Contact SERVPRO as soon as possible to minimize the effects of flood damage in your home.

SERVPRO Works Hard to Restore Your Home Back to Safe Conditions for Your Family after Flood Damage

Nature often comes to mind as a beautiful, peaceful force that people in the Ware community travel out of their everyday environment to experience. Nature sometimes makes house calls and a substantial amount of costly damage might take place instead of a calm and relaxing interaction.

Ware residences in low-lying areas can sustain flood damage at any time of the year, but Spring can mean a much higher chance of this happening than other seasons. Increased rain and melting snow can mean the ground becomes too saturated to hold additional water, and this all too often results in flooding of our local homes and businesses.

Just like a quick response before flooding occurs can save many of your more valuable possessions, a timely reaction after a flood can also decrease you and your family's overall frustration. This includes lower restoration costs, a reduction of possible health risks, fewer damages to personal belongings, and also a shortening of the amount of time your home remains unlivable. Responding slowly can only bring increased damages and more significant loss of property, among other consequences.

The water in a flood does not only look dirty, but it also carries pathogens and chemicals that can cause health effects. Elimination of these microbes and chemicals through proper handling of your home's interior can adequately decrease exposure to these elements and protect your family. However, we must address many other aspects of flood damage in your home before we can consider it completely restored "Like it never even happened."

Structurally, your home must provide adequate shelter that poses no risks to the occupants. Homes where water remained for lengthy periods often sustain severe damage to walls, floors, wiring, and electrical features, and many other situations that all need competent workers to restore safe conditions.

Odor also plays a role in disasters affecting homes, even when the culprit is clean, and not dirty, water. Our Odor Control Technician (OCT) can help you resolve this specific problem, also, so your home smells fresh and clean when the restoration work ends. Removing the damaged materials eliminates a considerable portion of the odor-causing microbes and other particles, but when an odor lingers, we can assure you that we can go that extra step for you and your family.

Helping the communities of Granby, Ludlow, and Hadley, SERVPRO of Hampshire County takes flood damage very seriously. We want individuals and families in the surrounding areas to live in safe, clean, dry homes. Call us at (413) 324-1300, at any time, day or night, any day of the year, whenever flooding affects your home.

Click here for more on the town of Ware.

How Do Professionals Take Care of Odor Problems After Commercial Fire Damage to Your Amherst Store?

2/18/2018 (Permalink)

Customers definitely don't want to purchase clothing items that smell bad or burnt. Contact SERVPRO should your store have a fire incident.

Team SERVPRO Quickly Arrives to Tackle Damage at Your Store

One of the most significant problems after a fire incident to your store is the odor. Whether you own a garment store, a restaurant, a grocery store or any other business, if your establishment smells like smoke, it drives the customers away. Even after the cosmetic and structural restoration after fire damage, it is crucial for your business that your store does not smell of smoke and soot.

Thankfully, SERVPRO technicians can use some of the best equipment to have your store smelling like usual in no time after commercial fire damage in Amherst. We employ different methods to eliminate even the most potent odors after a fire incident. Deodorization is a multistep process involving the following steps.

Removal of the odor source
The best way to deal with the odor problems after a fire is to eliminate the source of the odor itself. SERVPRO Professionals can remove any charred material from the building in an attempt to eliminate the source of the odor. The burnt debris can continue to give off odors if they are not disposed of promptly.

Cleaning surfaces  
The next step in the odor elimination process is to clean the surfaces with odor-causing residue on their surface. Cleaning is especially challenging in case of protein residue and wet smoke residue. Various cleaning techniques need to be employed to eliminate these residues in an attempt to remove the residue.

Recreation of the conditions that cause odor penetration
One of the reasons for deeper penetration of odor after a fire is the fact that the smoke can carry the odor causing particles deep into the pores of surfaces. To neutralize those odors, professionals use thermal foggers that create a vapor of a deodorant. This process takes the deodorant particles to the same place as the odor causing particles. The deeper, hidden odor-causing particles can lead to foul odor in your establishment driving customers out. So, it is necessary to use foggers to combat these.

Sealing the surfaces  
If the odor removal is too expensive or impractical, the odor causing particles can be sealed by painting over them. Inaccessible ducts can also be often sealed to eliminate the odor after a fire incidence in your establishment.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 today to consult with our odor elimination experts.

Click here for more information regarding Amherst.

How do Professionals Mitigate Mold Damage in Your Amherst Home?

2/6/2018 (Permalink)

SERVPRO has a four step process to properly rid your home of mold damage and help prevent future damage.

SERVPRO’s Mold Remediation Process to Rid Your Home of Mold Damage

Mold damage is one of the worst things to happen to any home. Not only can it spread quickly, but it can also cause health effects. The best chance to control mold damage is to start the mitigation process as soon as possible. Restoration experts can help you get the damage under control and prevent any further damage as well.

Professional restoration experts use a multi-step process to clean the mold damage from your Amherst property. SERVPRO experts have all the necessary equipment to get the job done safely and efficiently. Here are the steps involved in professional mold remediation that you should know.

Containment

One of the essential steps in the whole process, containment refers to physically preventing the spores of the mold from spreading to unaffected areas. Our technicians use plastic sheeting to create a physical barrier and prevent the mold from spreading to uncontaminated areas during the cleanup. We can also use a negative air pressure to avoid the airborne spores from spreading to other areas of your home. Our technicians can also seal HVAC vents and establish ‘clean rooms' during the mitigation process to prevent the spread.

Removal 

Once the damage has been contained, the next step is to remove the mold itself. The methods of removal depend on the type of the material involved. While porous material needs to be thrown out, the non-porous material can be cleaned by HEPA vacuuming and then clean with a detergent solution. The semi-porous material can be cleaned by sanding, wire brushing or damp wiping. SERVPRO professionals can use a combination of these methods depending on the nature of the surface involved in the damage.

Cleanup 

The next important step in the mold remediation process is the cleanup. The settled spores and dust can be cleaned by vacuuming the surfaces with a HEPA vacuum. The cleanup is usually done in multiple rounds as the spores in the air take time to settle down. SERVPRO technicians can allow several hours between two rounds of HEPA vacuuming to get rid of most of the settled spores.

Drying

The last and perhaps the most critical step to prevent further contamination is drying. Mold loves wet and damp spaces. Professionals can help you to remove the residual moisture and try to prevent the mold from coming back.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 today to schedule a free consultation.

Click here for more information regarding Amherst.

What To Do After Flood Damage To Your Easthampton Home?

1/23/2018 (Permalink)

Flooding due to natural disasters such as storms can cause heavy damage to your Easthampton home.

What To Do After A Flood

Flooding due to natural disasters such as storms can cause heavy damage to your Easthampton home. The floodwater if not promptly and efficiently removed can cause secondary structural damage that can cost you thousands to restore.

It is crucial to know what to do after a storm has caused flood damage to your Easthampton home for a fast and efficient restoration. Being prepared for the aftermath is the key to getting your home back in order as soon as possible. Here are some things that SERVPRO technicians recommend you should do after a storm.

Safety First
The first and perhaps the most crucial thing to do after a flooding incidence is to ensure safety. Make certain that your family is safe before trying to do anything else. Turn off your home’s electric supply (even if the power is out) before the storm causes flooding.

Floodwater can be contaminated with nasty bacteria that can have adverse health effects. If possible, avoid handling floodwater by yourself. SERVPRO technicians have the necessary expertise and experience to handle and remove floodwater safely. Most importantly, avoid drinking tap water after a storm at all cost.

Get Professional Help For The Cleanup
SERVPRO technicians are available 24/7 to offer emergency services after a flooding incidence. There is no doubt that you need professional help to remove floodwater from your home. Successful flood damage restoration requires heavy-duty extractors, dehumidifiers, and air movers to eliminate the water and residual moisture to minimize the damage.

Professional restorers can also help you in filing an insurance claim. Make sure that you keep your insurance adjuster in the loop and provide him/her with as many details as you can. Maintaining an inventory of items damaged in the flooding is also a great idea. Our technicians can help you in this as well.

SERVPRO technicians are available 24/7 to offer emergency services after a flooding incidence. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 today to talk to one of our flood restoration experts and discuss your situation. Our goal is to help make it "Like it never even happened."

Click here for more about Easthampton.

The Process of Water Removal in your Westhampton Home

1/15/2018 (Permalink)

Need Westhampton Water and Moisture Extraction? Just Call SERVPRO

Liquid and Vapor Can Both Damage Properties without Swift Extraction

Water removal is the first step towards water restoration. If you have suffered any harm in Westhampton, it is crucial that all the water is removed from your house. At times, you may even be forced to move out for a while if there is a need for extensive cleaning or restoration.

Regardless of the amount of water in your Westhampton home, the process of water removal should start immediately. It is essential in that it helps to reduce the amount of drying time and prevents secondary water damage and mold.
 
Hiring a dependable company like SERVPRO can ensure the job is done right the very first time. Our IICRC trained professionals conduct a thorough inspection to know what needs to be done to get rid of all the water. We use top-notch detection equipment to locate all the areas of the house that has been affected by water. It helps us note down the extent to which the structure and its contents have absorbed moisture.
 
We answer your call fast and use advanced restoration and cleaning equipment to produce excellent results. Our team understands how to dry personal property and structures efficiently. We may use powerful submersible pumps and industrial strength wet vacuums depending on the task at hand. We primarily use extractors to clean upholstery and carpets as well as remove water from floors. It is a proven technique for moisture removal.
 
Homeowners should note that water damages materials in two main ways. One is through absorption or wicking that happens through direct contact with water. The other is the absorption of moisture present in the air. The air’s moisture content must be measured as it is critical to the drying process. Heating or cooling the affected area to attain a workable RH, relative humidity, is crucial to successful water damage restoration. Our highly trained restoration technicians have a deep understanding of this.
 
We always establish a favorable drying environment by manipulating humidity and temperature levels to achieve optimum drying conditions. The process is vital because it stops secondary damages from happening via improper drying processes. The moisture detection devices such as moisture meters, thermal hygrometers, and infrared cameras that we use to verify your space have dried thoroughly helps with insurance claims. After completing the work, we take our clients on a final walk to make sure that we leave them highly satisfied.
 
Call (413) 324-1300 if you would like SERVPRO of Hampshire County to assist with efficient water removal services. We offer emergency services round the clock also serving Amherst, Easthampton, and other surrounding areas.

More regarding this beautiful MA town by clicking here.

Heavy Snowfall Can Cause Flood Damage to Your Westhampton Home

1/11/2018 (Permalink)

Heavy blankets on snow on your roof can cause flooding in your home when weak spots in your roof give way and collapse.

SERVPRO Offers IICRC-Certified Restoration Services 24/7

Many envision a flood in Westhampton as one that overtakes neighborhoods slowly in the Spring. However, substantial snowfall can also cause flooding in your home when weak spots in your roof give way and collapse. One of the first services we perform when we arrive is placing a tarp over the affected area of your home to prevent any additional damage.

A Westhampton home can suffer flood damage from snow crashing through the roof. Such snow can affect every level of the home, from top to bottom. The situation can become worse when a homeowner does not realize a problem with the roof happened and only becomes aware of the problem when water becomes visible in the living areas of the home.

Water slowly seeps down from melting snow, allowing many materials to absorb substantial mounts. A great deal of damage happens in the attic, of course, but living areas also need professional mitigation. Your personal belongings can also end up severely affected and require specialized care. Restoration typically costs much less than replacing items, and at SERVPRO, we prefer to always take the most cost-effective options available to us.

Although this kind of flood does not impose debris and sediment on a house as a typical flood does, we still must treat your home for contamination. Even the best-kept homes can harbor vermin, including rodents and birds, many of which carry disease. Pathogens carried by these animals, previously undetected mold, and other unhealthy substances can cause health effects. Our pumps remove not only the water but a substantial amount of the contaminants, also.

Drying a home includes removing saturated carpeting, sections of walls and ceilings, airing out other enclosed areas, including closets and cabinets, and installing dry materials. We save our customers expensive replacement costs by cleaning personal belongings, furniture, and household items. Flooding in your home can cause extensive problems, but at SERVPRO, we train our technicians according to IICRC standards. Because they understand the latest in restoration technology, we can provide you with the most appropriate services for your unique situation.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help your family by restoring your home after flood damage or other catastrophic events. Call us locally at (413) 324-1300 to reach our round-the-clock service.

Click here for more on the town of Westhampton.

Appliance Fire Damage in Your Ware Home

12/27/2017 (Permalink)

Appliances make everyday living easier, but can easily cause fire damage to your home if not well maintained.

The Four Fundamental Elements of Cleaning Fire Damage

Appliances in your household in Ware make life more comfortable on a day to day basis. Each machine which operates on gas or electricity, however, presents safety risks and needs to be used according to the instructions from the manufacturer. When you follow basic safety tips, it helps you to avoid disasters in your home.

Keeping appliances away from wet areas in your kitchen or bathroom for example, and not running cords underneath rugs, assists in keeping your home safe from fire and fire damage. If you still experience an appliance fire in your Ware residence, however, SERVPRO can come to your aide in cleaning up and repairing the damage.

To clean fire damage, we need to remove smoke residues and deodorize smoke odors. Fire damage presents a large variety of cleaning challenges because of the various ways that oxygen, heat, gases, and moisture interact to make smoke residues. The different kinds of burning materials found in your home and the effects smoke and temperature have on them make different variables for cleaning methods.

When cleaning fire damage, there are four fundamental elements which we need to suspend residues to be able to remove them. Temperature is the first one. Heat increases the speed of chemical reactions in cleaning products. We select the right temperature depending on the solution being used and the material we are cleaning.

Agitation is next. SERVPRO techs agitate the surfaces by using brushes, towels, water and air pressure, plus sonic vibrations in ultrasonic machines. The process helps to dislodge residues from surfaces and spreads cleaning products over surfaces.

The professional cleaning products we use work through various chemical reactions with surfaces and residues. We select the right cleaning product depending on the action we want like bleaching, dissolving, oxidizing, emulsifying, digesting, or changing pH.

The amount of dwell time that is needed for professional cleaning and deodorization for products to work varies depending upon the kind of residues and the product.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County are experts at determining the right cleaning products and procedures for various types of fire damage. If you have had a fire due to a failed appliance in the areas of Belchertown, Ware, or Amherst, give us a call right away at (413) 324-1300, so we can clean and repair your home.

Click here to learn more about the town of Ware.

Restoring Commercial Water Damage In Northampton

12/21/2017 (Permalink)

In Northampton, commercial water damage to a small, retail store can mean the loss of income for a week.

Commercial Water Damage

Nearly any damage cost to a Northampton business is double to that of a home disaster, if not more. Costs take into account, not just repair and restoration, but also the lost income each day due to the business having to close its doors.

In Northampton, commercial water damage to a small, retail store can mean the loss of income for a week. Unless that store has a good insurance policy behind it, SERVPRO understands that could mean a loss of paychecks for every employee that week and maybe the next one as well. It is our task to get the doors open as soon as possible, to avoid this.

A small, retail operation can still have an extensive inventory of goods. That means our technicians use a variety of tools to preserve the inventory as well as clean and restore the structure itself. To perform both tasks, our primary goals are to remove water and then dry out the interior of the shop.

Standing water is not a safe environment for the business owner, customers, or our SERVPRO technicians. In case of an electrical issue, we turn off the power and then bring in not just pumps and extraction wands, but portable generators as well. We use the pumps when the water is over 2 or 3 inches deep. The extraction wands we use for water under 2 inches or about ankle deep. Technicians also use the wands to draw water from carpets and wood floors.

Once we have the water down to several, isolated puddles, we begin setting up the equipment to dry the interior and help prevent further property loss. That means lowering the inside humidity and drying the actual structure without causing any secondary damage. We start with dehumidifiers which draw moisture from the air and nearby structural and inventory property. Depending on how much moisture is present, each of these machines can remove from 20 to 25 gallons of water each day.

Next, we set up air movers. These devices blow warm, dry air that we direct over floors, walls, and other property to speed up the drying process without causing additional damage. Technicians also set up exhaust fans to draw out the damp air inside. They help improve the function of both the air movers and dehumidifiers.

Restoring a business after water damage is not a quick process, but it is one that SERVPRO of Hampshire County has been doing for over two decades. If you need our help, call us at (413) 324-1300 today. We are here to help.

Click here for more about Northampton.

Water Removal from Carpeting After Bathroom Overflow in Your Ware Home

11/28/2017 (Permalink)

Don't let an overflowing toilet damage your home. Contact SERVPRO after an event to remediate the water damage quickly.

SERVPRO Technicians Arrive Quickly to Dry Out Your Property After Water Damage

A water disaster in your home, such as an overflowing toilet or bathtub, can cause damage to other parts of your home, especially if it happened in an upstairs bathroom. Your home in Ware is the most significant investment you have made, and you want to keep it looking great and in the best shape. When carpeting in your home becomes saturated from a leak or overflow, you have massive cleanup on your hands.
 
It is essential when you have wet carpeting in your Ware home that you seek the help of the professional staff at SERVPRO for water removal. Our certified restoration experts are trained to deal with these situations, and we waste no time in getting to your home to help you. There are also steps you can take to help lessen the damage from the water until we can get there to help.
 
If you can, stop the water at its source and turn off electricity to the area. Do not walk on the carpeting while it is wet, and take small furnishings from the area or place aluminum foil under furniture legs. If possible, you should hang up draperies and take skirts on furniture and pin them, so they do not touch the wet floors. Do not attempt to use a shop vacuum or home vacuum to remove the water and avoid the temptation to turn on heating or fans since they can spread contamination if the event is sewage-related.
 
When SERPVRO arrives, we assess the situation and the damage. We bring in extraction equipment to physically remove any freestanding water, such as truck-mounted pumps. Water is extracted from the carpeting padding, and any upholstery affected as well. If needed, the carpet and padding could be removed for proper drying.
 
We also use drying and dehumidifying equipment which is of professional grade to dry the area and get the humidity levels in your home back to normal. We utilize specialized instruments to help find hidden pockets of water. Our techniques for drying and the right extraction help to lower the chance of secondary damage, potential growth of mold, and lower costs.
 
After your carpeting and home are dry, we place everything back where it was. We even work directly with you and your insurance company if necessary, so your insurance claim is processed correctly.
 
SERVPRO of Hampshire County works quickly to dry your home out after a water emergency. Residents in the areas of Easthampton, Granby, or Amherst should call us right away at (413) 324-1300 when a problem arises.

For more information regarding Ware, click here

Cleaning Up After Flood Damage From A Hurricane In Granby

10/5/2017 (Permalink)

The heavy amounts of water produced by these storms can go through properties of an area and cause a significant amount of flood damage.

Cleaning Up After A Flood

Highly unpredictable regarding patterns, hurricanes are one of the most difficult to predict storms. People living on coastlines endure storm surges and high waves. Even if you are not in the direct path of a hurricane in Granby, it can cause plenty of damage from its flooding rains. The heavy amounts of water produced by these storms can go through properties of an area and cause a significant amount of flood damage.

Streams can overflow their banks from the excess rains, quickly filling streets and homes within Granby with water. If your home experiences flood damage from one of these powerful storms, the cleanup needs to be done efficiently and fast to avoid additional harm, which is why you need to contact SERVPRO as soon as possible.

It's in your best interest to choose our professional team since your home can sustain mildew and mold growth, plus even more damage, the longer you wait. We are available to help you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year for this reason. We realize that flood damage never comes at a convenient time.

SERVPRO’s restoration services being with pumping out the accumulated water. Special, heavy waterlogging equipment, such as truck-mounted portable water pumps, are used to extract and get rid of the standing water. Equipment such as this ensures a fast response and quick drying times.

Industrial strength dehumidifiers and fans are placed to control the moisture levels in your home and dry it thoroughly. We monitor these devices daily, and their position changed when necessary, so we get your home dry as soon as possible. We also use dry and wet fogging, ozone, and crystals treatment for deodorization. To remove any mildew or mold, we use scientific HEPA techniques.

When it comes to your possessions, SERVPRO techs restore, clean, and decontaminate anything that is salvageable, while we dispose of the rest. Different procedures, such as disinfectant and deodorizing agents, are used to clean draperies, clothing, and necessary documents. Sofas, carpets, beds, chairs, utensils, mattresses, appliances and more can be salvaged if prompt action can be taken.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County works with you to restore your home back to its normal state as quickly as possible after flooding. We are specially trained to handle these situations with the right equipment, so do not hesitate to call us at (413) 324-1300 when a problem arises near Easthampton, Granby, or Amherst.

Click here for more about the city of Granby, Massachusetts.

How Being Prepared Saves Food from Water Damage in Amherst Restaurants

9/11/2017 (Permalink)

It is important to store food away from dishwashers to avoid potential water damage to your inventory.

How to minimize the effects of water damage to your restaurant inventory

Water damaged food is a big problem for restaurant owners. Food that becomes damp is likely to be unusable, and losing edible stock is a costly problem. Restaurant owners in Amherst can easily become victims of a broken pipe, leaking appliance, or even an accidental sprinkler activation. Once foodstuff gets wet, it is often too late to save it. That is why SERVPRO recommends taking precautions to prevent water damage to food.

Amherst restaurants benefit from water damage preparedness. It is beneficial to be prepared and never suffer water damage than to be unprepared and suddenly find yourself at the mercy of a leak.

The first step is to draw up an inventory of all the foods you keep on hand. Include long-life items such as anything in tins or packets, along with the fresh items you regularly buy such as vegetables, fruit, meat, and dairy. Now assess your storage facilities. Items that are vulnerable to water damage should be stored at least two or three feet above floor level, and away from potential sources of water such as dishwashers, leaking windows, or pipes.

Now draw up a backup storage plan in case of emergencies. Should something happen and you need to get food out of your restaurant quickly, where will you take it? You might consider a reciprocal backup storage arrangement with a nearby sister restaurant in the same chain, or with another local business. Be aware of the shelf life of food, especially that which requires refrigerator or freezer storage.

Set out clearly what each staff member is expected to do in the event of water damage. The plan might include protecting food items during their shift or moving things to another location. Provide them with a list of emergency procedures to follow and contacts to call.

Be sure to include SERVPRO on your list of important contacts. Our IICRC-certified technicians have all the skills and equipment necessary to pump out water, secure your premises, and dry and dehumidify the affected area so you can open for business again soon.

For help with water damage in Northampton, Ware, Hadley, Ludlow and surrounding areas, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at (413) 324-1300 today.

For more information on Amherst, visit https://www.amherstma.gov/.

Mold Damage Detection and Remediation Services in Amherst

8/15/2017 (Permalink)

Mold grows quickly once the proper environment is attained. Once you see or smell mold, contact SERVPRO for thorough remediation efforts.

Our Team of SERVPRO Technicians Thoroughly Inspect Your Property for Mold and Put Together an Effective Remediation Plan

If water seeps into the house during a flood, the next thing the property owner needs to worry about is mold. Mold growth can occur quickly and cause damage to the structure and its occupants. All it needs is some dark space and a little moisture. The bad news is that mold and mildew can thrive without being detected, especially in very porous materials such as wall insulation, carpets, and carpet pads.
 
To counter the effects of mold on your property, you need a locally based water damage restoration company such as SERVPRO. With many years of experience, our experts can arrive promptly to reverse the mold damage in your Amherst property. We follow IICRC recommendations and have appropriate tools and techniques to deal with various water damage situations.
 
Why Immediate Mold Removal is Important
Mold damage usually occurs within 2 days of contamination. Mold requires water, oxygen, nutrients, and favorable temperatures to thrive. They derive their nutrients from dead, organic materials such as fabrics, wood, and paper, as well as certain synthetic products like paints and adhesives. Normal indoor temperatures are ideal for most molds, as only a few can grow above 100F or below 40F. However, they can remain dormant outside this range of temperature and then revive themselves when the conditions are more favorable.
 
Mold Detection  
Mold growth normally starts where detection is difficult, such as inside crawl spaces and ducts, or behind tiles, paneling, and wallpaper. Our technicians look for early signs of mold damage to determine the presence of mold. These include gaps in the grouts, new cracks in the tiles, blistering paint or crumbling plaster, and warping walls. If your floor or walls are wet and feel relatively softer to the touch, call SERVPRO right away for mold remediation. The most obvious sign of hidden mold growth is a stubborn musty smell in a properly-maintained home.
 
Early detection is key to controlling mold growth. If you suspect the presence of mold in your house, you can count on SERVPRO of Hampshire County to control the mold damage. Call us anytime at (413) 589-8975.
 
For more information regarding Amherst, click here

The Danger in Your Dryer Vents

4/25/2017 (Permalink)

This dryer caught on fire due to a clogged vent.

Did you know that dryer fires are one of the biggest causes of home fires? 

Each year, failure to clean clogged dryer vents and lint traps results in thousands of fires.  These disasters are easily preventable with proper maintenance.

Here are some tips to keep you and your home safe:

• Flexible metal venting material should be used to promote good air flow and drying time


• Make sure the dryer exhaust vent is properly installed and free of any obstruction


• Make sure the outside vent flap is opening properly


• Always use the lint filter in your dryer


• Clean out your lint filter before or after every load. 


• Clean dryer lint from around the drum and on the floor around the dryer


• Only operate your dryer when you are home; in case of a fire, you will be able to respond quicker and limit damage

Once a year, clean lint and other debris out of the vent and pipe.  Too messy, don't have the time? SERVPRO of Hampshire County specializes in air duct and dryer vent cleaning.  Our technicians have the training and the equipment to do the job quickly and efficiently.

Most of all, proper maintenance gives you peace of mind your Western MA home is safe.  And that is priceless.

Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County to discuss your air duct and dryer vent needs at 413-589-8975.

Some content sourced from the National Fire Protection Association.

IAQ Series - Part Four - Indoor Air Quality Problems in Western MA Businesses

4/24/2017 (Permalink)

Over time, air ducts can become clogged with dust, dirt, hair and lots of other contaminants.

This is Part Four of an ongoing series exploring Indoor Air Quality (IAQ).

We've talked a lot on this blog about Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) in Western MA homes.  But office buildings can have poor IAQ as well.

Three major reasons for poor IAQ in office buildings are:

• The presence of indoor air pollution sources such as water damaged ceilings and walls
• Poorly designed, maintained, or operated ventilation systems
• Building uses that were unanticipated or poorly planned when the building was designed or renovated

Sources of Office Air Pollution

As with homes, the most important factor influencing IAQ is the presence of pollutant sources. Commonly found office pollutants and their sources include:

• Environmental tobacco smoke
• Asbestos from insulating and fire-retardant building supplies
• Other organics from building materials, carpet, and other office furnishings, cleaning materials and activities, restroom air fresheners, paints, adhesives, copying machines
• biological contaminants from dirty ventilation systems or water-damaged walls, ceilings, and carpets

How SERVPRO of Hampshire County Can Help

If you are concerned about the indoor air quality in your office or business, we are Here To Help.

• Expert Know-How: with certifications from the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) including
  • Water Removal Technician
  • Applied Structural Drying
  • Lead Removal
  • Mold Remediation
• Experience:  With over 20 years in business, we've dealt with all kinds of commercial disasters and cleanup
• Equipment:  the right equipment for the right environment
• No Job Too Big:  We have the resources and manpower to draw from other SERVPRO franchises for large losses 

We specialize in water damage cleanup and restoration, mold remediation and air duct cleaning.  Give us a call today at 413-589-8975.

Some content sourced from the Consumer Product Safety Commission

IAQ Series - Part Three - Strategies For Improving Indoor Air Quality

4/17/2017 (Permalink)

Black mold in the basement of a Hadley, MA home.

This is Part Three of our ongoing series exploring Indoor Air Quality.

Ventilation

Most Western MA home heating and cooling systems, do not mechanically bring fresh air into the house. Opening windows and doors, operating window or attic fans, when the weather permits, or running a window air conditioner with the vent control open increases the outdoor ventilation rate.

Find and Eliminate The Source

Usually the most effective way to improve indoor air quality is to eliminate individual sources of pollution. Here are a few examples:

Biological Contaminants

Biological contaminants include bacteria, molds, mildew, viruses, animal dander and cat saliva, house dust mites, cockroaches, and pollen. There are many sources of these pollutants. Pollens originate from plants; viruses are transmitted by people and animals; bacteria are carried by people, animals, and soil and plant debris; and household pets are sources of saliva and animal dander. The protein in urine from rats and mice is a potent allergen. When it dries, it can become airborne. Contaminated central air handling systems can become breeding grounds for mold, mildew, and other sources of biological contaminants and can then distribute these contaminants through the home.

By controlling the relative humidity level in a home, the growth of some sources of biologicals can be minimized. A relative humidity of 30-50 percent is generally recommended for homes. Standing water, water-damaged materials, or wet surfaces also serve as a breeding ground for molds, mildews, bacteria, and insects. House dust mites, the source of one of the most powerful biological allergens, grow in damp, warm environments.

Install and use exhaust fans that are vented to the outdoors in kitchens and bathrooms and vent clothes dryers outdoors.

These actions can eliminate much of the moisture that builds up from everyday activities.

Ventilate the attic and crawl spaces to prevent moisture build-up.

Keeping humidity levels in these areas below 50 percent can prevent water condensation on building materials.

Thoroughly clean and dry water-damaged carpets and building materials (within 24 hours if possible) or consider removal and replacement.

Water-damaged carpets and building materials can harbor mold and bacteria. It is very difficult to completely rid such materials of biological contaminants. SERVPRO of Hampshire County has both the equipment and expertise to assess and mitigate water damage situations.

Some content sourced from the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Whether you live in Amherst, Chicopee, Easthampton, Holyoke, Ludlow, Northampton or anywhere in Western MA, SERVPRO of Hampshire County is an expert in mold remediation, deodorization, water damage, air duct cleaning and carpet cleaning.  Call us at 413-589-8975 today if you have an indoor air quality concern. We're Here To Help!

In Part Four, the final installment in our Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) series, we explore how to determine IAQ in Western MA offices. 

IAQ Series - Part Two - How To Identify Air Quality Problems In Your Western MA Home

4/12/2017 (Permalink)

This blog is Part Two in our Indoor Air Quality Series.

Some health effects can be useful indicators of an indoor air quality problem, especially if they appear after a person moves to a new residence, remodels or refurnishes a home, or treats a home with pesticides. If you think that you have symptoms that may be related to your home environment, discuss them with your doctor or your local health department to see if they could be caused by indoor air pollution.

Another way to judge whether your Western MA home has or could develop indoor air problems is to identify potential sources of indoor air pollution. Although the presence of such sources does not necessarily mean that you have an indoor air quality problem, being aware of the type and number of potential sources is an important step toward assessing the air quality in your home.  For information on different types of pollutants, read Part One of this series.

Finally, look for signs of problems with the ventilation in your home. Signs that can indicate your home may not have enough ventilation include moisture condensation on windows or walls, smelly or stuffy air, dirty central heating and air cooling equipment, and areas where books, shoes, or other items become moldy. To detect odors in your home, step outside for a few minutes, and then upon reentering your home, note whether odors are noticeable.  You can also ask a friend or family member that doesn't live in your home to give your home the smell test.

If you find an area of mold in your Western MA home, give SERVPRO of Hampshire County a call at 413-589-8975. 

In Part Three of our IAQ series, we explore strategies to improve the indoor air quality of your home.

Some content sourced from The Consumer Product Safety Commission

IAQ Series - Part One - Why Indoor Air Quality Matters

4/11/2017 (Permalink)

Mold Infestation In Springfield MA Home

Welcome to Part One of our Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Series on Western MA homes and businesses.

Did you know a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air within homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air in even the largest and most industrialized cities?  Other research indicates that people spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors.

What Causes Indoor Air Problems?

Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in Western MA homes and businesses. Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home. High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants.

Pollutant Sources

There are many sources of indoor air pollution. These include combustion sources such as oil, gas, kerosene, coal, wood, and tobacco products; damage due to water and fire emergencies; dirty air ducts; building materials and furnishings as diverse as deteriorated, asbestos-containing insulation, wet or damp carpet, cabinetry or furniture made of certain pressed wood products and household cleaning products.

Amount of Ventilation

If too little outdoor air enters a Western MA home or business, pollutants can accumulate. Unless they are built with special mechanical means of ventilation, homes that are designed and constructed to minimize the amount of outdoor air that can "leak" into and out of the home may have higher pollutant levels than other homes. However, because some weather conditions can drastically reduce the amount of outdoor air that enters a home, pollutants can build up even in homes that are normally considered "leaky."

In Part Two of this series, we discuss how to identify Air Quality problems in your Western MA home or business.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County, located in Ludlow, MA is available 24/7/365 for your fire, water, mold and cleaning needs - including general cleaning, air ducts and carpet cleaning.  Call us at 413-589-8975.

Some content sourced from the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission

What To Do If You Experience Water Damage in Your Hampshire County Home Or Business

4/5/2017 (Permalink)

A flooded basement in Stockbridge, MA.

In our previous posts on preparing for severe weather, we've explored the definitions and dangers of flooding.  Today, we will help you respond effectively if you find yourself with water damage in your Western MA home or business.  The quicker you respond, the less damage you are likely to experience.

1. If you find that water has entered your Western MA property, before you enter the flooded area, think SAFETY first.  Check for electrical hazards and structural damage.  Wear protective gear like boots and gloves.


2. Try to identify the source of water and shut if off as quickly as possible. Stop up any leaks, shut off any running faucets, use sandbags towels as a barrier against flowing water on the floor.


3. Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at 413-589-8975.  Don't wait.  If left unchecked, water can harm your property’s structure and furnishings, and encourage the growth of mold. Our water damage technicians are skilled at mitigating secondary water damage. This limits out of pocket expenses and reduces stress and inconvenience. 

From the moment they arrive, our SERVPRO of Hampshire County technicians get to work drying out your home. We remove any contaminated and non-salvageable materials and do everything we can to make your home safe. Our focus is getting your home dried out as quickly as possible to minimize damage to your house and inconvenience to you.
 
Our team brings powerful air movers and dehumidifiers to help dry out your home, including water damaged materials such as carpets. Air movers help dry your home by expelling the moist, humid air from the room and bringing in warm, dry air to create a drier atmosphere and increase evaporation. This type of refrigerated low grain dehumidifier can extract up to 30 gallons of moisture per day from the ambient air within your home.
 
Our qualified SERVPRO technicians are experienced in placing our equipment in the most efficient manner, to dry your home out quickly. Whether the problem is confined to just one room or affects your whole house, we come equipped with everything needed to start drying it out straight away. Moreover, if your home needs professional products to help mitigate any resulting mold growth, our technicians are trained to apply those too.

Whether you live in Ludlow, Northampton, Belchertown, Amherst, South Hadley or the Berkshires, if you experience water damage, call SERVPRO of Hampshire County at 413-589-8975.

Are You Ready For Potential Flooding in Western MA? Part One

4/4/2017 (Permalink)

This blog is the first in a series exploring extreme weather.

Are you prepared if you experience flooding in your house or business?  It's a common misperception that flooding only occurs in flood-prone zones.  In fact, flooding can happen anywhere it rains.  Did you know floods are the most common and widespread of all weather-related natural disasters?  In the U.S. floods kill more people each year than tornadoes, hurricanes or lightning!

At SERVPRO of Hampshire County, we've witnessed many homes and people's lives affected by water damage. Make sure you are familiar with the following terms:

FLASH FLOOD or FLOOD WATCH: Flash flooding or flooding is possible within the designated watch area - be alert.

FLASH FLOOD or FLOOD WARNING: Flash flooding or flooding has been reported or is imminent - take necessary precautions at once! Get to higher ground!

URBAN and SMALL STREAM ADVISORY: Flooding of small streams, streets and low-lying areas, such as railroad underpasses and urban storm drains is occurring.

FLASH FLOOD or FLOOD STATEMENT: Follow-up information regarding a flash flood/flood event.

If you experience a flooding situation in your home or business, don't wait.  Many kinds of water damage cannot be seen by the untrained eye and require the right expertise and equipment.  For examples of water damage we have mitigated, visit our Before/After pictures on this site.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is available 24/7, 365 days a year for your emergency needs whether it be water damage, fire/soot damage, mold or any kind of cleanup.

Flood terms provided by The National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL) 

Are You Ready For Potential Flooding in Western MA? Part Two

4/4/2017 (Permalink)

This is the second blog post in our series on extreme weather.

In Part One, we shared some facts about the dangers of flooding and important flood terms.  In this blog, we will explore the areas most at risk from flash floods.

Densely populated areas are at a high risk for flash floods. The construction of buildings, highways, driveways, and parking lots increases runoff by reducing the amount of rain absorbed by the ground. This runoff increases the flash flood potential.

Sometimes, streams through cities and towns are routed underground into storm drains. During heavy rain, the storm drains can become overwhelmed and flood roads and buildings. Low spots, such as underpasses, underground parking garages, and basements can become death traps.

Areas near rivers are at risk from flash floods. Embankments, known as levees, are often built along rivers and are used to prevent high water from flooding bordering land. The city of New Orleans experienced massive devastating flooding days after Hurricane Katrina came onshore in 2005 due to the failure of levees designed to protect the city.

Dam failures can send a sudden destructive wall of water downstream. In 1889 a dam break upstream from Johnstown, Pennsylvania, released a 30-40 foot wall of water that killed 2200 people within minutes.

Mountains and steep hills produce rapid runoff , which causes streams to rise quickly. Rocks and clay soils do not allow much water to infiltrate the ground. Saturated soil also can lead rapidly to flash flooding. Vacationing or recreating along streams or rivers can be a risk if there are thunderstorms in the area. A creek only 6 inches deep in mountainous areas can swell to a 10-foot deep raging river in less than an hour if a thunderstorm lingers over an area for an extended period of time. 

Additional high-risk locations include low water crossings, recent burn areas in mountains, and urban areas from pavement and roofs which concentrate rainfall runoff.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is available 24/7, 365 days a year for your emergency needs whether it be water damage, fire/soot damage, mold or any kind of cleanup.  Call us - 413-589-8975.

Content provided by The National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL).

Ice Dam Water Damage Northampton, Amherst, Belchertown, Hampshire County

2/15/2017 (Permalink)

U of Minnesota image of the anatomy of an Ice Dam. Water damage structure must be dried to avoid deterioration and possible mold issues later.

We have reached the official “mid-point” of Winter and have finally been dealt our first real dose of snow in a couple of years.  We haven’t had to address ICE DAM WATER DAMAGE in Hampshire County and throughout the Pioneer Valley in a while. 

I found this to be a pretty decent article about Ice dams and the damage they cause to your home.  The article put out by www.weather.gov, shows how you can prevent or minimize the ice dam formations on your roof.  Happy reading!  We have had some nice warm weather up until now, and in Massachusetts, (really ALL of New England) we have some extra time to prepare for the upcoming winter weather.  An ounce of prevention, blah blah blah…….   

http://www.weather.gov/grr/roofIceDams

By installing extra insulation in your attic, adding roof cables to your soffits and gutters and making sure your gutters and down spouts are cleared you can help keep yourself and your home out of the path of water damaged ceilings, walls, floors or even flooded basements. In the meantime if you have had water penetration from Ice Dams and snow melt, like many in Northampton, Amherst and Belchertown this week, look to SERVPRO of Hampshire County to help assess, dry and repair the damage caused by the backed up water. 

I know we are all very busy these weeks, so do what you can, take advantage of the weather now so you are not working in worse conditions later this winter.  Until the next blog, from SERVPRO of Hampshire County, plan and get on top of these things, and stay alert!

Fire Damage Prevention and Cleanup In Hampshire County

1/6/2017 (Permalink)

I borrowed this blog post from SERVPRO of Franklin County, I thought it was a great read and timely in the wake of the recent deadly and devastating fire in Holyoke on New Years Day.

Fire Safety & Prevention

Did you know that if a fire starts in your home, you may have just two minutes to escape?

The most effective way to protect yourself and your home from fire is to identify and remove fire hazards. 60 percent of house fire deaths occur in homes with no working smoke alarms. During a home fire, working smoke alarms and a fire escape plan that has been practiced regularly can save lives.

Fire Safety Tips

• If a fire occurs in your home, GET OUT, STAY OUT and CALL for help.
• Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas.
• Test smoke alarms once a month, if they’re not working, change the batteries.
• Talk with all household members about a fire escape plan and practice the plan twice a year.

Fire and smoke damage is especially destructive. In many instances your property will also suffer from water damage from firefighting efforts. Serving the Pioneer Valley in Western Massachusetts, SERVPRO of Hampshire County specializes in fire and water damage restoration; it’s the cornerstone of our business. We have specialized equipment, specific training, and certifications that allow us restore your home to pre-fire condition.

We understand you may be feeling confused, stressed, and more than a little vulnerable. Our technicians will treat your family with empathy and your home with great care. Until help arrives, please refer to our Fire Damage Tips—Until Help Arrives Guide and follow these tips to protect yourself and your property.

Our Fire Damage Restoration Services

Since each smoke and fire damage situation is a little different, each one requires a unique solution tailored for the specific conditions. When various materials burn, the soot and residue they create differs greatly and requires a specific cleaning procedure. The steps listed below illustrate our process for the “typical” fire damage restoration. Learn more about our fire damage restoration process.

1. Emergency Contact
2. Inspection and Fire Damage Assessment
3. Immediate Board-Up and Roof Tarp Service (if needed)
4. Water Removal and Drying (if water damage is present)
5. Removal of Smoke and Soot from All Surfaces
6. Cleaning and Repair
7. Restoration

Locally Owned Company with National Resources

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is locally owned and operated and we are proud to be part of Northampton and surrounding communities for over 20 years. We are also part of a national network of over 1,650 Franchises with special Disaster Recovery Teams placed strategically throughout the country to respond to large-scale fire, water, and storm disasters.

Western Massachusetts Water Damage From Frozen Pipes

12/23/2016 (Permalink)

Just a few frozen pipe preventive measures

The recent and early cold snap to hit Western Massachusetts and the Northeast, we have seen an influx of early season water damages due to frozen pipe breaks.  

Obviously, it is important to keep an eye on the weather and take action to prevent exposure to the elements with regard to suspect plumbing in areas that may be prone to trapping extreme cold temperatures.   

The coldest temperatures are expected in New England in the next few weeks. With the mercury dipping well below freezing, residents should take note of the increased risk for frozen pipes.

While there are long term measures you can take to prevent frozen pipes in your home, like having proper insulation and sealing any cracks or gaps in your siding or foundation, there are a few small, but helpful, things you should do during extreme cold spells.

In preparation for extreme freeze, these are a couple small measures you can take:

•  Keep your thermostat set to a warmer temperature than usual

•  Consider opening kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors to let warm air circulate

If you suspect a frozen pipe in your home, shut off the main water supply and call a licensed plumber right away. We recommend you avoid thawing a frozen pipe yourself - improper technique could cause the pipe to burst, leading to costly water damage and fire damage to your home.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County has served businesses and homeowners in the Northampton and the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts for over 20 years when they have been stricken with water damage from frozen pipes or any other source whether appliances or ground water and anything in between.  

Here's to not needing our water damage or fire damage cleanup services, but in the event that you find yourself in the unfortunate situation of a major or mini disaster,  give us a call at 413-589-8975.

Hampshire County Fire Damage Cleanup

11/4/2016 (Permalink)

How many items can you identify in THIS garage?

My previous blog about disaster readiness had a photo attached of a recent garage fire we responded to, asking if you could pick contents out of the debris if you needed to provide an inventory to your insurance company.  

This blog is to show yet another reason why you should do some sort of photographic or video diary of your home or business so that if THIS happens to you, you can get back on your feet as quickly as possible and work your way through your claim more easily.  

The SERVPRO READY PLAN is an APP that can also help you document and be prepared further in the event of a Fire Damage at your property.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County is quick to respond, the READY PLAN helps us to be familiar with your property and how we need to respond.

Remember, when it comes to Fire Damage and Water Damage, not only in Western Mass, but anywhere, it's all about how you respond and react.  Documenting your property and using a Readiness Plan will help you react quickly and effectively.

Are YOU Ready Hampshire County? Water Damage / Fire Damage Cleanup

11/4/2016 (Permalink)

A recent garage fire that we were called to. What can you identify in the rubble?

As Disaster Preparedness Month and Fire Prevention Month come to an end, along with Daylight Savings Time (insert sad emoticon here), it’s time to re-focus our mindset on “being ready” for anything that may interrupt our normal course of life.  Whether it’s business or personal, a “disaster” can rock your world off of its axis at any time.  How will you react?  The longer it takes to rebound from a disaster and to get lined up to recover, the less apt that you are to FULLY recover and recoup ALL of your losses. 

Imagine for a moment, all of your possessions burnt to a crisp melted to a heap.  We have recently dealt with two separate garage fires and an office fire in which there was very little left that could be sifted through to decipher what was in that affected area.  I have attached a couple of pictures, true to life pictures, of what a burnt garage looks like.  See how many items you can pick out in them. 

As we turn the clocks BACK this weekend –

• change the batteries in and test your smoke and CO detectors.
• walk through your house or business, take pictures of each room noting items and valuables in each room/area or walk through video recording your property. Ensure that the video is on the cloud or not stored on the premises.  In the event of a fire or water damage, you will have what you need to file a claim QUICKLY, ACCURATELY AND COMPLETELY. 
• Take a moment to download the SERVPRO READY APP from your APP STORE and simply follow the instructions to note things about your property to again, get it all back together as quickly and painlessly as possible.

With the heating and holiday seasons approaching, there is an increased level of danger in the home from mechanical or human failure. BE READY, if you don’t ever need to use what you have prepared!

Taking these few steps, and/or by calling SERVPRO of Hampshire County for assistance, whether with a Disaster Readiness Plan or with a Fire Damage or Water Damage Cleanup, you can more quickly make it “Like it never even happened”. 

From the Berkshires through the Pioneer Valley and throughout Western Massachusetts, SERVPRO of Hampshire County has helped thousands with their disaster cleanup for over 20 years.  No matter the size of your Water Damage or Fire Damage, we are ready to help you get back on your feet as quickly as possible.

For Sale - Your House, we got this!

6/17/2016 (Permalink)

I am amazed at the number of houses in which we are now performing mold remediation services these days.  Many of the homes are for sale and the work needs to be done prior to the sale closing.  Many Real Estate Professionals and Property Managers in the Hampshire County area trust SERVPRO of Hampshire County to get the job done for their clients. 

How can you avoid microbial growth in your attic or basement spaces (the most common areas in which we find remediation necessary)?

 In the attic, ensure there is proper and adequate ventilation.  If you added insulation to the attic space, ensure that the soffit vents were not covered up in the process.  This will stop the flow of air along the underside of the sheathing and inhibit evaporation of moisture from the surface.  Ensure there is a ridge vent, this keep the air flowing (stacking) upward and out of the attic space.  Finally, adding or ensure that gable end vents are in place if more ventilation is necessary, make sure they are kept clean of insects, nests and debris.  Install an exhaust fan in the attic if more ventilation is felt necessary.  They can be rigged up with temperature and humidity switches to turn on and off at certain levels. 

In the basement you want to ensure that humidity levels are kept below 50% RH and ventilate the area as much as possible by opening windows and cross ventilating when the weather allows.   The use of a vent fan in the basement is not a bad option as well.  Run a dehumidifier on humid days, do not run the DH if the windows are open, you will be attempting to dry the entire Pioneer Valley if you do that.  Ensure that down spouts on the outside of the building are directed away from the building.  Moisture around the perimeter will find its way into the basement through concrete.  Again, air flow and low humidity are a must in basements.

Overall, the more air flow and humidity control the better off you are in the end.  Spores do not settle unless there is a lack of air flow and cannot multiply without proper amounts of moisture.  By understanding a few of the dynamics of the building, you can avoid last minute interruptions and inconveniences when selling your home.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can further help with your home sale, whether it’s mold remediation, carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, duct cleaning, deodorization, nicotine cleaning, etc. we can be your cleaning solution.  Furthermore, should you need a plumber, electrician, roofer, pest control pro or any other building services during your home sale, we can refer you or your Realtor to any of our network professionals, all who work in and are local to Western Massachusetts.   Having the right team on your side when buying or selling a home is important.  SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help head up your team of professionals to ensure things can go as smoothly as possible.  

Cleaning to Maintain Summertime Indoor Air Quality

5/27/2016 (Permalink)

It’s hard to believe that it’s Memorial Day already!  We at SERVPRO of Hampshire County would like to take this time to thank and recognize all of those people who have served and sacrificed (some to the highest degree) to make this country as great as it is.  The opportunities that we are all given and the things that we get to complain about (important things like “my internet is slow” or “there’s nothing good on TV tonight”) that, in the grand scheme of things, are not so important, are examples of what our predecessors worked so hard for us to have now.  Let’s hope that we contribute to our descendants, our communities and our country just a fraction of what others gave to us.

Memorial Day also marks the unofficial start of summer, generally a time for all of us to take vacation, celebrate graduations, have picnics and cookouts and spend time outside or away from the hustle and bustle of our busy lives.   One thing that you need to remember is to prepare your home for your time away and for heat and humidity.  Failure to maintain a level of humidity in a healthy operating range (30%-50%) could result in microbial growth due to secondary water and moisture damage.  Shutting off HVAC and air conditioning while away may be cost effective on an energy consumption but the affects it may have on the indoor air quality (IAQ) and structural issues could cost considerably more in clean up.  Maintaining a relative humidity below 50% preferably below 40% will help to maintain good and healthy IAQ. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County specializes in not only Fire Damage Cleanup and Water Damage Cleanup but also Mold Remediation and Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Duct Cleaning and Deodorization.  If we can clean up behind the big disasters in people’s worlds imagine how we would do on everyday cleanup.  Hampshire County is located dead smack in the middle of Western Massachusetts.  We can help with your cleaning and IAQ needs no matter where you are or what it may be in the Pioneer Valley and beyond. 

Have a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend.  Reflect and have fun with family and friends.  

Spring Cleaning - Indoor Air Quality - Air and Building Cleaning

4/5/2016 (Permalink)

Happy April Everyone!

Here we are, SPRING!!!  The start of the baseball season is here, the hockey and basketball are coming to an end, the sun sets after 7:00 pm daily, it’s a beautiful thing!

For the most part the toughest part of the year for our buildings and homes has come to an end.  We have a few cold days and nights right now, but relatively speaking, it’s not a big deal.  Snow that has blanketed Western Massachusetts over the past few days will be a distant memory within the next few, except for the few hardnosed snow banks that may resist the higher more potent sunshine and April Showers. 

The focus for you now should be Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) and fresh air - cleaning up and airing out!  Opening windows on days that allow it (even if it’s slightly colder than comfortable) will allow for the turning over of the stagnant air that has been trapped in your home or office for some cleaner, fresher air.  This sounds basic, but we tend to forget basic sometimes.  This will help “purge” air that has been trapped or recycled over the cold months.  Pay special attention to basements as well with this principle.  Open windows and doors on opposite ends of the building or house, allowing for cross ventilation.  Again, this helps remove dust, mold spores, viruses, bacteria, etc. that are floating through the air.  Change your filter on your HVAC system as well, if applicable. 

Secondly, it’s time to clean your carpets, upholstery and duct work.  The trapped airborne particulates eventually land or get filtered through or recycled in any of these areas.  Removal of trapped particulates as well as soils and such that were tracked in from outside is an important process.  These areas are your buildings “air filter”, capturing and holding onto free floating radicals all winter long.  Add this to the upcoming allergens and the issue will be compounded.  Although these things don’t LOOK dirty, they need cleaning. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County has trained personnel to assist in your cleaning needs.  Whether it’s a soot/fire damage cleaning in the Berkshires, water damage mitigation in the Pioneer Valley or a general commercial or residential carpet, upholstery or duct cleaning in and around the Hampshire County Area, SERVPRO of Hampshire County has you covered and is ready to respond to your cleaning and restoration needs.  Give us a call or drop us an email on our website, we will respond quickly to any inquiries.  Find us on Facebook now as well www.facebook.com/SERVPROHC

Welcome Spring!  Welcome Fresh and Clean – SERVPRO of Hampshire County Style! 

Winter Weather Advisory - Water Intrusion Style

2/8/2016 (Permalink)

photo courtesy wwlp.com

Well, well, well……what have we here???

As I was driving through Northampton last Thursday I was chuckling at the number of people walking the streets in SHORTS and T-Shirts!  I was thinking “it’s February 4^th right???”  It’s just too funny to see and we have all seemed to grow used to this “El Nino Winter”. 

Along comes Friday the 5^th and BAM! What is this white stuff that falls from the sky?  Our first “real snow” of the year hit the Pioneer Valley and points into Central and Eastern Massachusetts got nearly a foot of fresh snowpack.  It’s fun to watch how our world reacts with the threat of snow.  But now, with snowpack, we see temperatures at night routinely falling into the low teens, roughly 10 degrees colder than it has been at night.  It’s interesting how that works, like adding ice to a cooler.  My Dad lives in upstate NY, it was 23 degrees there on Saturday morning with no snow on the ground, we were at 13 degrees to start the day. 

Here is this blog’s walk away point.  We have been lulled to sleep with the lovely warm temperatures and lack of snow.  As we begin to see temps go a bit lower and the snow pack on the roof and ground get deeper in Hampshire County, Western Massachusetts and points east, let’s not forget where we ended up last year.  Water from melting roof snow will freeze on the soffits causing ice dams (see my blog LOOOONNNG ago regarding ice dams).  Roof rake the soffits about 3 – 4 feet up the roof and save yourself a headache from water intrusion due to water back up on the roof.

Keep an eye on your plumbing as well.  The cold temps coming will potentially cause some pipes to freeze up and split.  Again, water intrusion opportunity, flooded basement and living space possibility.  Keep an eye on suspect plumbing, leave faucets lazily dripping to move water in pipes or cabinets open to allow warm air to keep them from freezing up. 

Should you find yourself in the unpleasant scenario of water intrusion from ice dams or frozen pipes (or ANY other source of course), remember that SERVPRO of Hampshire County can respond quickly, dry out your structure and make minor repairs as needed while working with you and your insurance carrier to help make your life a bit easier during a trying time. 

Bundle up this week kids.  It’s going to be winter for a few days!

Storm and Weather Related Basement and Building Flooding

2/3/2016 (Permalink)

Photo courtesy bobvilla.com

What an interesting Winter we are having.  Rain on semi-frozen ground is not the best scenario for any of us as absorption into the ground will be minimized.  This leaves our buildings, whether commercial or residential, potentially in harm’s way and you may not know it until it is too late.  Pooled water at the foundation will penetrate the basement or ground floor if not careful or dealt with in the proper way, you may end up with more problems than just “wet stuff”. SERVPRO of Hampshire County is here to help Western Massachusetts Home and Business Owners when water intrusion occurs.  We can extract floors, carpet and pad and effectively dry building materials without totally tearing everything apart.   It’s not inexpensive or convenient to do this, but it’s less costly, quicker and more convenient than replacing that “mancave” or losing all or your valuables altogether.  What takes only a few minutes to occur takes a few days to dry versus weeks to replace/repair.  SERVPRO’s of Hampshire County’s trained technicians know what it takes to get you back to normal quickly and efficiently. 

Steps to proper drying of a flooded basement or water intrusion include:

·        Pumping – if necessary – over 6 inches - it’s recommended

·        Extraction – once 2-4 inches left this is the best method of water removal using either a truck mount or portable unit.

·        Ventilation of structure

·        Introduction of air movers and dehumidifiers – must have’s for water and moisture collection/removal

·        Antimicrobial application to prohibit growth of mold/mildew

The drying process will take up to a week depending on what materials are affected.  It’s important to know that, as many folks hope and/or expect this to happen as fast as something got wet. 

Bottom line - water intrusion, whether basement flooding, leaking roof or mechanical failure, can jeopardize your health, safety and sanity.  It is worth making the call to a professional restoration company with trained, certified, employees.  We have earned the trust of thousands of homeowners, business owners and property professionals (Realtors, Insurance Agents, Property Managers) in Hampshire County and surrounding areas for over 20 years.  Licensed, insured, all employees background checked and uniformed; when hiring a contractor, make sure these items are checked.

On this rainy day, it’s worth reminding you that SERVPRO of Hampshire County can be there for you when the water intrusion and basement flooding occurs.   

Indoor Air Quality Cleaning

1/29/2016 (Permalink)

Indoor Air Quality – The Season’s Fresh Air

Hello again everyone, it's been a while since I blogged and quite frankly, there hasn't been much seasonally to write about. We have finally had some cold weather in the Pioneer Valley, not much snow either, so life has been good on that front.

I hope that everyone has opened the windows and doors in their buildings a bit and PURGED the stale old air out and let new fresher air in. There are a few things that you should be looking to have done at this time as well though and that is where we come into play. Duct cleaning removes the "junk" from your duct work. This gets rid of the majority of pollutants that have been pent up and wreaking havoc with our health.  

Secondly, a good thorough carpet cleaning will remove pollutants and contaminates from your carpets and leave you with a cleaner "air filter" than you had before. As the air moves and filters through your building, people track dirt in from outside and every sneeze finally “lands”, impurities get caught up in the fibers of the carpet and linger there until removed. Basic cleaning will take care of this buildup and again, help cut down on indoor pollution levels.  A simple hot water extraction, precondition and rinse or any of our six methods of carpet cleaning will assist in improving indoor air quality.  You don’t need empowered water or enhance cleaning solutions to get this done.  There is no magic wand, just simple cleaning.

It's really all about comfort and health when it comes to IAQ, the less "crud" in the environment, the better you will feel in the long run AND the better things will look as well.

SERVPRO of Hampshire County can help any of you out there that want to make sure that your IAQ is at its best possible.

Call us today to schedule a carpet or duct cleaning. Mention this blog and receive a sanitizer application or protectant application to your carpet cleaning at no additional charge. How can you beat that?

I will catch up to you all again next week!  Here’s to a Healthy Indoor Air Quality and a Cleaner Week in Western Massachusetts! 

FIRE SAFETY ALERT!!!

1/18/2016 (Permalink)

photo courtesy of Sturbridge PD via Sturbridge FD Facebook page.

On a somber note, there have been many instance of fire losses this month.  Very much characteristic of what statistically is predictable.  Sad and unfortunate, yet real.  Some of these could have been avoided, some maybe not, but in the end it is still loss and a reminder of just how precious life is.

As the temperatures finally begin to drop into more “seasonable” ranges, be reminded that space heaters and such should be plugged directly into a dedicated circuit without using an extension cord (unless rated for the draw of a heater).  DO NOT run the cord across a floor or under a carpet, this could cause a fire or trip hazard.   Make sure all heating appliances are UL rated as well.  The following link will direct you to some information on a recent Holland fire that was believed to be caused by a space heater. 

http://www.westernmassnews.com/story/30708760/investigators-holland-house-fire-caused-by-unattended-space-heater#.VmjWRxb7Bj0.mailto

Secondly, a recent hotel fire at the Publick House in Sturbridge is a reminder to guests to BE AWARE of where your emergency exits and stairwells are when you check into your room.  You never know when this could be the difference between life and death. 

To Hotel and Restaurant Owners, as well as ALL Business Owners, Building Owners and Property Managers, it’s a great time to remind you that SERVPRO of Hampshire County can assist you in writing an Emergency Ready Profile.  This playbook will help you in the event of a disaster as a result of frozen pipes, ice dams, mechanical failures that cause flooding and fire/smoke/soot damage.  It’s available in the APP stores and is always at your fingertips on your smart device.

Regardless of the fire source or the extent of smoke damage and fire damage, SERVPRO of Hampshire County can clean and restore your structure and contents back to pre-loss condition.  Think of us in your time of need, many others have and were happy to know that we were quickest to their disaster.  

Disaster Recovery - Resolve to do THIS

1/6/2016 (Permalink)

I would like to start this blog off by saying Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and best wishes to everyone out there celebrating a Festive Holiday this Season!  It’s been a couple of busy and chaotic weeks as we wound up the Holiday season last week and return to some sort of “normalcy” this week in Western Massachusetts. 

How many of you have made a New Year’s Resolution?  How many of you plan events for the coming year?  When will I take that vacation?  Will we have a Memorial Day Party, July 4^th Party, etc.?  How many of you have PLANNED in the event of a disaster such as a fire damage or water damage?  Where and when did you buy that nice big flat screen TV?  How much did you pay for it?  How much will it cost to replace?  Is there a sound system with it?  How many CD’s, DVD’s and such do you have stored near it?  These are very real questions that need answering after a fire or water damage event.

NOW, THIS WEEKEND, anytime soon.  Take a moment to walk through your house with your smart phone on video.  Speak to yourself, room by room.  What do you see?  What’s new?  What’s valuable?  Where did I get it?  Take an inventory of your home, room by room.  Save that somewhere on your cloud or wherever (NOT IN YOUR HOME).  In the event of a “disaster” (anything that alters your normal life adversely) you will have a record of what you own and a history.  It’s too easy now to do this, and it only takes talking to yourself a bit. 

SERVPRO of Hampshire County specializes in Disaster Recovery, whether a spill on a carpet prior to that dinner party or a fire damage / water damage, a disaster is a disaster.  The SERVPRO Ready App is available for your use as well.  You don’t have to be in Hampshire County to use it, and it’s pretty easy.  Call SERVPRO of Hampshire County for assistance with the APP, or to help you with that flooded basement, soot damage / smoke damage from that furnace puff back, or for simply a carpet cleaning or duct cleaning.  We are here to help!  Resolve to prepare this year for the unexpected.   

Ice Dams and Water Damage

12/11/2015 (Permalink)

From WWW.WEATHER.GOV

Good Day Everyone!

I found this to be a pretty decent article about Ice dams and the damage they cause to your home.  The article put out by www.weather.gov, shows how you can prevent or minimize the ice dam formations on your roof.  Happy reading!  We have had some nice warm weather up until now, and in Massachusetts, (really ALL of New England) we have some extra time to prepare for the upcoming winter weather.  An ounce of prevention, blah blah blah…….   

http://www.weather.gov/grr/roofIceDams

By installing extra insulation in your attic, adding roof cables to your soffits and gutters and making sure your gutters and down spouts are cleared you can help keep yourself and your home out of the path of water damaged ceilings, walls, floors or even flooded basements.  I know we are all very busy these weeks, so do what you can, take advantage of the weather now so you are not working in worse conditions later this winter.  Until the next blog, from SERVPRO of Hampshire County, plan and get on top of these things, and stay alert!

Western Mass Water Damage and Fire Damage Information

12/4/2015 (Permalink)

We are now at the cusp of the darkest days of the year astronomically.  Coincidentally these, along with the coldest days of the year run hand in hand with increased fire damage and water damage potential.  Whether from ice dams, frozen pipes, space heaters or candles, flooded basements, kitchens, bathrooms as well as a soot covered home or fire damaged portions thereof, the size of the damage is irrelevant when deeming any such event a “disaster”. 

Caution must be taken when using candles, heaters, electric blankets, etc.  Making sure that you do not overload circuits and do not leave these items unattended when in use is key.  Statistically, this is the peek fire season.  There are just too many opportunities.  Thus far we have been blessed with some mild temperatures, but how long do we really expect that to last?  Aren’t we all just waiting for the foot of winter to drop?

How many of us experienced water intrusion from ice dams last winter?  Have we recovered from that yet or rectified the issue that caused it in the first place?  I was asked this week what can be done to prevent this from occurring again this year.  I will explain ice dams in next week’s blog. 

I said this last week, and will say it again this week, stay alert and smart over the next month.  Should you have an incident involving water damage or fire damage, or are just looking for a pre-holiday carpet cleaning, keep SERVPRO of Hampshire County in mind.  We not only clean up disasters of any size, we clean just about anything of any size.  Call us for a quote on any last minute cleaning you may have.

Until next week……

Happy Thanksgiving

11/25/2015 (Permalink)

From the Berkshires to Pioneer Valley, here's wishing everyone the happiest of Thanksgivings.  We are thankful for our customers, clients and employees here at SERVPRO of Hampshire County.  Every flooded basement, water damage, smoke damage, mold remediation and general cleaning that we were called to do, we are thankful for the trust placed in us to get the job done.  Thank you all!

Stay Alert!

11/24/2015 (Permalink)

A short but busy week kicks off the Holiday Season of 2015.  Thanksgiving marks the start of probably the busiest time of the year.  It is at this time that you need to make sure you are most vigilant and pay attention to minor details to avoid disastrous results.  In Western Massachusetts we have already seen many major fires, causing both death and injury.  Especially over the next month, maintain discipline and common sense despite that chaos around you.  Leaving an unattended pot or pan on the stove or in the oven can do so much more than ruin a meal.  Pay attention to the little things over the next month.  Space heaters, candles, cooking and Holiday decorations are all major fire hazards that can be kept in check to avoid a fire damage, soot damage or deodorization situation. 

Our job at SERVPRO of Hampshire County is not only to make fire damage and water damage “Like it never even happened”, but to help you avoid calling us for the soot damaged kitchen or flooded basement.  

Water Damage and Mold Damage Education

11/19/2015 (Permalink)

Happy end of the week to all of you!  I trust it’s been a good week with minimal disruption before we start wheeling into the Holiday Season. 

This week I met with a group of Insurance Professionals and a group of Real Estate Professionals.  We were able to discuss issues that affect them both.  Mold and Mold Remediation was a hot topic at the Realtor’s Meeting while Ice Dams and Ground Water Basement Flooding were the order of the day with the Insurance Agents.  In both scenarios the conversations were lively, discussing everything from Water Mitigation strategies to Mold testing and remediation practices.  SERVPRO of Hampshire County is dedicated not only to PERFORMING these services with the best possible results, but to also EDUCATING those professionals whose job it is to make sure their clients are as “in the know” as possible.  I spoke of this earlier in the week, and wanted to hammer home that point. 

TRAINING our Staff, EDUCATING and ASSISTING our Western Massachusetts clients to better service their customers so they can master their domain.  THAT’s what turns a good week into a GREAT week!  Every day was NOT MONDAY!   I was told this week by an Insurance Agent that he “looks forward to Monday” after 45 years in the business, what a great outlook, how many of us can say that?  What can we do to get there?    

Tuesday

11/16/2015 (Permalink)

Happy Tuesday!

TGFM

11/16/2015 (Permalink)

Thank Goodness for Monday (TGFM)!!! 

Without Monday, Tuesday would take on an entirely different role.  Without Monday, would we look at the weekend the same way?

There is always a brighter side to view any scenario that comes along.  Similar to viewing Monday, the way you view an event like a puff back, soot damage, flooded basement, water damage or any other “disaster” that enters your home or business.  Knowing that there are reputable companies out there like SERVPRO of Hampshire County.  Our staff, each and every team member, is trained and retrained continuously to perform to industry standards as well as how to assist a client or customer at one of their worst possible moments.  Whether it’s a carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, duct cleaning, or a fire damage, water damage or mold damage event, make sure you choose a company that is trained to do the work as well as educate you through the process(es).  TRAINING, a vital aspect of the SERVPRO System and SERVPRO of Hampshire County.

Up next…..what else should you look for when choosing a contractor.  

Happy Monday, Happy Tuesday!  It’s a bright start to the week in Western Massachusetts!  The week is off to a great start if you look at it with the right mindset!

What's in YOUR Gutter?

11/13/2015 (Permalink)

What’s in your gutters?  Hopefully water.....FLOWING water.

Happy Friday the 13^th everyone!  With this week’s rainy days and the final dropping of the fall foliage, how many of you may have experienced some water seepage and possible basement flooding?  SERVPRO of Hampshire County is quick on the scene after your call for emergency service to provide water extraction and dehumidification, preserving your valuables and keeping you and your family from the effects of mold and mildew growth.  SERVPRO of Hampshire County specializes in the mitigation of water damage as well as mold remediation.  From Northampton to Ware and surrounding towns, we are here to assist. 

My personal and professional words of advice to you right now are to take a few minutes this weekend, service those gutters and downspouts and master the flow of water away from your house or business.  This will help keep you out of path of the inconvenience and expense of water penetration into the spaces of your life that you value most. 

Have a GREAT weekend.  Stay safe, stay dry. 

Introduction to our Water Damage, Fire Damage, Cleaning Blog

11/11/2015 (Permalink)

Hello and Welcome to our first official blog on our site!

The weather is slowly transitioning to the cold side and it's time to begin thinking of your home maintenance.  SERVPRO of Hampshire County is here to help you, whether with advice or cleanup and restoration services, we are here.  We service Hampshire County located smack dab in the center of Western Massachusetts, a stones throw outside of Springfield and Holyoke.  We are in our 20th year in business, providing everything from carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, duct cleaning, general cleaning to Fire Damage, Water Damage, Mold Remediation, cleanup and restoration.  Our scope of work is not limited, we provide cleaning services to the residential, commercial and industrial arenas. Area businesses can contact us 24 hours a day 7 days a week.  Live operators answer, we respond to emergency calls in minutes.  This is a service we have truly mastered and are aces at.  Come back and visit this blog from time to time for advice, information and maybe a little fun.  If there are any topics, tips or information you would like to know about, feel free to email us and ask.  Thanks for stopping by, and for your time spent here today!  We hope to get to know you better.