Water Damage Guides · Water Damage Basics

What to Do Before a Water Damage Restoration Visit

You have called for help, and the professional is on the way. The question now is what to do while you wait. The answer is less than most people think, and that is a good thing. The most useful preparations are simple: clear access to the affected area, note when the water started and where it came from, move belongings away from the water if it is safe to do so, and leave the rest alone. A well-prepared house makes for a faster inspection and a clearer plan.

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This guide covers those preparations in general terms, and what to leave for the professional. It applies to homes in Baton Rouge and Shreveport as much as anywhere else in Louisiana. The water damage restoration page explains what the visit itself generally covers.

Clear access to the affected area

Clear a path to the affected rooms so the professional can get in with equipment. Move furniture, boxes and clutter out of the hallway and away from the doorways of the wet rooms, and clear the area around the water heater, the washing machine or wherever the water came from. If the professional will need to reach a wall, a floor or a ceiling, clear the space in front of it. Do not move heavy furniture through standing water, and do not drag soaked items across dry floors. Clear access is about the path, not about emptying the room.

If the affected area is a bathroom or a kitchen, clear the counters and the floor so the professional can see what they are working with. If the water is in a room with a locked door, make sure the key is available. If there are pets in the house, keep them in a dry room away from the work area, and tell the professional where they are. A clear path and a clear room save time at the start of the visit, and time at the start is time the professional can spend on the inspection rather than on moving boxes.

Note when the water started and where it came from

Write down what you know before the professional arrives. When did you first notice the water? Where do you think it came from: a pipe, an appliance, a roof leak, a toilet, or floodwater from outside? Which rooms are affected, and how far has the water spread? Has anything like this happened before, and if so, when and what was done? A short note, written down rather than remembered, turns a vague worry into a clear description, and a clear description helps the professional focus the inspection on the right part of the house.

It also helps to note what you have already done: whether you shut the water off, whether you moved belongings, and whether you took photographs. If you have a home inventory, a list of belongings, or receipts for valuable items, gather them while you wait. If your insurer needs anything specific, note that too, so you can mention it early in the visit. The professional works from what you tell them, then from what they find, and the better the first part is, the faster the second part goes.

What to Do Before a Water Damage Restoration Visit — Louisiana water damage guide

Move belongings away from water if safe

Move what you can reach from dry ground: rugs, boxes, small furniture, electronics, important papers and anything that will be ruined by soaking. Lift items onto tables, counters or high shelves, away from the wet area. Work from the edges of the water inward, and stop the moment you have to step into standing water to reach something. No possession is worth the risk of contact with contaminated water or a hidden electrical hazard. For furniture with legs, placing it on blocks can keep the legs out of shallow water while you wait.

Do not move wet items into dry rooms, and do not pile wet things onto dry carpet. Do not throw anything away before it has been photographed, unless a professional has told you to discard something that is a clear health hazard. Keep damaged items in one place where they can be inspected. What you can do safely while you wait is limited, and that is fine. The real work belongs to the professional, and the emergency water removal page describes what that work generally involves.

What to leave alone

Leave the water itself alone. Do not mop up standing water, do not run fans or heaters in a wet room, and do not use a household vacuum on standing water. Do not open walls or lift flooring to look for the source, and do not paint over a stain or cover a damp patch. Do not touch electrical items in or near standing water, and do not switch anything on or off in a wet room. Do not flush a toilet that has overflowed, and do not run an appliance that has leaked. Each of these can make the loss worse, hide the evidence the professional needs, or put you at risk.

Leave the affected rooms as you found them, apart from the safe steps above. The professional needs to see the loss as it is, not as it was after a well-meaning cleanup. For homes in Lafayette and Lake Charles, as across Louisiana, the preparation is the same: clear access, note what you know, move what you can reach safely, and leave the rest alone. A house that is ready for the visit is a house where the inspection can start the moment the professional walks in.

Pets, children and the work area

When a restoration professional is working in your home, keep pets and children out of the work area. The equipment is heavy, the floors may be wet, the air is full of moving machinery, and there may be open sections of wall or floor. A child or a pet in the work area is at risk, and they slow the work down. Keep pets in a dry room with the door closed, and tell the professional where they are. Keep children in a dry part of the house, and explain to them that the wet rooms are out of bounds until the work is finished.

The same applies while you wait for the professional to arrive. Keep everyone in a dry part of the house, and do not let children play in or near the wet rooms. If the water may be contaminated, keep everyone away from it entirely. For homes in Shreveport and Lafayette, the emergency water removal page describes what the first professional visit generally covers, and keeping the work area clear is the part of the preparation that protects the people in the house as well as the work itself.

Key Takeaways

Clear a path to the affected rooms so the professional can get in with equipment.
Write down what you know before the professional arrives.
Move what you can reach from dry ground: rugs, boxes, small furniture, electronics, important papers and anything that will be ruined by soaking.
Leave the water itself alone.
When a restoration professional is working in your home, keep pets and children out of the work area.

Questions About What to Do Before a Water Damage Restoration Visit

What should I do while waiting for the restoration professional?

Clear access to the affected area, write down when the water started and where you think it came from, move belongings away from the water if you can do so safely from dry ground, and take photographs. Leave the water itself alone.

Should I mop up the water before the professional arrives?

No. Do not mop up standing water, run fans or heaters in a wet room, or use a household vacuum on standing water. The professional needs to see the loss as it is, and mopping hides the evidence and can spread contamination.

What information should I have ready for the visit?

When you first noticed the water, where you think it came from, which rooms are affected, whether anything like this has happened before, and what you have already done. A short written note is better than a memory.

Should I move furniture before the restoration visit?

Clear a path to the affected rooms and move small items out of the way so the professional can get in with equipment. Do not move heavy furniture through standing water, and do not drag soaked items across dry floors.

Your Next Step

If this guide matches what you found at home, the next step is a visit — not a guess. Call and describe what you found, and the visit is arranged from what you describe. The Emergency Water Removal page explains what that service covers, and the water damage restoration page explains how the full sequence works when water has reached more than one room.

Do not enter flooded rooms while you wait, and if water is leaking, turn off the shut-off valve for that fixture where you can reach it safely from dry ground.

Keep the guides on this site bookmarked: the first guide, the signs guide, and the preparation guide cover the checks worth repeating — after moving in, and after bringing used fixtures home.

Water damage help is available across Louisiana. See water damage restoration in Dry Prong, LA for one local example, or find your town on the service areas page.