Categories of Water

4/13/2020 (Permalink)

Did you know that the way a water loss is cleaned up depends on a variety of factors?  When it comes to water damage, the mitigation process is definitely not a one size fits all kind of formula.  The first thing when evaluate when called to a water loss is the category of the water.  There are tree basic categories of water loss:

Category 1 – “Clean Water” Source of water does not contain contaminants that pose a substantial threat to humans “clean water”.  Examples include broken supply lines, tub overflows, or malfunctions of water lines leading to certain appliance such as an ice maker line.

Category 2 – “Grey Water” Refers to water that contains a significant amount of chemical, biological or physical contaminants.  Examples include toilet overflow (urine only), sump pump failures and overflows from dishwashers or washing machines.

Category 3 – “Black Water” Extremely unsanitary containing harmful bacteria and possible disease-causing agents.  This includes sewage backup, toilet overflows containing feces, rising flood waters from rivers, streams or seawater.

The approach for cleaning each category of water is dramatically different.  When dealing with category 2 and 3 water losses it is imperative that we follow strict protocols to protect the health of our employees and customers.  At SERVPRO of Mobile County, we follow all IICRC and OSHA standards to ensure the safety of everyone involved.  If you experience a water damage in your home or office, call us at 251-343-0534.  We are available 24/7!