Water Damage: Fixing? Service Master?

13 years ago

Last Friday I started demolition on a DIY project: replacing the floor and fixtures in my laundry room and adjacent powder room and turning an adjacent walk-in wet bar into a pantry / storage room with a cabinetry wet bar on the outside and a new utility sink in the garage. All was going well until I began ripping up the old laminate floor. Underneath I found very wet particle board and plywood. Turns out our main plumbing stack from the 2nd floor has been leaking behind the wall. Upon recommendation of my insurance company, I called Service Master to provide an analysis and estimate. For a very reasonable price, they will come in and clean up any mold, mildew, and wet wood. (I will be removing damaged drywall.) They suggested that the plywood would be just fine once it was cleaned. The wood is wet and in a few areas the top layer has cracked, but structurally it seems solid (according to the estimating guy).

Has anyone had any experience with this? I intend to tile the floor using 16x16 slate/quartzite tile over the exiting plywood + new 3/8" OSB and Ditra. If the plywood sub-floor seems structurally sound though slightly water damaged, will it be ok once cleaned? Initially I was expecting they would need to remove the plywood, but the cleanup company said it was not necessary.

Also, has anyone worked with a Service Master or a similar disaster cleanup type company?

Thanks in advance for any help and advice. This setback has been quite devastating on my DIY timeline and budget (and nerves).

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Comments (3)

ILoveRed
13 years ago
We had a devastating house fire almost eight years ago. It was such a nasty battle. I get sick to my stomach just thinking about it.

We worked with a fire/water restoration company. They removed and "cleaned" almost everything in our home--even though most everything in our home was incredibly smoke damaged and our insurance co tried to force us to take everything back. This company seemed to work hand in hand with the insurance company to save them money. Honestly, it seemed they were in their back pocket. Of course this was just our experience.

This of course doesn't even touch on what the company proposed to "repair" the disgusting hulk of what was left of our home.

Good luck. Maybe your experience will be better.
pricklypearcactus
Original Author
13 years ago
So sorry to hear of your experience, red_lover. I hope that you have been able to fully recover from the house fire and move on with your lives. I have Service Master out this morning. The price was reasonable for removal of some damaged wood and thorough cleaning of the area. Thankfully I live in a dry climate which seems to have helped. My insurance company will not cover the damage because it was not "sudden". (Even though the pipe break was accidental and I reported it immediately upon discovery, the leak was small enough that it had been going on for months.) Thank you for the feedback. Hopefully within a few weeks I can have this problem thoroughly resolved and report back with my experiences in the event others are in the same situation in the future.
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Water Damage: Fixing? Service Master?

Comments (3)

ILoveRed

pricklypearcactus
Original Author

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Water Damage: Fixing? Service Master?

Comments (3)

ILoveRed

pricklypearcactusOriginal Author

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cheryl217

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pricklypearcactus
Original Author