Does your Portland home have a garage? Unless you converted your garage to a home office or workspace, chances are you don’t visit your garage too often. Because of this, it’s very easy to miss signs of water damage. While you will eventually need to call in professional water restoration services for help, it’s best to get acquainted with the top signs of water damage first.
Here are the most common signs of water damage in your garage that are easy to miss:
1. Foul Odor
Foul odors are one of the most common signs of water damage in your garage, and any time you suffer water damage. However, your garage is more prone to these odors because they’re more prone to mold damage.
Mold develops in as little as 24 hours after water exposure. This water exposure coupled with high humidity levels causes mold to grow quickly, especially on wooden beams and structures.
So, if your garage has a lot of exposed wood or lumber lying around and you smell foul odors, it’s reasonable to think you suffered water damage.
2. Mold Growth
As mentioned, when an area has water damage, it will most likely attract mold. Garages don’t get a lot of sunlight. Furthermore, they usually have high moisture and humidity, making them an ideal candidate for mold to develop.
If you come across mold in your garage, it has experienced some water damage. You should hire a professional to come out and clean the mold instead of trying to get rid of it yourself. This is because there are hundreds of species of mold, many of which require specific treatment to kill.
3. Chipped or Peeling Paint
Have you recently noticed paint chipping or peeling? Peeling or chipped paint could signify a significant water damage problem.
While cheaper paint may peel or chip due to its poor quality, these symptoms might mean a leak somewhere on the garage ceiling or walls that are dripping down and affecting your paint job.
4. Water Stains
Another common symptom to look out for? Water stains. While major water stains are more visible, you might miss them if the water leak occurred in a garage corner that’s hidden beneath a bunch of shadows.
You’ll be able to find water stains pretty much anywhere there’s wood in your garage. Whether this is on the lumber itself, the floorboards, walls, or ceiling, thoroughly comb through the area. Do this especially if you noticed any of the other signs on this list.
In most cases, water stains symbolize a severe water damage problem, so you need to call a company that specializes in water restoration services as soon as possible.
5. Sagging Walls and Doors
You’re likely to see your walls and doors sag when they have absorbed high quantities of residual water. This typically affects materials made of wood, including doors, ceilings, and walls.
What to Do if Your Garage Has Water Damage
If you suspect that your garage has water damage, the critical thing to remember is not to panic. There is a way to remedy it.
First, clean up any residual water. The longer it sits, the worse the problem gets. Next, keep your garage door open to let in a cross breeze. Cooler air helps eliminate high humidity levels, which istreat garage water damage. You’re giving your garage the best chance to air out and dry by leaving the doors open.
Last but not least, call a professional water damage restoration company. They will remove excess water, but they will also disinfect your garage. Calling a professional is especially necessary if water damage leads to mold growth anywhere in the garage.
Unfortunately, these common signs of water damage are very easy to miss. If you see or experience any of these, don’t delay. Call PNW Restoration today.
Water Damage in Your Garage? Call PNW Restoration.
If you’ve discovered water damage in your garage and need to get it fixed immediately, call the experts at PNW Restoration. Our 24/7 emergency response team is available to take care of your restoration needs. Call us at 971-247-3470.
Water damage is tricky to deal with yourself. Whether you don’t have the time to tend to it or lack the necessary equipment to treat it properly, calling us is your best resource to treat garage water damage.
