Flood Restoration for River and Surface Water
Flood damage cleanup is the work after water comes into a house from outside: the Green or White River over its banks, water past a levee, a street that turned into a channel, or a yard that sent rain toward the foundation. Flood restoration companies pump the water out, remove what the water ruined, clean the structure, dry it with readings, and keep the records an insurer will ask for. Flood water is handled differently from a leak inside the house, and the order of the work matters.
When the Green or White River Comes Up
Both rivers that frame Auburn are regulated by dams, Howard Hanson on the Green and Mud Mountain on the White. Most of the time that keeps the water in its channel. In heavy winter rain, both can still rise into roads and neighborhoods. The city has closed Green River Road, D Street NE and South 277th Street to river water, and neighborhoods near the Green River have had water seep in. On the White River, a levee failure in Pacific flooded more than 200 homes, and temporary barriers have gone up along the river near A Street in Auburn.
Follow the City of Auburn, King County's Flood Warning System and Pierce County for river warnings, not a restoration company. Background: how the Green and White rivers reach Auburn homes and what sandbags and barriers protect.
Why Flood Water Is Handled Differently
River and street water carries silt, fuel, fertilizer and whatever else it picked up on the way. That's why anything porous it touched is usually removed, not dried: carpet, pad, insulation, the bottom of the drywall, and often particleboard cabinets. Hard surfaces get cleaned, then the framing and floors are dried with readings. A shop vacuum and fans won't solve flood water, and the parts you can't see do the real damage.
The Cleanup Order
- Wait for the all-clear. Officials say the area and roads are safe; the power stays off in flooded rooms until it's confirmed safe.
- Record everything. Photos and video of every room, the water line on the walls and damaged belongings, before anything moves.
- Pump and extract. Standing water out of the house, the basement or the crawlspace.
- Remove. Wet carpet, pad, insulation and drywall to above the water line; mud and silt shoveled and hauled.
- Clean. Every surface the water reached.
- Dry. Air movers and dehumidifiers, with readings, until the framing reads dry.
- Rebuild. Only after the readings.
More on the silt stage: after the river drops.
Flood Insurance in One Paragraph
Standard homeowners policies usually exclude flood water from outside the house. Flood coverage is a separate policy, through the National Flood Insurance Program or a private insurer. The City of Auburn has advised residents near the Green River to check their coverage for flood, water, landslide and sinkhole. If you aren't sure what you have, call your agent before the next rainy season. Details: flood insurance near Auburn's levees.
Who Handles Flood Damage Cleanup in Auburn?
Water damage restoration companies that work the Auburn area handle flood cleanup: pumping, removal, cleaning and structural drying. When several houses on a street flood at once, call as soon as it's safe, so your house is on a company's list. One number covers the valley floor and the towns along both rivers: (253) 338-5837.
Flood Water Under the House
Many valley-floor homes in Auburn, Algona and Pacific sit on crawlspaces. When river water gets under a house, it soaks the vapor barrier and the insulation in the floor joists, and leaves silt on the ground. The crawlspace needs pumping, the barrier and insulation usually come out, and the space is dried before new material goes in. More: basements and crawlspaces.
Small Floods Count Too
Not every flood is a river. A clogged storm drain, a yard on a slope, or a window well that filled in a long rain can put water into a basement or under a door. The cleanup order is the same, and so is the reason to have it dried with readings.
Garages, Shops and Outbuildings
On the valley floor, the garage is often the lowest room of the house and the first to take on water. Garage slabs, the bottom of finished garage walls, stored boxes and anything on the floor get the worst of it. Water heaters and furnaces in garages need checking before they're relit. Detached shops and outbuildings may fall under a different part of an insurance policy, or none at all, so photograph them separately. Flood cleanup in a garage follows the same order as the house: pump, muck out, remove, clean, dry.
Flood Cleanup Around Auburn
Auburn
- Downtown AuburnAuburn
- North AuburnAuburn
- Lea HillAuburn
- Lakeland HillsAuburn
- West HillAuburn
- Terminal ParkAuburn
- KerseyAuburn
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Main page: water damage restoration in Auburn.