Getting the town of Wilmington put back together

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Hello everyone, It has been awhile since the last post. A major flood happened in our sleepy little Vermont town on August 29th. After a month of hard work drying as many as we could,we have finally caught our breath. We had about 18 people working for the first three weeks following the disaster. Mike Johnson,owner of The Dry Guys, came from Wisconsin with two box trucks loaded with equipment and a crew of seven people. My son-in-law,owner of Catamount Response came from Massachusetts with his equipment and team of professionals as well. He has two Water Out trailers which we used to dry out many basements and crawl spaces. Many thanks to these great individuals for being there in our time of crisis. Some of the businesses we dried out have been rebuilt and are now open for business. Unfortunately,many of our clients did not have flood insurance and in addition to losing there livelihood have no money to rebuild. It will take years to have this town back to where it was before Irene hit. We are now faced with a lot of mold work in the vacation homes that got wet and sat  for over a month because the roads were not  and a lot of owners were dealing with flooding in New Jersey and Long Island. Our carpet cleaning got put on hold for the duration and now we are starting to catch up with this. Our techs are cleaning four to five homes a day. We also had a lot of oriental rugs come into our shop that had been damaged. One lady gave me a large rug of hers that a neighbor pulled out of the river three weeks after the flood. This was not salvageble. I have never seen such devastation up close and I hope never to see it again. One lady asked me what she should to with her home and I had to tell her to have it bulldozed,because there was no saving it. She held me and cried. This was a gut wrenching experience. We did save a number of the historical buildings in town. The ones that were built in the 1800′s seemed to stand up the best. They could breath and the mold did not run rampant like in the newer homes that are built so tight that they are actually incubators for mold. .’ about it for now,my wife and I are off to Vieques for a couple of weeks to sit in the sun ,Today it is snowing in Vermont. Peace Don

Major Flood In Southern Vermont

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Where to begin. Jane and I were in Utah when we got a report of flooding in Vermont. We turned on the national news and what we saw horrified us. A local resturant ,Dot’s had water rushing through it up to the roof line. As the footage rolled we saw that about six feet of water was rushing down West Main St,destroying buildings and vehicles. One person lost her life in this disaster. We knew we had to get home. We flew out the next day and made it home by taking a series of back roads and detours. I recieved a call from Mike Johnson from Wisconsin, the owner of The Dry Guys restoration company and a friend. He was coming to help us with two box trucks of equipment and 6 people. God bless him and his crew. They arrived Tuesday afternoon. Jane and I had an apartment that was vacant so they all moved in. They have been here for nine days now and I expect they will be here for about three more weeks, longer if they can stay. We will have mold and dryout work for months to come. Everyone has been working at least twelve hour days minimum. My son-in-law Dan Kenney arrived with his crew to help and they have been here for days. Dan owns Catamount Response of the Berkshires in Pittsfield Massachusetts. I could not have asked for a better son-in-law. He has two Dry Out Trailers which we are moving around town to dry out the larger buildings such as the Crafts Inn and the North Star Bowl. His crew has been incredible as well,demolishing the damaged structures and cleaning sludge and debris from homes,basements and crawl spaces. At one point in time there were about one hundred  plus volunteers in town helping with the removal of drywall,carpet and pad from the dwellings. The community has pulled together as one unit. I love Vermont. We will have a long uphill battle as many businesses had no flood insurance. They are counting on FEMA and VEMA to help. So far we have logged about 50 jobs and more come in every day. Unfortunately many second homeowners have not been up due to the destroyed infastructure. Many roads and bridges have been destroyed. Today a state of Vermont dump truck fell through the highway close to us because the road collapsed. I don’t think anyone was hurt but it is pretty scary driving around . The biggest challenge now are that the wet homes are growing mold and that will add a whole new dimension to the damage. I must call it a night now because tommorrow is going to be another long day. Peace Don Jones

Beaver Dam breaks floods home

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Hi all, We had a crazy job the other day. A client of ours had a flood in February when an ice dam broke and the ensuing snow ,water and ice broke through his glass slider doors and filled his bedroom with about three feet of snow and water. The whole house was wet from this event. We dried it out and restored his furnishings. Last week , a beaver dam broke about two miles upstream from his home. He had put a piece of plywood where the slider was for a tempoary fix. Unfortunately ,he put it inside the house and not on the outside wall. Well the water and mud crashed through his home again. This time there is no saving  the carpet and some other things. The previous owner lived there almost 30 years with out any mishaps . When nature runs amuck. Thank goodness he has a sense of humor. Thats it for now, just thought I would share this story with you all. Have a great summer.

Here comes the flooding

Hi all, Jane and I were away for the weekend and while we were gone it snowed about 18 in of heavy wet snow. Today started out with a freezing sleet type rain. Needless to say everything is iced up but this afternoon it will turn over to all rain. Last April we had the same scenario while we were in St. Martin. All hell broke loose here in Vermont. We had a late snow storm followed by heavy rains. We had over twenty flood calls in a two day period. A lot of this could have been avoided if the homeowner had 1. removed the snow around doorways, 2. cut channels through  the snow to let the rain run off. 3. to rake the snow off thier roofs. The sad part was that nobody in Vermont had flood insurance for ground water intrusion. We had to bring in another company from Massachusetts to help with the cleanup. A valuable lesson I learned from that experience was that when that happens to some homeowners it is defintely an emergency, but when it is time to pay the bill it no longer is an emergency. So now, If we are dealing with a new client we get a credit card up front and put at least $100 on it to test its legitimacy. It seems like I chased money for 6 months. So, a little prevention can save you money, stress and damage to your home. Got it?  Peace for now

Ice Dams on Roofs

Hello everyone, Just a quick blurb about ice dams on your roofs. I know a lot of you don’t maintain your roofs during the winter. This is obvious by the amount of work we are doing that is associated with roof leaks. You really should take a snow rake and pull the snow off before it freezes and becomes a huge ice dam. What happens next is the melting snow becomes a pond in back of the dam. Believe me this water will find a way into your home. It comes in over the drip edge and soaks the inside walls and leaches out into the room, destroying carpet and hardwood floors. If left unattended you will have mold growth come spring time when the temperatures rise. You can also use heat tape for the roof edges or an enviormentally safe ice melt. If you are an absentee homeowner have someone take care of it for you. It is well worth the cost. Hope this helps. Peace Don

Falling Ice Danger

Hello all, As I am sitting here this morning looking out the window, I can’t help thinking about the time three years ago when I had to dive for my life. It was a sunny day and I was checking a home for water damage. We had about the same kind of winter as we are having now. I backed my truck up to the side of the house, dropped the tailgate on my pick up truck and opened the outside storm door on the house. I heard this rumbling sound and I looked up. I immediately dove out of the way. A block of  ice I estimate to weigh about four hundred pounds dropped onto the top of the door and onto my tailgate. The door was demolished and my tailgate was ripped off my truck. Two people had been killed already in the state of Vermont by falling roof ice. Don’t let this happen to you. It is a real and present danger. Had this hit me I am quite sure it would have severly injured me or killed me. Be safe, be aware. Peace Don

Raccoon invades home

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I just came back from doing an evaluation of the property damage caused by a raccoon that got trapped in a home for several weeks. Unfortunately, the little fellow died. I believe he had a panic attack and died of a heart attack. We know he still had plenty to eat because he found out how to open the fridge. This is a major bio-hazard clean up job. The critter did not miss any room in the house. Three story house. He also ate through sheet rock trying to get out and destroyed window treatments and furniture. We have done about six of these type jobs in the past few years and they have been a good source of income. One job was over $30,000.00 If you are in the business I suggest you JV with a pest control company in your city. FYI, we start the clean up tomorrow. Peace Don

Water Damage in your home

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Hello Everyone, It is the season right now in the Northeast to be aware of your home freezing up and pipes bursting, causing serious damage to your dwelling. Tonight the temperature will be down to -30 degrees. If you are a second homeowner and you have left your thermostat on 50 degrees you may come up to find a flooded home. At -30 there are not many homes that can withstand that temperature without some sort of damage. Remember it is better to leave the temp up to at least 55 degrees than to try and save a few dollars on your heating bill. When you leave your home and go back to the city it is imperative that you drain your pipes and shut off your well pump. This simple act could save you thousands of dollars and a lot of stress. In the past 25 years , after doing hundreds of restoration jobs, I can honestly tell you that at least 80% were caused by inattention to detail by the homeowner and about 20% due to malfunctioning equipment or natural circumstance. So, be proactive. In case of a water damage, shut off the water supply,do you know where this is? Call a plumber,call a certified restoration company. Go to http://www.ethicalservices.com and find a reputable firm in your area and then call your insurance agent. Move small breakables,lamps,etc out off harms way before the restoration company arrives. If you have furniture in the room , put saucers under the legs to prevent stains bleeding into the rug. Oriental carpet can be moved out to the garage to prevent color transfer to your wall to wall carpets. In case of a clean water loss the carpets can usually be salvaged and reused. If it is a black water loss, however ,the carpets must be discarded. Your obligation to your insurance company is to prevent further damage. There are insurance companies who will want you to use their preferred vendors. Some times this is a conflict of interest. Instead of looking out for your best interests they are looking out for the insurance company. You do not have to use their company. By law you have the right to hire anyone you trust. If they threaten or tell you they will not pay your claim, contact the Attorney Generals office in your state and report this to them. They will take action. This is referred to as steering and some agents are adamant about you using thier companies. So, know your rights. Thats it for now, stay warm and stay dry. Peace Don

Sewage damage in your home

Hello all, I just want to give you all some important information about the dangers of a septic overflow in your home. It can happen at the most inoportune time. A houseful of people using your facilities, a septic system that hasn’t  been pumped out on a regular basis or a clogged pipe. When this happens and you experience raw sewage backing into your home , the first thing to do is call a plumber so that he can access the problem. Then call a certified restoration company to clean up the mess. If the contaminants have soaked the carpet and pad they MUST be discarded. Like wise linoleum that has sewage under it must be removed. If for any reason you start cleaning up  yourself, make sure you wear rubber gloves and a protective mask. You can get deathly ill from handling infected material. Thats right as in DEAD. Most people get sick from ingesting the bacteria. By handling it and then rubbing thier face  or eyes. Every surface must be cleaned and disinfected  before new flooring can be installed. Most of these incidents are covered by insurance. Don’t try to be cheap when doing this job, as it will come back to haunt you and your family. Go to www.ethicalservices.com to find a certified restoration company in your area. Happy and safe New Year to you all. Peace Don Jones

Fire Prevention Season

It has been a long dry summer here in Vermont. Winter is starting to settle in. I expect major snow real soon. As the weather gets colder , many people are firing up thier wood stoves and furnaces.When was the last time you had your chimney cleaned? If you can’t remember then I would strongly suggest that you hire a competent chimney sweep to perform this very important task. It may save your life and the loss of your home. it usually goes up in smoke on the coldest day of the year.In the past 24 years of being in the restoration business, I have witnessed the most assinine and stupid things that people do. On more than one occasion I have had to restore a home because someone thought it was a good idea to clean out the fireplace or woodstove,put the ashes in a paper bag or plastic garbage can and set it either on the porch or in the kitchen under the counter. Then they either left to go home to the city or in one instance they went downstairs to have their New years dinner and burnt the house down. On one crazy night two brothers from New York were trying to light a smoldering wood stove. One had the brilliant idea of throwing a coffee cup of gasoline into the stove. Well guess what, the explosion blew the back wall of the house out about three inches. The brother who had caught on fire was thrown over the railing into a snow bank in order to extinguish his burning clothes. One more word of advice, have your oil or gas furnace cleaned every year. More damage is caused by a furnace that is not firing properly. Your home gets covered in soot and it happens over a period of time and then one day you notice all your walls are a nice shade of gray. Then the whole home and everything in has to be proffessionally cleaned. I hope this helps. Happy Holidays