Water doesn't stay where it lands.

What we handle

The water losses we see across LA and Orange County come from the same handful of causes. A standard homeowner policy covers most of them when they happen suddenly.

• Burst and frozen pipes, including supply lines behind walls and under slabs
• Failed appliance connections: dishwashers, washing machines, refrigerator lines, water heaters
• Roof and window leaks after storms or wind damage
• Slab leaks that soak carpet and padding from underneath
• Overflows from tubs, sinks and toilets
• Sewer and drain backups: Category 3 contaminated water, handled under containment

The three categories of water

Not all water is the same, and the category drives everything: what can be saved, what has to be removed, and how the job is priced.

Category 1: clean water

Clean source: a supply line, a water heater, rain. Most of it dries in place if we get there fast. Left sitting, it turns into Category 2 in about two days.

Category 2: gray water

Significantly contaminated, washing machine discharge, dishwasher overflow, toilet overflow with no solids. Carpet padding and some porous materials come out.

Category 3: black water

Grossly contaminated. It can carry pathogenic or toxigenic agents, meaning bacteria, viruses and the things that make people sick. Sewage, a wasteline backing up from beyond the trap, and flood water off the ground all start here.

Clean water can become Category 3 on contact. A supply line that runs through a wall cavity, crawl space or attic picks up whatever is already in there. If that includes rodent droppings, bird or bat droppings, or dead vermin, the water is Category 3 no matter how clean it was when it left the pipe. It is one of the most common upgrades we make on arrival, and it is the reason we test rather than assume.

Anything porous it touched comes out, and the work runs under containment. More on Category 3 cleanup →

How we dry it

Drying is not "put fans on it and come back next week". It's a measured process with a defined endpoint.

1. Moisture mapping. Thermal imaging and pin/pinless meters find where water actually traveled: which is almost always further than the visible damage.
2. Extraction. Standing water and trapped water in carpet and padding comes out first. Every gallon extracted is a gallon that doesn't have to be evaporated.
3. Equipment sizing. Air movers and dehumidifiers are sized to the affected volume and the class of loss, not guessed at.
4. Daily monitoring. Readings are taken and logged every day in the same locations, so the drying curve is documented.
5. Verification. The job is dry when materials reach the documented dry standard for that material, not when it looks dry.

Dry it, or take it out

This is the real decision on every water job, and the clock decides it more than we do.

Secondary damage is the damage the water causes by sitting: swollen particle board, delaminated flooring, blown drywall seams, mold in a cavity. It is not what the burst pipe did, it is what the next two days did. Once a material has secondary damage it stops being something we can dry and becomes something that has to come out.

So the whole point of getting there fast, opening the wall and metering it every day is to prevent that, and keep the answer on the dry side of the decision. Where drying in place will not work, a flood cut takes the drywall off above the water line so the cavity can dry. Cut straight, cut once, and only as far as the damage goes.

We would always rather dry a material than replace it. Replacement costs you more, takes longer, and is harder to get approved.

Your insurance

Most policies cover sudden and accidental water damage, like burst pipes, but not long-term leaks or neglect. We can help review your claim.

We document the damage, provide estimates, and communicate with your adjuster directly. More on how claims work →