Typical jobs across Fairfax County

The calls we handle most often: what homeowners notice, what our technicians do, and what to expect.

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6 job stories

Typical job

What homeowners notice: A July thunderstorm cuts the power to a Burke split-level on a sloping lot for most of the evening. With no battery backup, the sump pump in the lower-level laundry room sits idle, the pit fills, and by the time the lights return an inch of water covers the family-room carpet and has crept under the wood paneling.
What we do: The crew checks that the pump restarted, extracts the standing water, pulls the soaked pad and takes off the bottom strip of paneling where readings show water wicking up the wall. Air movers and two dehumidifiers go in, and the homeowner is pointed to a licensed plumber about a battery backup and a high-water alarm.
What to expect: Readings typically reach the drying goal in three to four days, and the homeowner keeps the photo set and moisture log to share with the insurer.

4–5 hours typical visit

Typical job

What homeowners notice: In a fall cloudburst, the drain at the bottom of a basement window well clogs with oak leaves. The well fills like a bathtub, the old steel window leaks at its seal, and muddy water spreads across a finished rec room toward the furnace closet of a brick rambler a few blocks from Lake Accotink.
What we do: Because the water came from outside, the technician classifies it as Category 3 and photographs every wet surface first. The crew extracts it, removes the carpet, pad and a two-foot flood cut of drywall, then cleans and disinfects the slab and studs before drying equipment starts. Clearing the well drain and fitting a well cover are recommended.
What to expect: Once readings show the framing and slab are dry, usually within several days, the room is ready for a separate rebuild estimate.

3–4 hours typical visit

Typical job

What homeowners notice: After a January cold snap, a copper line running through the back wall of a 1940s brick colonial in Arlington freezes and splits. Nothing shows until the next afternoon's thaw, when water runs down inside the wall and drips from the basement ceiling below the kitchen.
What we do: On the dispatcher's advice, the homeowner closes the main valve before the crew arrives. The technician maps the wet wall cavity, the basement ceiling and the kitchen floor with moisture meters, suggests lead testing before any painted plaster is cut in a house this old, then opens only what readings call for and sets drying equipment. A licensed plumber repairs the line.
What to expect: Drying usually runs several days with readings logged at each check, and the plumbing repair is billed separately from the water cleanup.

3–5 hours typical visit

Typical job

What homeowners notice: On a humid August afternoon, a brown ring spreads across an upstairs bedroom ceiling in a Vienna split-level, and the drywall starts to sag near the light fixture. Up in the attic, the air handler's condensate line is clogged and its rusted pan has been spilling for days.
What we do: The technician checks the attic insulation and the ceiling with a moisture meter, and the crew takes down the sagging drywall section and bags the wet insulation before setting air movers and a dehumidifier in the room and the attic. An HVAC contractor is recommended to clear the line and replace the pan.
What to expect: After drying, the room moves to a ceiling repair estimate covering drying, replacement, texture and paint, which typically runs $900–$3,500 for one room.

2–3 hours typical visit

Typical job

What homeowners notice: A rubber washing-machine hose splits while the owner of a high-rise condo near Leesburg Pike is at work. Water fills the laundry closet and hallway, slips under the laminate floor, and appears on the ceiling of the unit below before building staff close the valve.
What we do: The technician takes readings in both units, and the crew extracts the water, lifts the laminate where it trapped moisture, and dries the subfloor and the bottoms of the walls. Photos and readings are kept separately for each unit so the condo association and the insurers involved can see where the water traveled. Braided steel hoses are suggested as replacements.
What to expect: Both units are typically dry within a few days, and each owner receives a separate set of documentation.

3–4 hours typical visit

Typical job

What homeowners notice: The tank under the basement stairs of a West Springfield split-level fails on a cold December morning. By the time anyone hears the hiss, water has spread across the unfinished utility room and under the partition wall into a carpeted rec room full of stored holiday boxes.
What we do: The homeowner closes the cold-water valve feeding the tank while on the phone. The crew extracts the water, moves the boxes off the floor, pulls the wet pad in the rec room, and sets air movers and a dehumidifier on both sides of the wall. Replacing the tank is left to a licensed plumber.
What to expect: The utility-room concrete usually dries within a couple of days, the carpeted side takes a little longer, and the readings show when each area is done.

2–3 hours typical visit

Call and tell us what you see. We will tell you what it likely is and what it usually costs before anyone drives out.