Archived General Blog Posts
Top 10 Disasters That Can Occur While You're on Vacation
12/30/2019 (Permalink)
When you’re not home, your house instantly becomes more vulnerable to disasters. And, when you’re away for an extended period of time—say, for a week-long vacation at the beach—that risk is compounded even further.
While there are some measures you can take to help mitigate this risk, disasters can strike at any time and for a multitude of reasons. In this blog post, we’re going to examine the top ten disasters that can occur while you’re away on vacation.
Disaster #1: A House Fire
This could be the most commonly feared disaster among them all. More than ¼ of all reported structure fires involve residential buildings like single-family homes and duplexes.
The causes of house fires vary widely. Anything from an unattended candle to a lightning strike can start a house fire. This is why it’s especially important to complete a comprehensive inspection of your home, looking for things like activated appliances or exposed flammables, before locking the front door and heading out for your vacation.
Disaster #2: Burglary
Forced entry by a thief is, unfortunately, a risk for anyone living virtually anywhere in the US. When you’re gone on vacation and a thief sets his sights on your home, there had better be some defense mechanisms in place, or else you could be greeted by an empty home upon your return.
Disaster #3: A Landslide
Wherever there is heavy rain combined with loose, sloping ground, landslides will be an inevitability. Thankfully, landslides that damage residential buildings are fairly rare in the United States, but they do happen.
Disaster #4: A Mold Invasion
Returning from a long, restful vacation is one of the most inconvenient times to learn that you have a mold problem. The reality is that mold can overtake entire areas of a home if it is left untreated.
Disaster #5: An Unwanted Guest Invasion (rodents, bats, etc.)
While you were out catching some rays on that beach in Florida, a colony of bats decided to post up in your attic. Now, there’s guano everywhere and remediation is required to get things back to normal.
Alternatively, word among rats spread that your house was warm and empty. So, they moved in and started chewing the place up. Both of these scenarios are very real possibilities when a home is left unattended for a long stretch of time.
Disaster #6: Falling Debris Strikes the Home
Tree branches. Blown over telephone or utility poles. An especially heavy hail storm.
All of these things can seriously damage a home. The good news is that falling debris is covered by most homeowners insurance policies, but it’s probably worthwhile to double-check before starting your vacation.
Disaster #7: Flooding
Flooding is absolutely catastrophic for most buildings. The reason is because flood water is never just water—it brings in pathogens and detritus from everything it has come into contact with. This leaves flood-affected buildings in a state of significant disrepair. What’s more, flood insurance coverage is rarely ever included with most homeowners insurance policies, leaving many homeowners ‘up a creek’ after a flood (no pun intended).
Disaster #8: A Burst Water Heater
Most water heaters that are installed in single-family homes hold at least 40 gallons of water in them. Older water heaters that might have compromised internal components can burst, sometimes seemingly out of nowhere.
If this happens while you’re away, the resulting water damage can compound for every day it is left unresolved.
Disaster #9: The Lawn or Garden Dies
While this may not seem like a disaster per se, it can be if your lawn or garden involves a significant investment of your time and money. Bringing a lawn or garden back to life after it has died off completely can take months.
Disaster #10: Vandalism
Wherever there are criminals with too much time on their hands, there is likely to be vandalism. This can take the form of destroyed mailboxes, graffiti-painted siding, and broken windows or other structural damage. It’s hard to protect yourself against this kind of disaster—it’s best to know what you’ll do after it happens instead of trying to avoid it altogether.
Vacations should be restful, enjoyable, and relaxing. You shouldn’t have to worry about what’s going on back home. If disaster does strike, however, and you need help restoring your home to the condition it was in before you went on vacation, contact your local SERVPRO office. We know disaster recovery.
Now get out there and enjoy your vacation!
History of SERVPRO
3/28/2018 (Permalink)
SERVPRO
History of SERVPRO
From a small beginning as a painting business in Sacramento, CA, in 1967, SERVPRO has become one of the most recognizable names in the restoration industry. Within two years, owners Ted and Doris Isaacson used their expertise in the cleaning and restoration to expand their business offerings. Soon afterwards, they began to offer franchises and grew steadily so that by 1979, SERVPRO had 175 locations.
SERVPRO grew exponentially after relocating its headquarters in 1988 to Gallatin, TN, about 30 miles outside of Nashville. The Isaacsons moved the company there so that its headquarters could be located within 600 miles of half of the population of the United States. Since that time, SERVPRO has nearly tripled its size with over 1,700 locally owned and operated franchises across the United States.
SERVPRO remains a family-owned company, with the Isaacson’s eldest child, Susan Steen, as the company’s chief executive officer. Steen is joined by family members Randall Isaacson and Rick Isaacson as president and executive vice president, respectively.
Staff & Training
As a national company, SERVPRO has resources at its disposal that smaller, local companies may not have. These resources include a national staff that can help local franchisees with support in various aspects of running a business, that include human resources personnel, business analyst, customer service representatives, Quickbooks specialists, national accounts coordinators, marketing data analysts, property claims adjusters and vendor coordinators.
Franchisees receive support and special training from the moment they become part of the company. The first step is a 15-day training program at SERVPRO’s corporate training facility in Tennessee. The basic course covers fire and water restoration, mold mitigation and carpet and upholstery cleaning. Franchise employees can also take the 15-day training course but also have a separate self-paced program for certification in fire and water restoration, carpet and upholstery cleaning and crew training.
What’s more, SERVPRO provides its employees with plenty of ongoing training that includes web-based, self-paced e-learning modules that include video presentations and support materials. The company also offers credit and noncredit courses that cover the latest knowledge and techniques in emergency mitigation. Topics include water and fire damage restoration, restorative drying, mitigation awareness response and mold mitigation and restoration.
In addition, SERVPRO partners with the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) to provide year-round training classes that certifies employees to work in the restoration field. Courses for applied structural drying occur in the company’s purpose-built ASD training facility.
Protect Your Property from a Marijuana Grow
3/7/2018 (Permalink)
Damaged Property From Marijuana Grow
What Landlords and Property Managers Should Know
The number of houses and commercial buildings that are used for growing marijuana is increasing. As medical and recreational marijuana becomes legal in more states it also becomes legal to grow at home for certain people. Grow rooms are becoming more common & cause great damage and microbial growth if improperly built or operated.
How Can a Grow Operation Affect Your Property?
- Mold growth from inadequate ventilation causing high levels of humidity
- Incorrect wiring or overloaded circuits can result in a fire.
- Poor quality electrical work may lower resale value.
Structural Damage
- Holes for ventilation and electrical access
- Damaged duct system from plant sap and high levels of humidity
Don’t Become The Victim
Should cannabis related issues arise after the lease has been signed and if there was no clause prohibiting it, you’ll need to rely on an anti-drug or crime policy that hopefully was included in the lease. A breach of the lease could be cause for eviction if the tenant doesn’t
comply after getting a written notice. If you did not include such a clause, it will be difficult to enforce your wishes during the term of the lease.
SERVPRO of Aurora
Call us at 303-576-6868
We provide results while minimizing the disruption to your business or home.
Related Commercial Services
Related Services
For Immediate Service in Aurora, Call SERVPRO of Aurora
12/1/2016 (Permalink)
Aurora Residents: We provide immediate service day or night!
SERVPRO of Aurora provides 24-hour emergency service and is dedicated to being faster to any-sized disaster in Aurora. We can respond immediately to your emergency and have the expertise to handle your restoration or cleaning needs.
- 24-Hour Emergency Service
- Faster to Any-Sized Disaster
- Highly Trained Restoration Technicians
- A Trusted Leader in the Restoration Industry
- Locally Owned and Operated
- Advanced Restoration and Cleaning Equipment
Have Questions? Call Us 24/7 – 303-576-6868
Residential Services
Whether your Aurora home needs emergency flood damage or your upholstery cleaned, you can depend on us. Our technicians have extensive cleaning and restoration training and can make your property look its best. Learn more about our residential services:
- Water Damage Restoration
- Fire Damage Restoration
- Mold Remediation
- Storm Damage Restoration
- Cleaning Services
- Building/Reconstruction Services
Commercial Services
There's never a convenient time for fire or Water damage to strike your Aurora commercial property. Every hour spent cleaning up is an hour of lost revenue and productivity. So when the need arises for professional cleaning or emergency restoration services we have the training and expertise to respond promptly with highly trained technicians to get your property back to business. Learn more about our commercial services.
- Commercial Water Damage Restoration
- Commercial Fire Damage Restoration
Our Highly Trained Restoration Specialists can restore your Aurora Home
11/7/2016 (Permalink)
We are an IICRC Certified Firm
SERVPRO of Aurora is an IICRC firm. The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) creates the standards for the restoration industry and provides training and certification to restoration companies. IICRC Certified Firms have the right to display the IICRC Certified Logo.
IICRC Certified Firms must
• Present accurate information to consumers and conduct business with honesty and integrity.
• Require a technician on all jobs who has been formally trained and passed all required tests.
• Require a continuing education program to keep technicians up-to-date on the latest changes in the industry.
• Maintain liability insurance to protect all parties in the event of an accident.
• Maintain a written complaint policy and agree to Better Business Bureau or similar arbitration to resolve disputes, and accept the conclusions and recommendations of arbitration.
The IICRC Develops The Standards For The Restoration Industry
The IICRC has been the driving force in establishing the main industry standards and reference guides for professional carpet cleaning, water damage restoration and mold remediation. These IICRC standards take years to develop and require the coordination of experts in the field: manufacturers, industry organizations, insurance professionals, training schools, contractors, and public health professionals.
Every five years, the standards are reviewed and updated. The water damage restoration field changes rapidly with advancements in technology and science, and therefore the standards must evolve to keep pace.
About SERVPRO of Aurora
SERVPRO of Aurora specializes in the cleanup and restoration of residential and commercial property after a fire, smoke or water damage event. Our staff is highly trained in property damage restoration and we are an IICRC Certified Firm. We believe in continuous training: from initial and ongoing training at SERVPRO’s corporate training facility to regular IICRC-industry certification, rest assured our staff is equipped with the knowledge to restore your property.
Among being IICRC certified, here are some more certifications of SERVPRO of Aurora
24/7 Emergency Service
