Air movement and dehumidification that dry floors, walls and framing to measured readings in humid North Florida air.
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Structural drying is the process of removing water from a building's walls, floors, subfloor and framing with air movers and dehumidifiers, run until readings show the materials have reached a dry standard. In humid North Florida air it takes longer than in drier places, so the equipment is set to the air as well as the materials. Phones are answered 24/7.
Once the standing water is out, the building still holds moisture in its materials. Drywall, plaster, wood framing, subfloor and insulation each keep water differently, and they release it at different rates. Structural drying is the work of moving that water out of the materials and into the air, then out of the building, at a pace the materials can take.
Humidity in Jacksonville is the main reason drying takes longer here. Moist outside air can carry as much water into a house as the house is trying to shed, and a dehumidifier has to work hard just to hold its ground. A crew measures the indoor and outdoor air before setting the equipment, so it does not pull water out of the materials only to put it back into the room.
The measure is the reading, not the calendar. Moisture meters, a thermal camera and a set of dry goals for each material tell the crew when a wall or floor is dry enough to release. Equipment is moved, adjusted or removed on those readings, and each check is written down so the record shows the progress.
It depends on the materials, the depth of the water and the air. Drying is measured in readings, and most jobs run for several days before every material reaches its dry goal. Humid weather lengthens the time, and an older house with plaster and solid wood takes longer than a newer one.
The drying rate slows as the materials get closer to their dry goal. The first day or two removes most of the water from the surface, and the rest takes longer as the moisture moves out of the deeper layers. The readings show when that slow tail is complete.
A crew cannot promise a finishing day before it has seen the building and taken the first readings. The plan is revised at each visit, and you receive the readings at the same time, so the progress is clear.
Because the air outside holds moisture that can move into the house as the house dries. A dehumidifier must remove both the water from the materials and the water coming in from the air. The crew reads the indoor and outdoor air and sets the equipment to suit it.
On a humid day, opening a window to let air through can add moisture to the room faster than the dehumidifier can take it out. The crew may ask you to keep windows and doors closed while the drying runs, so that the equipment is working on the water in the building.
The same air problem affects closets, cabinets and the space under stairs. Those spaces hold moisture even after the room is dry, and they are checked separately before the job is closed.
A dry goal is the reading a material must reach before it is considered dry. The crew sets it for each material, using a reference reading from unaffected material in the same building or a standard reading for that type of material. The goal is written in the log.
A reference reading is taken from a part of the building that was not wet, such as a wall on the far side of the house. The wet materials are measured against it, so the target reflects the building and not a general figure.
The goals are shared with you and with the repair trade. A floor or wall that reaches its goal can be closed or repaired, and one that does not reach it is looked at again before any repair is started.
The number of rooms and materials affected, the depth of the wetness, the construction of the building and the air conditions decide the scope. The price is explained and approved on site before drying starts, and changes are explained first.
The more materials the water reached, the more readings and equipment the job needs. A house with plaster, wood floors and built-in cabinets takes more care than one with drywall and vinyl, and that care adds time.
The equipment and the number of visits are set by the readings as the drying progresses. None of these factors is turned into a figure on this site; the scope and the price are explained in the building and approved by you first.
No. Equipment removed before the readings reach their goal lets the moisture come back into the materials, and the drying has to start again. The equipment stays until the readings confirm the goal, and the decision to remove it is made with you.
A room that feels dry is not the same as a room that is dry. Surface moisture leaves quickly, and the moisture in the framing and subfloor leaves slowly. Removing equipment on the feel of the room is a common cause of a second round of mold and swelling.
The readings for each room are shared at the final visit, so you can see the evidence for the release. If something is still wet when the rest of the house is dry, the crew says so and explains what it will do about it.
Keep children and pets away from the drying equipment, which can be hot and can cause trips over cords and hoses. Do not set up extra heaters or fans yourself, since they can mix with the crew's equipment and upset the readings. Keep the electrical panel clear of water, and do not run extension cords across wet floors.
The crew measures indoor and outdoor humidity and temperature, then sets dry goals for each material in the building. The goals are written in the log so the drying has a target that everyone can read.
Air movers are set low on the walls and across the floor to move air over wet surfaces. The placement is planned for the room layout, so the air does not blow directly on a wet spot and leave it wet.
Dehumidifiers are placed to draw moisture from the room air, and their output is checked on each visit. Units are sized to the volume and the humidity, and they are moved as the drying moves.
Where a wall or floor reads wet inside, a small opening is made so the cavity can be dried from inside. The openings are photographed and kept to what the readings show.
Readings are taken on each visit and the equipment is adjusted to the progress. A room is released when every material has reached its dry goal, and the final readings are written in the log.
Walls take water into their facing and cavity, and they dry from the inside outward. The crew uses air movers across the wall face and dehumidification in the room, and checks the lowest course of the wall, where water collects.
Wood floors and subfloors dry slowly and can cup if they dry too fast. Air is set gently, boards are lifted where needed, and the subfloor is measured through the floor and from beneath when it is accessible.
Wood framing and insulation hold moisture deep inside the structure. Insulation that is wet is removed, and the framing is dried with directed air and checked at several heights to see that it has reached its dry goal.
Tell us what's happening and we'll tell you honestly whether it's a quick fix, and what structural drying and dehumidification should cost.
Jacksonville's humidity is high for much of the year, and the outdoor air is often wetter than the air inside a house that is being dried. The crew's first measurement is the outdoor air, because it decides how the equipment is set and whether the windows should be closed during the work.
In the older houses of Riverside and Avondale, plaster and lath walls and wood floors over raised foundations take longer to dry than drywall and concrete, and they are dried at a pace that protects them. The equipment is placed to bring the cavity and the subfloor down together.
In the city's flatter and lower areas, a building's crawl space or slab can stay damp because the ground under it is saturated. The drying includes the underside of the floor and the slab edge where the ground moisture reaches the building.
Careful drying of plaster walls, lath and wood floors in older houses, planned to keep original finishes where readings allow.
Assessment and remediation of mold that grows after water damage, and what the Florida mold license covers.
Lifting, drying and removal of hardwood floors and carpet that have taken water, so the floor does not cup or stay wet.
Removal of standing water and drying of the joists, subfloor and insulation in a crawl space after rain or river flooding.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
Water damage restoration cost in Jacksonville is set by the scope of the job, not by a published rate.
Recovery after storm surge or river flooding follows a set order: make the building safe, remove the standing water, clean and disinfect, measure and dry the structure, then repair.
DBPR is the state body that issues mold licenses in Florida, under Chapter 468, Part XVI of the Florida Statutes and Rule 61-31 of the Florida Administrative Code.
Humid North Florida air slows the drying of a wet house because outdoor moisture can enter as fast as the equipment removes it.
Before a water damage company starts work, ask what it will do, who will do it, what credentials cover each part, and what the scope and price are.
Because the outdoor air is often wetter than the air inside, and opening a window can slow the drying. The crew sets the windows and doors to suit the air on the day, and it explains the reason if they need to stay closed during the work.
Often, yes. Drying runs on a schedule set by the materials and the air, and the equipment may run continuously until the readings reach the goal. The crew explains the running time and the noise on arrival, and it adjusts the setup if the household needs quiet hours.
By the readings. The crew logs the moisture in each material against its dry goal, and a room is released only when every reading is at or below the goal. The log is shared with you, so you can see the evidence rather than relying on how the room looks.
Please do not. Opening walls before the crew has mapped the moisture means losing the record of where the water went, and the openings can let the wet cavity dry unevenly. The crew opens what the readings require and photographs each opening first.
The electricity is the household's bill, since the equipment runs in the house. The crew can estimate the running time so you can plan for it, but this site does not state a figure for the cost.
The crew looks again at the source, the air and the materials, and it says what it has found. A material that will not reach its dry goal may need to be removed, and that decision is explained to you and recorded before any removal begins.