Job completed for Plumbing Backup Water Cleanup in Rion, SC

A homeowner in Rion, SC called after a plumbing backup sent water over the floors in their bathroom and kitchen. They also had concerns carried over from an earlier water event years before, along with a soft spot in the hallway they had been watching. Our inspection found no active moisture in the hallway, but it did turn up something they did not know about: an active leak in the crawlspace underneath the bathroom.

Every job starts with an inspection, and this one in Rion, SC is a good example of why. The homeowner pointed us at the bathroom, the kitchen and a soft spot in the hallway they suspected was left over from an incident years earlier. Moisture meters and thermal imaging showed the hallway was dry, so that history could be set aside. The same walkthrough found an active leak in the crawlspace beneath the bathroom that nobody had spotted. Restoration could not start until that was addressed, because drying a structure while water is still entering it accomplishes nothing.

With the source handled, we set up containment. Door-sized barriers with plastic sheeting went into the bathroom, the kitchen and the crawlspace, sealing each work area off from the rest of the home. Containment keeps a controlled environment during the messy parts of the job and stops moisture and contaminants from tracking into rooms that were never affected.

Then came the removal of materials that could not be dried in place. In the bathroom that meant the tile floor, the baseboards, the toe kicks and the sections of drywall behind the toilet and sink, which is where water collects and lingers. In the kitchen, the vinyl flooring came up along with the toe kicks under the cabinets, and the dishwasher and stove were pulled out so we could reach and dry the floor beneath and behind them. Appliances get overlooked constantly, and the space under them is exactly where water hides.

One detail worth noting: before removing the vinyl flooring, testing was carried out to determine whether asbestos was present. Older vinyl and its adhesive can contain it, and tearing it out without checking puts everyone in the building at risk. All removed materials were bagged and disposed of according to industry standards.

Cleaning followed, with HEPA vacuuming across the affected surfaces and the ductwork. Once the compromised materials were gone and the remaining structure was clean, drying equipment brought the bathroom, kitchen and crawlspace back to normal moisture levels, with readings checked as the work went on.

The part of this Rion job most worth remembering is the crawlspace leak. The visible emergency was the backup upstairs, but the quiet, ongoing problem underneath would have kept causing damage long after the floors above looked fine.