Contact Martinsville Water Restoration

How do you keep water damage from spreading before help arrives?

Safety comes first and stopping the water comes second. Everything after that can wait for the crew, so call as soon as the water is under control.

• If the breaker panel is in the wet area, don't touch it. Stay on dry ground and let the crew or your electric utility deal with the power.
• For a leak at one fixture, close the small valve under the sink or behind the toilet. For anything bigger, use the main valve, which is usually in the basement near the meter.
• Don't wade through water that came up through a drain. Close the door to that area and wait for the crew.
• If water is coming in from outside after heavy rain near the White River and Fish Hatchery Lake, move valuables to a higher floor and stay out of moving water.
• A pipe that burst in the cold can keep leaking as it thaws. Close the main valve first, then open a faucet to drain the line.
• Hang up wet rugs or clothing somewhere they can drip, and open interior doors so air can move through the wet area.
• The EPA's mold guide puts the drying window at 24 to 48 hours for water damaged areas and items, so the sooner the crew can start, the better your odds of keeping mold out.
• Check your own policy before you decide whether to file. The Indiana Department of Insurance claim tips explain what to do before an adjuster visits.

What details help the crew show up ready in Martinsville?

A few details on the first call help the crew plan the visit before they leave.

• Which fixture or pipe is leaking, or that you can't tell yet.
• If any of it came up through a toilet or floor drain, since that changes how the crew handles it.
• Whether the floors feel soft or damp above the crawl space.
• When you first noticed it, because the drying plan depends on how long materials have been wet.
• The age of the house, if you know it. Homes in Martinsville date mostly from the 1960s, and the decade tells the crew what kind of pipes to expect.
• Whether you were able to reach the breaker panel.
• Whether someone will be home to let the crew in.

Answer what you can, and the crew will fill in the rest during the first visit.

How does the first visit to your house work?

They start where the water started, whether that's a supply line or a drain, and confirm it's stopped.

With the source stopped, they use moisture meters to find where the water spread inside walls and under floors, and the crew photographs each area for the photo report.

Our water restoration manager is IICRC certified. The IICRC is the standards body behind S500, its standard for professional water damage restoration, now in its Fifth Edition from 2021.

Once the damage is documented, someone walks you through it in plain terms, and the decision about insurance stays with you. Check your own policy for what it covers.

If you go ahead, the crew removes standing water, sets up drying equipment and checks the readings on return visits until the wet materials are dry.

What's worth knowing about water damage in Martinsville homes?

Much of the housing in Martinsville dates from the 1960s, and plumbing from that time is old enough that corrosion and joint leaks show up. You'll see bungalow, cottage, two story and contemporary homes across Martinsville. You'll find full basements and crawl spaces around town, and the crew plans the drying differently for each. If your lot sits low, storm water and groundwater can come in through the foundation, so tell us if the water came from outside. Galvanized supply lines still turn up in older homes here, and they're a common source of leaks at threaded joints. Tell the person who answers what you know, and the crew will take it from there.

Is your neighborhood in the Martinsville service area?

The Martinsville crew covers these neighborhoods:

• Historic Downtown / Courthouse Square District · finished basements are common
• West Side / White River Floodplain Area · basements are common
• Merritt Park Area · homes from the 1940s to 1960s, basements are common
• North Martinsville / Fish Hatchery Lake Area · much of it from the 1980s to 2000s
• Sycamore Knolls · basements are common
• Green Acres · most with basements

If you're just outside Martinsville, in Brooklyn, Monrovia, Mooresville, Smokey Row, Gosport and Trafalgar, this is still the number to call. If you can't tell whether you're covered, call anyway, and the team will tell you on the phone whether a crew can reach your address. For details on the work itself, see our page on water damage restoration and basement flooding.

What do callers in Martinsville want to know first?