Water Damage Restoration in Fraser, IA

Whatever got wet in your Fraser home, the next few hours matter more than the next few days. Call us and we'll find a restoration specialist from our network who works in Boone County, Iowa, and can get dehumidifiers and extraction equipment to you soon.

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Someone picks up, day or night.

Gutted room with metal stud framing and new drywall sheets during water damage repairs

Water in Fraser by the numbers

Boone County, Iowa. Public records, linked in each box.
Source: ACS 2023 5-year, table B25035
1983
Half the homes around Fraser were built before this year

Homes around Fraser are newer than in 72% of the 28,807 places we track, which changes what tends to go wrong more than whether it does.

Source: NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals, station USC00130807
39.1 in
Inches of precipitation in a normal year, rain and snow together

Around 57% of the 30,291 places we track get more than this. Dry places aren't off the hook. Hard ground sheds water fast, so one big storm can run straight to your door.

Source: NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals, station USC00130807
JUN
The wettest part of the year here: June

Check your drains and the slope around the house ahead of June. It takes an afternoon, and it can save a lot of drying later.

Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, 2016-01-01 to 2026-10-31
4
Of 7 federal disaster declarations for Boone County since 2016, this many were weather or water
  • Flood2
  • Severe Storm2

Nothing clearly tops this list. It's a good reason to know where your main valve is before you need it. We've left out 3 for other causes, such as fire or the pandemic.

Before anyone arrives

What to do first if you're in Fraser

Go through these in order and skip anything that doesn't feel safe. None of it is worth getting hurt over.

  1. Shut off the water

    Look for the main valve near the meter or where the line comes into the house, and turn it slowly, since older valves can stick. If it's one fixture, its own shutoff valve will do.

  2. Stay clear of the power

    If you can reach the breaker panel without stepping in water, switch off the wet rooms. If you can't, leave it alone, stay out of the water and tell us when you call.

  3. Take pictures first

    Before you clean up, photograph the water, where it came from and whatever it damaged. Your insurance company will ask, and you only get one chance at those shots.

  4. Rescue what you can

    Move rugs, papers, photos and electronics to a dry room, and prop furniture up off the wet floor. Everything else can wait.

  5. Let the air move

    If the water is clean and the power's safe, open interior doors and run the fans you have. Stay out if it's sewage or floodwater, and keep that air away from the rest of the house.

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Mold can get started within 24 to 48 hours, so it's worth calling even if the worst seems over.

Typical build year

Where to look first in a Fraser home of this age

Your home is too new for rusted steel pipe, but it may be just the right age for polybutylene, the gray plastic line used in many houses until the mid 1990s. It doesn't give much warning before it lets go.

The other usual suspects in a house this age are the second or third water heater, the supply lines under the toilets and the ice maker line behind the fridge. All of them are cheap to replace and expensive to ignore.

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Gloved hands fitting a threaded pipe to a radiator

Water damage services in Fraser

The Midwest

What's different about water damage in Fraser

Weather

Severe storms and hard winters both cause trouble here. Spring and summer bring thunderstorms that drop inches of rain and overload sewers, and river flooding can follow days of heavy rain upstream. In winter, deep cold bursts pipes, and ice dams push meltwater through ceilings.

Buildings

If you've got a finished basement, you've got a lot to lose down there. A sump pump that stops in a power outage is the classic cause, followed closely by a floor drain backing up in a storm. Water heaters and washers often live in the basement as well.

Ground

When the ground's full, water pushes in from outside. Much of the soil here is dense clay, and there's nowhere else for it to go. Keeping downspouts well away from the walls and making sure the yard slopes away both take some of that pressure off.

Drying

A wet basement dries slowly, because it's cool, low and closed in. Specialists set air movers low along the walls, run dehumidifiers sized for the space and check the concrete and framing each day until the readings come down.

When you call

How a Fraser water job goes after you call

First we'll want to know three things: where you are in Fraser, where the water came from and if it's stopped. From there, we'll connect you with a local specialist from our network, so you're speaking to someone who works in Boone County. That goes for homeowners, landlords and businesses alike.

When the specialist arrives, the first job is finding where the water went, because that's rarely where it's pooled. Thermal cameras and moisture meters show how far it has traveled behind walls. They'll also work out what kind of water it is. Category 1 is clean water from a supply line, Category 2 is dirty, like a washer overflow, and Category 3 is sewage or floodwater. Category 3 means sealing the area with plastic, called containment, and running negative air machines with HEPA filters to keep the dirty air away from the rest of your home.

Getting the water out is the quick part. A truck-mounted or portable extractor handles that. After that, air movers sweep across wet surfaces, and low grain refrigerant (LGR) dehumidifiers take that moisture out of the room. In cold or dense spaces, desiccant dehumidifiers work better. You'll hear the machines day and night for a while, and daily psychrometric readings of the air show that they're working.

The finish line isn't when things look dry. Readings from dry wood and drywall in your own house set the target, called the dry standard, and the equipment stays until the wet areas reach it. That's the IICRC S500 standard for water damage at work, and those daily records are what your insurance company wants to see.

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What can be saved in a Fraser home

It depends mostly on how fast drying starts and how dirty the water was. With clean water, carpet can usually stay and the pad goes. Hardwood often comes back with drying mats and patience, and sanding can take care of what's left. Walls may only need a flood cut, which removes the bottom section of drywall, so the rest stays put.

The exception is dirty water. Whatever soft material sewage or floodwater touched has to be removed, and the rest gets an antimicrobial cleaning. Don't relight a gas heater or water heater that sat in water, and if a floor feels soft, stay off it and mention it on the call.

Our Fraser service area

We take calls from all over Fraser and the rest of Boone County, for houses, apartments and commercial buildings. If you're not sure you're close enough, just ask.

ZIP codes in Fraser

  • 50223
  • 50212
  • 50036

Other towns in Iowa

What people in Fraser ask us

How fast can someone get to me in Fraser?

Usually the same day, and often within a few hours. It depends on who's closest and how busy Boone County is. If a storm has just gone through, everyone's calling at once, so call as soon as you can.

Can I clean up water damage myself?

Some of it, yes. A bit of clean water on tile is a job for a mop and a fan. It's different when water has got under the flooring or into a wall, or when it's dirty. Household fans can't dry a wall cavity, and sewage isn't safe to handle.

How long does it take to dry out a house?

A small leak that's caught early may dry in two or three days. A flooded room with wet subfloor and insulation can take a week or more, and repairs start after that.

Can wet hardwood floors and carpet be saved?

Usually, with clean water and a fast start. Drying mats sit on hardwood and draw the moisture out slowly so the boards don't split. Sanding and refinishing can fix any cupping that's left. Carpet needs a new pad, and it can't be saved at all after sewage or floodwater.

Will my insurance pay for water damage?

Sudden and accidental damage, such as a pipe that bursts, is usually covered. Slow leaks and rising floodwater usually aren't, unless you've got flood insurance. Take pictures before cleaning up and keep every receipt, because your insurance company will ask.

Need help with water in Fraser?

(888) 596-0163

Call now. Tell us your address, and we'll find you the closest available specialist in Boone County.

Call Now: (888) 596-0163