I met with **** and he took me through his home to 2 bedrooms right at the back of the house. Both these bedrooms were very badly damaged due to a flood of water that ran into **** home from outside. The damages are extensive and the water that got into the home has completely ruined *** 2 bedrooms. As mentioned the damages are extensive and have affected various components in the bedrooms. The damaged items include both bedroom carpets, all of the skirting boards, all bedroom doors in the affected area, BIC’s, electrical points and the paintwork. These damages are easily visible in the images I have attached.

The cause for these damages is due to the way the home is positioned on the property. The house sits fairly low down in what could be called a valley. The surrounding landscaping has been formed in such a way that a steep hill runs from behind the home and right up next to it. During a heavy rain, water will fall into/down the adjacent hill and into the above-mentioned valley. Generally, during a rain, this water would normally drain away sufficiently. However, during this particular instance, the amount of water that rained into this valley was far more than the drainage system could handle and a build-up of water began running into the home. Thankfully the water only leaked in from the side of the home and not from the rear. **** explained that he did what he could to redirect the water during the rainfall but not much could be done due to the amount of water that was flowing in. He further explained to me that the water had flowed into the home so much, that it was nearly 15cm deep at the far end of both the bedrooms. This is believable, just by looking at the bedroom doors a distinct watermark can clearly be seen where the water reached it’s deepest – this was left behind by the flooding water and can be seen on all 5 doors in the area (entranceway door, 2 ensuites, 2 bedroom doors). **** has subsequently created a better drainage system that can handle larger amounts of water during such hard rains/storms. 

 

To go further into detail regarding the damaged property, the main items include the carpets which will need to be removed and replaced entirely. Because of the flooding a strong damp odour can be smelt when in the affected bedrooms. All of the skirting boards have been completely damaged and the walls (blistering) and doors (swelled) in the area have been damaged too. There are a few plug points that are not working properly either that will need to be seen to as well. Another point that needs to be brought up is the built-in cupboards (BIC’s). Both sets of cupboards (each bedroom) have been very badly damaged and it is clear that the entire base of each cupboard set is beginning to form rot and residue. These cupboards will need to be either repaired as best as possible using existing components with new or the entire unit will need to be dismantled and replaced. I have my carpenter looking into the BIC fabrication to place in our quotation.

 

After closely assessing the damaged items, it is clear there was a lot of old items that were not in impeccable condition but due to the flooding water most (if not all) items mentioned above were damaged beyond repair.  

 

Repairs: 

Again, the damages are extensive and a fair amount of work will need to be carried out to get the 2 bedrooms repaired. I have listed the repairs below and broken them down into sections. The repairs include:

Flooring: As mentioned above the carpets will need to removed and replaced.

Skirting: The skirting boards have been very badly affected and will most certainly need to be replaced.

BIC (Built in cupboards): The built-in cupboards will need to be replaced as they have begun to show residue and rot. If existing components can be utilised to repair the existing BIC’s we’ll use them but I am unsure if this is possible. I have my carpenter looking into this.

Painting: Once all of the repairs to the floor and skirtings have been completed we will be able to sand, fill and prep the bedroom walls. Thereafter we’ll be able to apply our paint. 

Electrical: As mentioned above there are a few electrical points that need to be further looked at and repaired

Doors and carpentry work: This includes the all the doors. The 5 doors in the area need to be replaced. This will include the fitting of the 5 doors as well as the fitting of the new locks and handles.