A pipe burst and the floor is wet
Shut off the main, photograph before you move anything, and get drying started. Clean water can be dried in place if drying starts promptly.
Water damage restorationRestoration · independent guide
Water, fire and mold damage, handled in order
What to do first, how drying and the insurance claim work, and how to judge the company at your door. Then tell us what happened, and a person at HyreRestore will reply with the next step.
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- restoration services explained
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- restoration tools Method shown on every one
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- houses we dry Publisher, not a contractor
Get help with your restoration project
Free, with no obligation. A person at HyreRestore replies by email. Not an emergency line: matching is not live yet, and nobody is sent to the property.
Not a restoration company. We dry, remediate and rebuild nothing, and no company pays for a place on these pages.
Sources on the page. EPA, FEMA and IICRC points name the source and the date we read it.
Your numbers. 14 restoration tools show their method and run on the figures you type.
Your details stay yours. Nothing goes to a restoration company unless you agree. Sending the form is not a work authorization.
The short answer
What should you do in the first hours after water damage?
Make the house safe, stop the water, photograph everything, and call your insurer before anything is torn out.
Then get drying started. EPA says wet materials dried within 24–48 hours will, in most cases, not grow mold, so drying is urgent. Signing is not: emergency work can start under a limited work authorization while you read the full contract.
Restoration services
Different damage, different process
Each guide is built the same way: how to tell what you are dealing with, what the work involves, what belongs in the written scope, and how the claim treats it.
Water damage The category of water and how much it soaked in decide what is dried in place and what comes out. Read the guide Structural drying Air movers and dehumidifiers run against a written drying goal, with readings taken every day. Read the guide Mold remediation Containment, HEPA filtration and removal. Florida and Texas keep the assessor and the remediator apart. Read the guide Fire and smoke Soot and odor reach well past the burn. The structure and your belongings are two scopes. Read the guide Storm damage Wind, hail and rising water are different perils under different policies, with different paperwork. Read the guide Safety first Sewage cleanup Category 3 water carries pathogens. Keep people out and leave the cleanup to a professional. Read the guide
Start with your situation
Where are you starting from?
Different losses call for different first moves. Pick the one closest to yours and read that page next.
Sewage came up a floor drain
This is Category 3 water. Keep children, pets and anyone with a weakened immune system out, and do not vacuum it up yourself.
Sewage cleanupThere is mold on the wall
EPA says an area under about 10 sq ft can, in most cases, be cleaned yourself. Larger, or in the ductwork, it needs a professional.
Assessor or remediator?The storm opened the roof
Stay out from under a sagging ceiling. Cover the opening, then dry it, and note whether it was wind or rising water.
Board-up and tarpingA company wants me to sign
Check whether it is a work authorization or an assignment of benefits. Nothing needs signing on a doorstep.
Assignment of benefitsShould I even file a claim?
Put the likely cost beside your deductible. A filed claim stays on the house’s CLUE record for 7 years.
Should I file a claim?The adjuster’s scope looks short
Where two scopes differ, the gap is negotiated with photographs, moisture readings and line items.
Working with an adjusterIt is dry; now the rebuild
Reconstruction is a separate scope. You can compare bids and hire a different company for it.
ReconstructionWhat moves the bill
Eight things set the bill
We publish no average restoration price, because the category of water, the area affected and local rebuild rates move it too far to fit your house. We publish what moves it, so two scopes describe the same job.
- Category of waterClean, gray or contaminated. It decides what can be dried and saved and what must be removed and replaced.
- Area and materialsHow many rooms, and whether water reached drywall, insulation, subfloor or cabinets.
- Days of dryingEquipment count times days on site. Daily readings are what end this line.
- Demolition and disposalWhat has to come out, and where it goes. Contaminated material has its own disposal rules.
- Containment and safetyBarriers, negative air, HEPA filtration and protective equipment where the loss calls for them.
- ContentsCleaning, packing out and storing belongings. A separate scope that is easy to miss until the invoice.
- Reconstruction scopeFinishes, cabinets, flooring, and whether matching the existing materials is possible at all.
- Access and timingWork outside business hours, and how easily equipment can reach the wet area.
How a restoration bill adds up
Mitigation and reconstruction are two invoices, priced on different logic. Ask for them as two documents.
Compare the lines, not the totals. Our cost guide goes line by line, and the estimate check shows what a scope leaves out.
- Emergency servicesExtraction, board-up or tarping
- + Demolition and disposalWet or contaminated material that cannot be dried
- + DryingEquipment × days, ended by the moisture log
- + ContainmentBarriers, negative air and HEPA filtration, where the loss calls for them
- + ContentsCleaning, pack-out and storage
- + ReconstructionDrywall, flooring, cabinets and finishes
- − Deductible and policyWhat the adjuster’s scope and your policy pay
- = What you payOnce the scopes and the claim agree
Three numbers to know before you call anyone
24–48 hrsthe drying windowEPA: “If wet or damp materials or areas are dried 24-48 hours after a leak or spill happens, in most cases mold will not grow.”
30 daysbefore a new flood policy startsFEMA: a new NFIP policy typically has a 30-day waiting period, with exceptions for mandated or lender-required coverage.
7 yearsof claim history on the houseTexas Department of Insurance: a CLUE report shows claims filed on the property for seven years, including a previous owner’s.
None of these is a price. Sources: EPA, A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home, FEMA flood insurance and Texas Department of Insurance, retrieved September 5, 2026.
How it works
Four steps, and each one is your call
Tell us what happened
Water, fire, mold, storm or sewage damage, or a rebuild after drying, plus the zip code so we know which state rules apply.
Tell us what happenedA person replies
Matching with restoration companies is still being built, so the reply is an answer to your question. No company gets your details unless you agree.
How HyreRestore worksCompare scopes
Ask each company for the same written scope: what is being dried, the drying goal, what is being removed, and whether reconstruction is included.
Checks before you hireChoose what fits
Pick the company whose scope, moisture log and paperwork match the loss and the way you want the claim handled. Or keep researching.
How companies will be checked
Restoration tools
Check the numbers yourself
Calculators and checklists that show their method, name the source behind any default, and run on the figures you type. None of them is a quote or a coverage decision.
Should I file a claim?Estimate minus deductible, and the claim-history warning. Is it covered?How a standard HO-3 policy treats each peril. Water loss cost estimatorMitigation and rebuild as two invoices, at your rates. Is this estimate fair?Six completeness checks on the scope in front of you. Drying time estimatorWindows by IICRC class. The log ends the job. Mold riskAgainst EPA’s 24–48 hour drying window. ACV vs RCVDepreciation, the first check and what comes later. Claim timelineWhere you are in the claim, and what comes next.
Your inquiry
Tell us what happened
Ask about your own house and your own loss. Nothing goes to a restoration company unless you agree.
A person reads it and replies by email, free and with no obligation. Matching with restoration companies is not live yet, so this is not a dispatch line and nobody is sent to the property.
If water is still coming in, make the house safe and call your insurer’s claims line first. Then tell us the damage and your zip code, and we will help you work out the next step. The longer form also asks how far it has spread and where you are in the process.
Get Help With Your Restoration Project
One short form: your address and how to reach you. A person at HyreRestore reads it and replies.
Questions
What homeowners ask first
What should I do first after water damage?
Make the property safe, stop the water at the source, then photograph and video everything before anything moves. Report the loss to your insurer and ask what the policy requires. Drying can start right away under a limited work authorization; the full contract can wait until you have read it.
Will my insurance cover it?
It depends on the cause and your policy. Homeowners policies are written around sudden, accidental events, so a burst supply line can be covered while a slow leak or wear can be excluded.
FEMA says: “Most homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage.” Your deductible, and whether you hold RCV or ACV, decide what reaches you.
How long does drying take?
As long as the readings say. Equipment runs until moisture in the wet materials reaches a drying goal set from dry materials of the same kind in the same house. A contained loss can dry in days; water trapped in walls, floors or cabinets takes longer. Without readings, nobody can tell you.
Can I clean up mold myself?
EPA says a moldy area under about 10 square feet (roughly 3 ft by 3 ft) can, in most cases, be handled yourself.
Larger areas, mold in the heating and cooling system, and mold after sewage or floodwater are jobs for a professional.
Anyone with asthma or a weakened immune system should stay out of the area.
What is an assignment of benefits, and should I sign one?
An assignment of benefits (AOB) hands your right to the insurance payment to the contractor, who then bills and negotiates with your insurer directly.
It gives up control of your claim, and state rules on AOBs differ.
Read it slowly, check whether it is really just a work authorization, and do not sign one on a doorstep.
Do I have to use the company my insurer recommends?
In general, no. Insurers run preferred-vendor programs, and those companies can be perfectly good, but you choose who works on your house. Your insurer decides what it will pay for, not who holds the tools. Read your policy for any condition it sets.
What happens after I send a restoration inquiry?
A person at HyreRestore reads it and replies to you. Matching with restoration companies is still being built, so this is not a dispatch line and nobody is sent to the property. We answer your question, and no restoration company gets your details unless you agree.
More in the full FAQ, or read who we are and how we expect to be paid and how restoration companies will be checked.
Contact
Questions about the site?
Email hello@hyrerestore.com about a guide, a correction or your data. We answer questions about the site and the process. We cannot price a loss or send anyone.
We are not a restoration company. If water is running, there is sewage in the house or the building is unsafe, make it safe first and call your insurer’s claims line.
Address 6975 Union Park Avenue
Midvale, UT 84047
United States
Midvale, UT 84047
United States
Phone (866) 582-8523