Categorically Speaking

5/31/2022 (Permalink)

Categorically speaking not every water damage is the same and as a result is not mitigated in the same manner.  This fact is critical to assure safety.  The Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification or IICRC in the water damage restoration certification class categorizes water damage in three categories.

• Category 1 is water damage that results from clean water. A broken pipe, a ruptured ice maker line or supply line from a toilet are all Category 1 damage at the point of origin.
• Category 2 is water damage that is referred to as gray water. This water contains microorganisms or other particulates.  A washing machine that overflows with detergent and dirty clothes mixed in with the water is an example of gray water or Category 2 water damage.   It is also important to note that a Category 1 water damage that goes untreated for a day or more can become a Category 2 or 3 as the water absorbs contaminants from the things it encounters.
• Category 3 water damage is a water damage from a grossly contaminated source such as sewage water. Category 3 water damage contains bacteria that can cause sickness. 

When a professional mitigation and restoration company treats a water damage one of the first things, they look at is the category of the water.  If the water damage originates from a clean source drying methods are far less aggressive than in Category 2 or 3, where some impacted materials must be removed and discarded for safety reasons.