Atlanta Storm Damage

The April 4th Storms in Atlanta caused damage across the city with trees uprooted, power lines downs, and debris scattered across the road ways.

Waking up in Atlanta with storm damage?

Check out this article from 11 Alive posted this morning:

Many still without power after deadly storm Submitted by 11Alive News Staff Tuesday, April 5th, 8:40 am

ATLANTA -- The sun is up, but more than 100,000 Metro Atlantans are still in the dark after a strong line of storms tore through North Georgia Monday night and early Tuesday morning. As of 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Georgia Power reported just under 150,000 customers were still without service statewide, including 56,000 in Metro Atlanta. Also, Georgia EMC reported nearly 98,000 outages statewide, with under 46,000 in Metro Atlanta.

The wild winds snapped down power poles and trees like twigs across the region. A father and his 3-year-old son were killed when a tree came down on a duplex bedroom in Jackson, Ga. Butts County Sheriff Gene Pope said the two were killed instantly. The boy's twin brother was saved by their mother, who had been asleep in another room.

In Northwest Atlanta, Howell Ragsdale was awakened by a huge tree that crashed through the roof of his home on Hawthorne Avenue. "I was just lucky," he said. The tree landed at the foot of his bed. The roof was ripped off of the Barrow County Administration Building. Trees were down across Gilmer County, where residents reported seeing a funnel cloud Monday night. No one was seriously hurt. It's up to the National Weather Service to decide Tuesday if there was in fact a tornado. A Tornado Watch had been issued by the National Weather Service Monday night.

-by 11Alive News Staff

If you have storm damage

ServiceMaster Professional Restoration Can Help

404.853.2525

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ServiceMaster Clean: Discovery

Meet Our Newest Teammate, YOUR Project Manager

Alan Chestnut

Alan is a Project Manager for ServiceMaster Professional Restoration, reporting to the president of ServiceMaster Professional Restoration. Alan oversees Water Damage, Mold Mitigation, Fire Damage, Smoke Damage, Soot, or Odor Damage, Pack-out Services, and Total Home Cleaning Projects from start to finish. Overseeing these projects allows Alan to fully customize each customer’s service plan to match their needs and desires.

ServiceMaster Professional Restoration has always been committed to excellence and education. That’s why our team of professionals continuously receives hands on and classroom instruction on industry specific education from the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). In April 2010 Alan completed an additional certification with the National Center for Healthy Housing. To learn more about the IICRC visit them on the web at: http://www.certifiedcleaners.org/.

Water Damage?

We can Help! 404.853.2525

Did You Know:

Mold can grow in as little as 72 hours? In order to grow, mold needs just three things:

-A food Source

-Temperature

-Moisture

With these conditions present, mold is able to germinate and colonize! how fast growth occurs depends on the combination of conditions. Houses offer an ample food supple, and when these materials become damp or wet dormant mold spores become active growing molds!

Keep this in mind if your hot water heater burst, toilet backs up, HVAC unit or washing maching leaks. Any water damage can be MAJOR water damage if not addressed properly and fast!

ServiceMaster Professional Restoration is ready 24/7 to assist your water damages!

Water Damage Advise -From the Pros

When you have had water or sewer damage your home you want the damage corrected as quickly as possible and rightly so! But slow down for a moment. You are going to be investing a lot of trust in the company that you have brought in to complete the restorative work in your home. You need to make sure that they are able to work with you in such a way as to help you effectively meet your goals.

The science of restorative drying has been developing exponentially over the last number of years. What was true three years ago may be inapplicable today. Keeping up with the 'best practices' within the profession requires continual upgrading and training. It is critical for you as a homeowner to ask informed questions that will enhance your ability to get the best service possible and reduce the chances of having secondary damage such as mold.

To learn more visit our website at: www.servicemasterpr.com

How to Clean Up a Basement After a Flood | eHow.com

How to Clean Up a Basement After a Flood | eHow.com

How to Clean a Flooded Basement | DoItYourself.com

How to Clean a Flooded Basement | DoItYourself.com

Water damage 101

Water damage occurs when pipes burst or water seeps into a basement through a leaky foundation. Water damage can be expensive to fix and in some cases home buyers want to hold sellers accountable for it. Who should pay for water damage depends on when it's discovered. Same is true for how to fix it - the fix will depend on how extensive the water damage is. Learn about water damage and how to resolve it here or at: ServiceMasterPR.com

Greener Cleaning

In commercial cleaning today, everybody wants the job done quicker and “greener.” ServiceMaster Professional Restoration is always here to help! here are some tips you can follow at home: When choosing cleaning chemicals, choose one just strong enough to do the job quickly and completely. Too much or too strong, a chemical can leave dangerous residue or affect Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). Similarly, an alternative chemical that is too weak might be “greener” but if much more needs to be used to do the job, or it takes twice as long to apply, your green benefit is eliminated.

Three Key Questions:

The success of each and every decision made during the restorative drying process depends on the information upon which the decision was based. The process of restorative drying involves a continuous cycle of information gathering, interpretation, decision making, validation and adjustment... There are 3 questions that summarize the information that must be obtained, documented and evaluated throughout the restorative drying process. When left unanswered, these questions are the source of the most common deficiencies in inspection and documentation. The four key questions, or 'knows' of drying are:
•What's Wet?
•How Wet Is It?
•Is It Drying?
Inspection, monitoring and documentation answer these 3 questions. A gap in this process will result in improper drying, additional water damage, and compromised cleanliness and integrity. Proper instruments and tools are a key ingredient to successful completion in the drying process.

What is water damage?

Water damage occurs when pipes burst or water seeps into a basement through a leaky foundation. Water damage can be expensive to fix and in some cases home buyers want to hold sellers accountable for it. Who should pay for water damage depends on when it's discovered. Same is true for how to fix it - the fix will depend on how extensive the water damage is. Learn about water damage and how to resolve it here.

Are You Shopping for a House?

Now is a great time to buy the home you've always dreamed of...
QUESTION:I am shopping for a house. What do I need to know about homeowner’s insurance before I buy?

ANSWER: There are two parts to a typical homeowner’s policy: (1) property coverage protects the home and contents plus losses for additional living expenses, and (2) liability coverage protects you from lawsuits. The amount of home coverage should be at least 80%, or more, of the replacement cost of your home. Coverage of the contents of your home is usually an amount at least half of the structure coverage.

Question of the day:

QUESTION: I rent a house from the owner. Do I need Homeowners coverage?

ANSWER: You cannot insure the structure (house, itself), but you can insure your personal belongings under a renters insurance contract and your landlord or lease agreement may require that you also do so.

Outside walls, doors and windows

Inspect outside walls, doors and windows each spring and fall for unusual wear or tear. Water and moisture can penetrate these common areas if they're not maintained regularly. Repair or replace caulk, weather stripping, glazing, window seals, door seals or any other exterior area damaged by use, abuse or normal weathering. Examine your exterior siding and replace any missing or damaged fasteners or screws. Repair or replace punctured siding.

Remember to look under your home for sagging, torn or water-spotted bottom barrier. This can indicate poor or damaged insulation, which may cause water lines to freeze and break. These symptoms also can indicate an existing leak.

Check your home's pneumatic storm door closer and safety chain. If these are loose or not working properly the storm door may blow open. That lets water in and can cause additional damage. Inspect exterior doors, especially wooden ones, for wear and tear and cracking.

Also check weather stripping and seals as well as the sill and the threshold for signs of leaking or other damage. Inspect the putty or caulking around metal windows. Clean and remove cracked or dried-out material and replace it with an upgraded sealant or caulk.

Protect Your Home from Water Damage

Water damage - whether caused by leaks or condensation - can do more than cause unsightly stains in your home. It can cause permanent structural damage to the home and erode its strength.

As a general rule, water damage from poor or infrequent maintenance, neglect or general deterioration isn't covered by your insurance. But proper home maintenance can help you prevent messy and costly damage to your home.

Did you know?

Most homeowners policies provide for funds for additional living expenses. These are the amount you must incur over and above your normal expenses to live when you become displaced from your home by a covered loss.
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QUESTION: If a tornado damages our home to the point that we cannot live there safely, will our homeowner's policy cover staying in a motel?

ANSWER: Many homeowner's policies have provisions to pay a reasonable increase in living expenses which are necessary to maintain the insured's normal standard of living. it is important to check your policy to find out if you have this coverage. If you do, you also need to find out what amount your policy will pay.

Celebrate 50th anniversary of Atlanta Motor Speedway with weekend of night racing

ServiceMaster Racing hospitality will be at the Atlanta Motor Speedway for an exciting weekend of night racing. If there's one stop on the NASCAR circuit that you can't miss this year, it will be Atlanta! This year, the Service Master Clean team has been able to secure a premiere hospitality location that will put you in the midst of the action...on pit road! The Clean Machine hospitality area will be located behind the pits, mere feet from the pit stalls themselves.

Enjoy a race weekend like no other with guided pit tours, special driver appearances, exclusive infield access, food and beverage, goody bags, raffles, and much more.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the track and to celebrate, the speedway will host an unforgettable race weekend. On Sunday, just prior to the race, your package will let you enjoy the classic rock sounds of the band Foreigner!

You don't want to miss out on this extraordinary weekend! We'll take care of you at the track and will give you a unique experience that can't be bought anywhere else

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