Cigarettes not being properly put out big cause of fires….

Very sad statistic recently.  We’ve had past fire restoration clients that had fires because a cigarette was not put out.  It only takes a few minutes for a fire to get out of control in a home.  The loss of a home and belongings is horrible and shocking to go through, but losing a loved one or pet is life changing and something no one would ever want to experience.    Fires so many times can be avoidable by common sense and extra caution.   This video has some good info please watch and share!

http://m.ktuu.com/news/cigarettes-to-blame-for-13-of-21-recent-anchorage-fires/26179118

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Earth Day Tips

Earth Day Tips

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/photos/0,,20589450,00.html

How to remove superglue from a granite counter top

Well this was a new one for me…I discovered my son had left a superglue tube open right on our beautiful kitchen granite counter top.  By the time I discovered it the tube was stuck to the counter top pretty good.  The tube pried off  for me but the glue didn’t seem to want to budge.   Acetone is something that would work to remove it.  Since it’s in nail polish remover and was what I had at home that’s what I tried.  I applied the nail polish remover to a white cloth and scrubbed at the glue spot.  In just a few minutes it was completely gone!   If this ever happens to you I hope this tip will help! ( And don’t  forget to rinse over the spot real good with water & dry.)

Maintaining Free Flowing Drains

Plugged up or backed up drains can lead to serious water damage issues in your home.

Here are some simple tips to keep drains throughout your home flowing freely:

• Use strainers in all your sinks.
• Kitchen clogs are generally a buildup of vegetable scraps and congealed fats.  Avoid pouring grease down a kitchen sink.
• Bathroom drains tend to clog with soap scum and hair.  Use a hair trap (available in hardware stores) in bathtub sinks and drains.  These simple devices also capture soap, skin, oils and other residues that buildup in the drain.
• Periodically clean or replace the drain/plug mechanism in your bathtub and sinks.
• Once a week, pour a gallon of boiling water down the kitchen drain- half at a time to break up the grease.

Fall Is The Time To Insulate Pipes

Now is the time of year when Alaskans start preparing for winter. Snowmachines, studded tires and winter gear are usually the top items on that list. But your home should also be top priority too! Those who do not have the foresight to prepare their home for the coming cold months, often end up regretting that they did not. It can be twice as bad to deal with plumbing problems in the winter because pipes in or under the home have frozen and busted. Not to mention the water damage that can quickly happen inside the home.

During warm weather it is so much more comfortable to do maintenance on the home. People get so busy in the spring and summer with gardening and lawn mowing that they probably do not give much thought to the inconvenience that frozen and busted plumbing causes in the cold months. It is a good idea to schedule your plumbing inspections during the warm months. Going underneath your home into the crawl space, if you have one, is essential to be able to inspect your outside pipes for leaks and deterioration.

If the pipes in your crawl space are not insulated, you can do this simple job yourself by wrapping them with pipe insulation or heat tape made specifically for that purpose. It can be terrible to have to get under there and make pipe repairs when there is a foot of snow on the ground and it is only 10 degrees (or many times MUCH colder) outside. Why not do it now when the weather is nicer?

Outside water faucets are also prone to more damage in the winter months. If you are using your spigots right now and notice that they have leaks anywhere, do the repairs now and save trouble later. These spigots can also be insulated for the wintertime. When you have spigot leaks, it can cause you to lose a lot of water over time. This is not good for the planet to waste water and it will not be good for your home either if you get water damage inside your home because of it. Your local hardware or department store should have the supplies that you need to insulate your outside and inside water sources and pipes to help you get your home winterized.

Fall Is The Time To Insulate Pipes

 Now is the time of year when Alaskans start preparing for winter. Snowmachines, studded tires and winter gear are usually the top items on that list. But your home should also be top priority too! Those who do not have the foresight to prepare their home for the coming cold months, often end up regretting that they did not. It can be twice as bad to deal with plumbing problems in the winter because pipes in or under the home have frozen and busted. Not to mention the water damage that can quickly happen inside the home.

During warm weather it is so much more comfortable to do maintenance on the home. People get so busy in the spring and summer with gardening and lawn mowing that they probably do not give much thought to the inconvenience that frozen and busted plumbing causes in the cold months. It is a good idea to schedule your plumbing inspections during the warm months. Going underneath your home into the crawl space, if you have one, is essential to be able to inspect your outside pipes for leaks and deterioration.

 If the pipes in your crawl space are not insulated, you can do this simple job yourself by wrapping them with pipe insulation or heat tape made specifically for that purpose. It can be terrible to have to get under there and make pipe repairs when there is a foot of snow on the ground and it is only 10 degrees (or many times MUCH colder) outside. Why not do it now when the weather is nicer?

 Outside water faucets are also prone to more damage in the winter months. If you are using your spigots right now and notice that they have leaks anywhere, do the repairs now and save trouble later. These spigots can also be insulated for the wintertime. When you have spigot leaks, it can cause you to lose a lot of water over time. This is not good for the planet to waste water and it will not be good for your home either if you get water damage inside your home because of it. Your local hardware or department store should have the supplies that you need to insulate your outside and inside water sources and pipes to help you get your home winterized.

Here’s what one of our clients had to say about us after they had their basement flooded by a ruptured pressure tank.

How To Clean Salsa Out Of Your Carpet

When it comes cleaning Red Salsa from carpet, what’s more important is knowing what NOT to do. 

Most homeowners will try to blot the stain out with a towel first.  However, doing this would only mash the tomatoes and peppers further into the fiber where cleaning would then require a professional.

A better approach would be to use a spoon to scoop up as much of the salsa from the carpet as possible.  Scoop it up and put it in a bowl for later disposal. 

Once you’re done scooping up the salsa, you’ll need to clean the carpet with a solution that contains water and a drop or two of dish soap.  You don’t want to use products like resolve, as these will lead to problems later and may even permanently discolor your carpet.

Take a trigger spray bottle and fill it with hot water.  Place a drop of dish washing detergent in the bottle and shake it and spray the solution into a wet towel.  You don’t want to spray it into the salsa spot directly because this will cause the salsa to go deeper into the backing of the carpet where you then need powerful vacuum to extract it.  Instead, take your wet towel with the solution and work it over the spot in 8 different directions (like an asterisk).  Don’t scrub it… scrubbing the carpet may cause split ends on the carpet that you can’t fix.  So work it gently until the spot is out. 

Once the spot is gone, flip the towel over and go over the are with a wet towel that just contains hot water.  This will act as your rinse and then go over it with a dry towel to blot any moisture.

If you still have a shadow, allow the area to dry and repeat these steps again after the are has dried.  The drying action help bring some of the deeper soil up to the surface where your towel works better.

If that doesn’t work and you still have a shadow or an odor, call a professional.  A certified carpet cleaner has the right tools and training to clean this spot and treat any lingering odors.

Insulate Water Pipes Now to Prevent Water Damage Later

Now is the time of year when Alaskans start preparing for winter.  Snowmachines, studded tires and winter gear are usually the top items on that list.  But your home should also be top priority too!  Those who do not have the foresight to prepare their home for the coming cold months, often end up regretting that they did not. It can be twice as bad to deal with plumbing problems in the winter because pipes in or under the home have frozen and busted.  Not to mention the water damage that can quickly happen inside the home.

During warm weather it is so much more comfortable to do maintenance on the home. People get so busy in the spring and summer with gardening and lawn mowing that they probably do not give much thought to the inconvenience that frozen and busted plumbing causes in the cold months. It is a good idea to schedule your plumbing inspections during the warm months. Going underneath your home into the crawl space, if you have one, is essential to be able to inspect your outside pipes for leaks and deterioration.

If the pipes in your crawl space are not insulated,  you can do this simple job yourself by wrapping them with pipe insulation or heat tape made specifically for that purpose. It can be terrible to have to get under there and make pipe repairs when there is a foot of snow on the ground and it is only 10 degrees (or many times MUCH colder) outside. Why not do it now when the weather is nicer?

Outside water faucets are also prone to more damage in the winter months. If you are using your spigots right now and notice that they have leaks anywhere, do the repairs now and save trouble later. These spigots can also be insulated for the wintertime. When you have spigot leaks, it can cause you to lose a lot of water over time. This is not good for the planet to wastewater and it will not be good for your home either if you get  water damage inside your home because of it.

Your local hardware or department store should have the supplies that you need to insulate your outside and inside water sources and pipes to help you get your home winterized.

Anchorage Water Damage Testimonial

Video on a water damaged home in Anchorage, Alaska that we dried out.