It’s been a busy weather start to 2019 for restorers across the U.S. In the Northwest, there was the deep freeze; the Midwest has been experiencing record-breaking and deadly flooding and before that some major snow and ice storms; some of the Central States – and Georgia – have seen deadly tornadoes. And that was all just through the month of March.

Heat drying is a topic that is often discussed with almost a cult style narrative that usually alarms my critical reader mind instantly and I move on since it seems to scream sales ad disguised as technical info.

Libraries, courthouses, police evidence rooms, universities, museums, law offices, financial institutions – they all have one thing in common: paper. Whether it’s boxes of vital records, archives, books, or paper files, maintaining these documents is essential to their respective operations. 

Thanks to Sir Isaac Newton and a story about an apple, we know that what goes up must come down. In the land of flooring adhesives, however contradictory to gravity, what goes down must come up. Many types of flooring are installed with adhesives and in most situations flooring adhesives should be removed following removal of the flooring.

The water damage restoration industry recognized standard of care, the ANSI/IICRC S500, contains a significant amount of information related to the use of meters during a drying project. The most important content is primarily in two sections; Section 10 Inspections, Preliminary Determination, and Pre-Restoration Evaluations, and Section 13, Structural Restoration.

This Q&A between R&R Editor-in-Chief Michelle Blevins and ARS Restoration Specialists Branch Manager Kori Medeiros details the importance of establishing key relationships and emergency response plans with local businesses, and being ready to get to work at any hour.