How Can Wet Documents Be Restored?

3/19/2022 (Permalink)

Floodwater causes damage to documents and contents inside an office building.

Water Restoration for Documents

If your building floods, there’s a chance that some of your most important documents could be damaged. Losing key records, original documents, books, and photos can be one of the most devastating effects of flooding. Fortunately, with specialized technology and innovative techniques, restoration professionals can often salvage and even restore wet documents.

1. Transfer to Restoration Facility

First, a document restoration team transfers wet and water-damaged documents to a secure restoration facility. These facilities are typically subject to 24-hour surveillance and are managed by HIPAA-Master-certified restoration technicians. Once they arrive at the restoration facility, water-damaged documents, and paper goods are carefully separated, inventoried, and cataloged to ensure nothing is misplaced or out of order.

2. Freeze-Drying

Next, restoration specialists use a unique vacuum freeze-drying process to dry the documents. This process is the same method that the U.S. Library of Congress uses for valuable books and historic documents and is the only document restoration process that is currently approved by the National Archives and Records Administration.
This specialized document drying technique can be used to safely restore many types of wet documents and paper goods, such as:

• Books
  
• Files
  
• Photographs
  
• Maps
  
• Magazines
  
• Manuscripts
  
• Blueprints
  
• Film and microfiche
  
• Parchment
  
• X-Rays
  
• Negatives
  
  

3. Gamma Irradiation

Most floodwater contains at least some contaminants, such as dirt, pesticides, bacteria, chemicals, and viruses. These contaminants may not be visible to the naked eye, but they can penetrate documents and cause ongoing damage. Restoration professionals use a state-of-the-art gamma irradiation procedure to clean, sterilize, and deodorize important documents without causing further damage.

4. Digitizing

Finally, the document restoration team carefully scans each document to create a high-quality digital copy. These digital versions are then added to the initial computerized inventory and cross-referenced, creating a convenient and searchable document catalog.
If a flooded building leaves you with wet documents, all is not necessarily lost. Contact an experienced document restoration company near  Cashiers, NC, right away for the best chance at restoring these valuable items.