Soaked, dirty or smelling? Start cleanup now
Water damage cleanup in Calabasas, CA often starts with a smell, a squelch underfoot or a pile of ruined belongings. The 24/7 line is open for exactly this, and a licensed and insured crew is dispatched as soon as one is free. Before they arrive, stop the water at its source, keep out of anything that may be contaminated, and set aside items you want assessed.
- Close the main valve or the fixture shutoff to stop new water.
- Wear boots and gloves if you must walk through wet areas, and keep children and pets out of dirty water.
- Do not run a household vacuum on wet floors or touch wet outlets.
- Move paper, photos and small valuables to a dry room, bagged if needed.
- Take photos of every affected room before discarding anything.
Cleanup differs from water mitigation, which concentrates on stopping and drying. The two overlap, but cleanup is about what has to be removed and what has to be cleaned until it is safe.
Category 1, 2 and 3 water decide what gets thrown away
ANSI/IICRC S500 sorts water into three categories by source. The category sets how aggressive the cleanup has to be. It can also get worse over time, because clean water that sits for days picks up bacteria and slides toward the next category.
| Category | Typical source | What cleanup usually involves |
|---|---|---|
| 1: clean | Supply line break, overflowing sink, rain through a roof | Extraction and drying. Many materials stay. Wet pad and soaked insulation often go. |
| 2: gray | Washing machine or dishwasher discharge, aquarium, toilet overflow without feces | Remove porous materials such as carpet pad and drywall near the floor. Clean and sanitize hard surfaces. |
| 3: black | Sewage, rising floodwater, long-standing standing water | Remove porous materials, clean and disinfect everything the water touched, protective gear throughout. |
Contaminated carpet and pad generally cannot be reliably cleaned and are removed. Drywall wicked with Category 3 water is cut out. Hard surfaces such as tile, concrete and sealed wood are typically cleaned and disinfected rather than removed. For floodwater entering from outside, see our flood damage restoration page.
Need it cleaned out today?
Call the 24/7 line. A licensed and insured crew is dispatched same day when available.
Call (818) 337-2642What gets removed and what gets dried
This is the decision cleanup crews make hardest, and it is where a clear explanation to you matters. Per the California Department of Public Health, porous items soaked for longer than a day or two are candidates for removal rather than drying. Here is how that plays out in a typical Calabasas house.
Usually removed
Carpet pad, wet fiberglass insulation, drywall wet more than a foot above the floor, particleboard cabinet bases, and any porous item touched by Category 2 or 3 water.
Often dried in place
Framing lumber, concrete slabs, tile, solid wood trim, and Category 1 drywall that is wet near the base and still sound.
Sometimes salvageable
Carpet from clean-water events if extracted fast, hardwood floors when panel drying starts early, and certain contents such as solid furniture.
Often not worth saving
Mattresses, upholstered pieces, stuffed items and paper goods that sat in dirty water. Your insurer may want a list and photos before disposal.
Sanitizing and deodorizing
After removal, remaining surfaces are cleaned of silt and residue, then treated with an antimicrobial suited to the surface. Wood framing exposed by demolition may be scrubbed and wiped down. Odor from water damage is usually bacteria and damp materials, so deodorizing works best after the source is gone. Masking with fragrance only delays the problem.
For lingering smells, crews may use air scrubbers with HEPA and carbon filtration, or hydroxyl or thermal fogging in unoccupied rooms. These methods help but do not replace removing the source. A smell that returns after drying often points to a damp spot nobody found.
Older homes and hazardous materials
About 73 percent of Calabasas homes were built before 1989, per the city's 2021 Housing Element background report. When cleanup involves cutting into walls, ceilings or old flooring, age matters. Materials made or installed from 1945 to 1978 may contain asbestos, and paint disturbed in homes built before 1978 can contain lead.
Ask before demolition
Under the EPA RRP rule, paid work that disturbs painted surfaces in pre-1978 homes requires lead-safe qualified firms, and abatement of significant asbestos is regulated. If your house is that old, tell the dispatcher. Testing of suspect material may be needed before demolition, and our crews do not remove asbestos unless properly qualified.
Call (818) 337-2642Sewage backups and storm-related cleanup
If a toilet or floor drain has backed up, this is Category 3 water and should not be handled with household mops. The Las Virgenes Municipal Water District runs an emergency line at (818) 251-2100 for water and sewer problems on the public side. If the backup is in your own plumbing, a plumber clears the line and a cleanup crew disinfects afterward.
The nearby Woodland Hills station records about 16.41 inches of rain a year, with December through March the wettest. Heavy storms in that stretch can overwhelm drains, and the city's Safety Element warns that intense rain can overwhelm storm drains in general. Water coming in from outside is treated as contaminated until proven otherwise.
What affects the cost of cleanup
Five things shape the cost of water damage cleanup. Scope and price are explained up front, and no numbers are quoted online. A real figure comes from describing your own case by phone.
- Water category, since Category 3 requires more protective gear and disposal.
- How much material must be removed, from a section of pad to full rooms of drywall.
- The size of the area that needs cleaning and treatment.
- Access and disposal, including stairs, tight spaces and haul-away volume.
- Whether odor work, containment or hazardous material testing is needed.
Insurance and cleanup
A general note
Cleanup after a sudden pipe break or appliance failure is often covered. Gradual leaks and neglect often are not, and flood generally needs separate flood coverage. Keep photos and lists of what you discard, and save receipts for protective steps. Check your policy and ask your insurer, because the carrier makes the coverage decision, not the cleanup crew.
After cleanup
Once the structure is clean and dry, the rebuild begins, described on our water damage repair page. If moisture was missed and growth has started, the mold remediation page explains the next step. For other work, see all water damage services.
Frequently asked questions
Do you handle water damage cleanup emergencies at night or on weekends, including holidays, in Calabasas?
Yes. The 24/7 line takes calls on nights, weekends and holidays, and a crew is sent on a same-day basis when available. We do not promise arrival times. Stop the water and call.
Can wet carpet be cleaned instead of replaced?
Sometimes. Carpet wet with clean water and extracted quickly can often be dried and saved, while the pad is usually replaced. Carpet touched by gray or black water is typically removed.
How do you know whether a wall can be left in place?
Moisture meters and thermal imaging show where the wall is wet, and the water category shows how risky it is. Clean-water walls wet only at the base often dry in place. Contaminated or sagging drywall is cut out.
Why does my house still smell after it dried?
Usually something damp remains, such as carpet backing, insulation or a wall cavity. Retesting with a meter and opening the suspect area is the fix. Odor products alone do not solve it.
Do I need to be home during cleanup?
Not the whole time, but you should be there for the first walk-through to agree on what is removed. For sewage or flood cleanup, you may be asked to stay out of the work area.
Can you clean up mold at the same time?
If growth is visible, it needs containment and removal under ANSI/IICRC S520 practice rather than ordinary cleanup. Say so on the call. Health questions about mold go to a physician.