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Are you stocked up on your restoration equipment for the New Year? Now is a great time to take inventory of your supplies, service your equipment to make sure it’s in optimal working condition and expand your gear to take on more jobs in the months ahead. To make it easier to stay on top of your game in the New Year, we’ve put together a checklist of critical items and equipment for restoration professionals.
Moisture Meters
Essential for tackling any water damage restoration job, moisture meters are designed to detect moisture content levels in walls, floors and solid materials such as wood, concrete and drywall. The extent of water damage is often not visible to the naked eye, but moisture meters allow you to measure the moisture content (%MC) to accurately access the scale and scope of a restoration job. There are two primary types of meters available: Pin-type, which uses contact pins that are either inserted into the material or pressed against the surface to get readings; and, pinless/nondestructive meters, which use an electromagnetic frequency to detect moisture levels.
Thermal Cameras
Thermal cameras provide a non-contact method of determining moisture and heat levels using infrared energy. Unlike traditional cameras, which rely on the spectrum of visible light to capture images, thermal cameras translate infrared energy — aka heat — into a visual image. These are invaluable tools on both water and fire damage restoration job sites, as they help you assess the extent of damage and plan a safe course of action to tackle the restoration work.
Airmovers & Air Scrubbers
Keeping air circulated is critical for effective drying processes and your safety on a job site. Airmovers and air scrubbers both play an important role in removing harmful pollutants from the air, filtering out gasses, chemical, ash and particulates, and keeping circulation going. The number of machines you’ll need varies by the size of the job site and amount of damage. It’s critical to have enough machines in stock to meet the needs of the specific restoration site to work quickly and efficiently in time-sensitive situations.
Extractors & Dehumidifiers
Let’s talk about the state of your heavy-duty equipment. Extractors and dehumidifiers are the cornerstone of water damage restoration and repair, as they help remove standing water and excess moisture from the air, respectively. You can’t afford to lose time to faulty or broken equipment. Now is the perfect opportunity to set time aside to do a quality check to make sure your machines are in optimal working condition — and take them in for a maintenance tune up, if needed.
Dust Barriers
Restoration can be messy work. Dust barriers like ZipWall’s temporary walls help keep your workspace contained and allow you to better control the environment, capturing dust and particles on contact. Easy-to-install, portable room enclosures are ideal for busy teams, helping improve efficiencies with grab-and-go dust barrier kits.
The Not-So-Small Stuff
Think about all the small things that make a big impact on the job site. For example, are you stocked up on personal protection equipment (PPE) like gloves, masks and safety glasses? Do you have enough heavy-duty garbage bags to tackle your workload — and then some? Check out your brushes and brooms; are the bristles worn down or in bad shape? Look over your inventory and see what needs to be replenished or upgraded to meet the needs of the work on the horizon.
Now that you’ve had a chance to review what you have in stock, pinpoint what needs to be repaired or replaced and identified new opportunities for growth, you’re one step closer to tacking all the New Year has in store. From name-brand equipment to everyday essentials and repair services, Atex takes pride in supplying the pros with the best of the best. Let us know how we can help you get prepped and ready for the months ahead.