Coming at this from the restoration side: on water jobs, the damage doesn't stop when the leak stops — the job continues through drying, monitoring, and usually an insurance conversation. So documentation matters even more than on a one-and-done repair.
Our protocol:
1. Respond fast. Speed is the business on water calls. We keep a basic extraction and drying kit staged so a tech can roll without waiting for a shop run.
2. Document with more than photos: moisture meter readings and daily drying logs. Adjusters ask for them, and they protect you when a customer questions the invoice weeks later.
3. Set expectations before equipment goes in. Homeowners hear "we'll dry it out" and picture same-day. We explain the multi-day monitoring window up front — that one conversation prevents most complaints.
4. Separate emergency mitigation from repair. Quote and authorize them separately; it keeps the scope clean if insurance only covers the first.
5. One person owns adjuster touchpoints. Handing over a complete file (photos, readings, logs, invoices) in one go gets us paid faster than piecemeal emails.
For anyone newer to this work, this is a solid step-by-step outline of a typicalwater damage restoration
— useful as a checklist when you're writing your own SOPs.
Curious how others handle drying equipment when starting out — buy dehumidifiers outright or rent per job? That was our biggest capital question.
