If storm water is inside your home right now, call the 24/7 line and use the minutes before we arrive. Move valuables and rugs onto high, dry surfaces, keep children and pets out of the water, and stay away from outlets, cords and the panel if the floor is wet. Photograph the water line and the doorway or wall it came through.
Storm water damage here means rain that got in or pooled where it should not. It enters under doors, around windows, through walls hit by wind-driven rain, across a garage threshold, or from the ground when drainage fails. Rising water that covers the surrounding land is a different event, which we treat under flood damage restoration.
Extraction and drying follow the published ANSI/IICRC S500 reference, and a homeowner can ask any contractor which practices it follows.
Where storm water gets in
Garage and door thresholds
Water runs along the driveway and pushes under the garage door or a sliding door track. Drywall and stored boxes take the first hit.
Clogged gutters and downspouts
Overflow spills down the wall or pools against the foundation, then seeps in at the base of the wall.
Poor grading
Soil that slopes toward the house sends runoff to the foundation. Water shows up along baseboards on the low side.
Wind-driven rain
Rain pushed sideways finds gaps at windows, vents and siding seams, and wets the wall cavity from the outside in.
Mud and debris
Runoff that crosses a slope carries silt and plant material. Muddy water is not clean water and is handled with that in mind.
Why a dry hillside can turn wet fast
Wikipedia's account of the Springs Fire records that it burned the hills around town on May 2, 2013, and that an unusual rainstorm put it out four days later. Burned slopes shed water quickly, so if hills near you have burned, check that drainage paths are clear before the next storm.
Arroyo Conejo, also called Conejo Creek, is the principal waterway through Newbury Park, and a flood-control channel runs along the US 101 corridor. Because we cannot tell you whether a given address sits in a mapped zone, look it up on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center. A mapped address changes both how you prepare and what insurance questions you ask.
We have no local frequency figures for storm water entering homes in Newbury Park, so this page covers the real cases you can recognize at your own door.
Safety steps for the first hour
Treat any water that has touched outlets, the panel, a floor furnace or a gas appliance as an electrical risk. Stay out of the room and call your electric or gas utility or 911 first. Switch off power only if the panel is reachable on dry ground. Never wade through water near live power.
Storm water often carries soil, fertilizer, pet waste and debris, so avoid direct contact and wash after handling wet items. Do not pump or hose it out to the street or a storm drain. The City of Thousand Oaks ordinance allows only clean water into storm drains, so extracted storm water has to be handled properly.
Rain water standing inside the house?
Call now and tell us where it entered and how deep it is.
How we clear and dry a storm-hit home
Assess the water
We note where it entered and whether it carries mud. Dirty storm water is treated as contaminated and porous materials in its path may need to come out.
Extract and remove mud
Submersible pumps and extraction units pull standing water from the garage, carpet and hard floors, and silt is shoveled or vacuumed out.
Find hidden moisture
Moisture meters and a thermal imaging camera trace water that wicked into the lower walls, baseboards and cabinets.
Dry and sanitize
Air movers and LGR dehumidifiers dry the structure, and antimicrobial treatment goes on surfaces that touched dirty water.
Confirm dry
Readings are repeated until framing and drywall reach dry levels. Rebuilding then moves to water damage repair.
What changes the cost
Scope depends on how deep the water got, how many rooms it reached, how much mud came in, and how long materials stayed wet. Contaminated water means more removal of carpet, pad and lower drywall. Scope and price are explained before work starts.
Insurance: rain, flood and fire plans
The California Department of Insurance states that standard homeowners' insurance does not cover flood damage, and that homeowners and commercial policies typically exclude flood, mudslide and debris-flow losses. It also says the California FAIR Plan does not cover storm-related damage without a difference-in-conditions policy from another insurer. Call your insurer before repairs to ask how your wording treats rain entry versus ground runoff.
| What happened | Often treated as | Ask your insurer |
|---|---|---|
| Wind-driven rain through a window | Sudden weather damage | Does the policy cover storm rain entry? |
| Runoff or mud across the ground | May fall under flood or mudslide exclusions | Is surface water or debris flow excluded? |
| Gutter overflow over weeks | Possibly gradual or maintenance | How does the policy treat neglect? |
| FAIR Plan policy | Storm may not be included | Do I have a separate policy for storms? |
Prevention before the next storm
Clear gutters and downspouts before the rainy season and make sure they discharge away from the foundation. Check that soil slopes away from walls, and keep garage door seals and door tracks clear of debris. If a storm follows a fire in nearby hills, ask a drainage professional about runoff paths.
We also serve Camarillo and Oak Park, where wet winters and nearby hills raise the same questions. For a leak that came from the roof itself, see roof leak water damage.
Frequently asked questions
Is emergency storm water damage cleanup available in Newbury Park?
Yes. The phone line runs all day and all night through the rainy season, with same-day response when available.
How is storm water damage different from flood damage?
Here, storm water damage means rain entering or pooling at a home through doors, walls, a garage or poor drainage. Flood damage means inundation, which is a broader event that covers surrounding land and often several properties.
The cleanup steps overlap, but the insurance treatment can differ a great deal.
Is muddy storm water safe to touch?
Treat it as dirty. Storm water can carry soil, debris and pet waste, so avoid skin contact and keep children and pets away. Questions about your health belong to a physician.
Can I run a fan and wait for the rain to finish?
A fan helps a little but does not pull water out of carpet pad or wall bases, and the air outside is often humid during storms. Extraction and dehumidifiers are what actually dry the structure.
Does my insurance cover rain that came in?
It depends on your policy and on how the water got in. The California Department of Insurance notes that standard homeowners policies do not cover flood. Read your policy wording or call your insurer, and keep photos and a written scope.