Opinions Needed on Water Damage Restoration

[kn]

We had about 0.5 - 0.75 inches of ground water seeping throughout our basement. Today the cleanup/restoration company finally got around to us and their only recommendation was to rip out everything (Rainbow International if that makes any difference). We had to pay up front $3,000 but they knocked it down to $2,500 when we complained that we were the ones that removed all the water, the flooring, baseboards, shelving, etc. Their only job was the walls. We agreed to total removal on one side of the basement that was built from drywall and that had obvious water damage. I suspect the bill will eventually top $3,000.

The other side of the basement has a pool table, entertainment centre and wet bar all custom built. This room does not have drywall but more expensive wood paneling. Their recommendation is to of course rip everything out, including the liquor cabinets, bar, etc. We said no to that and obviously are trying to save as much as possible. One wall built on the foundation will have to be removed for no other reason that to find the crack/leak. But we honestly don't see any reason to mess with the rest of it.

Tomorrow I'm going to try and pry open some panels and check for any moisture.

Are we being foolish in resisting total demolition? Are we risking our health? Will anything that was even briefly touched by ground water automatically create mold?

Thanks in advance for any advice/comments/suggestions.

[4X4]

Last year my house got raped by the hailstorm. I've got vaulted ceilings & so much water came in that I was basically flooded. My insurance company sent over some crew with a de-humidifier taht had to run for like 2 days. They sopped up the water (about an inch), de-humidified my house & said all is well.
I wasn't so sure, so I cut a small hole in the wall in the basement to check for mold or moisture. This was about a month after. Its fine.

My non-expert opinion is that these guys are trying to do more work than is necessary. But fotze's idea is good. Get another opinion. But I wouldn't be surprised if every flood restoration company in the city is taking full advantage of this situation.

[Table 5]

My parents have pretty much the exact same problem btw, as Im sure many families in Calgary do these days. Not much flooding, but enough to really be a pain in the arse.

All youd need to do is cut out the bottom portions of your drywall, have them replaced, and repainted. There's no way in hell Id pay 3 grand for that, especially when you could pretty much do the job yourself in one weekend....my dad and I built out our entire basement one summer, and putting up drywall was by far the easiest part of the job.

[JiriHrdina]

My father has worked in this business for his entire life so hopefully i can offer some valuable advice.

Simpy put:

If you wanna be safe and potentialy save long-term problems - rip 'er all out.

If you wanna save money short-term but risk some long-term problems - do what others on the board are suggesting.

Either strategy is valid but just be aware that if you try to save $$$ short-term it could end up biting you in the arse. There is a lot of talk about mildew and stuff and health concerns, but I'm not sure if that's something you should be really concerned about or not - have you seen any evidence of it yet?

Best advice that's been given is Fotze's - get a couple opinions. If you have 3 companies telling you the same thing than its likely that's what you should do.

[kn]

Thanks a lot guys.

I talked to a couple people after posting and they suggested what Jiri did - anywhere with moisture has the potential for mold.

I spent Canada day carefully removing most of the panelling. I not only saved them for reuse but discovered that the source of water was from where the concrete slab floor meets the foundation wall. It was never sealed or tarred and I suspect it wasn't because no one expected ground water to ever reach that low.

This company still has to do the disinfecting and haul out garbage. Plus, they have massive fans and dehumidifiers. We don't mind paying for that but we were turned off by the idea of ripping everything out. Now we won't have to.

Thanks again.