Definitions here are general and simplified. Industry standards, your policies and your lease may define these words more precisely, and those documents control. When a term on an estimate or report is unclear, ask the author to explain it in writing.
Restoration and drying terms
- Category 1, 2, 3 water
- An industry scale for water contamination, from clean (1) to significantly contaminated, such as sewage (3). Category can worsen over time.
- Class of water loss
- An estimate of how much water and how much evaporation load a space has, which guides equipment sizing.
- Mitigation
- Emergency work to stop further damage: extraction, removal of unsalvageable materials, drying, and temporary protection.
- Structural drying
- Drying of building materials in place, verified with moisture readings.
- Containment
- Plastic barriers and air control that separate a work area from occupied spaces.
- Negative air
- Exhausting filtered air from a containment so air flows into it rather than out.
- Xactimate
- Estimating software widely used by restoration contractors and insurers to price line items.
Building, lease and insurance terms
- Base building
- The structure, core, shared systems and common areas, generally the owner's responsibility.
- Tenant improvements (TI)
- Interior buildout inside a leased suite, such as walls, finishes and fixtures. Who owns and insures them depends on the lease.
- Betterments
- Improvements a tenant paid for that may be insured under the tenant's policy.
- Business income (BI)
- Coverage, where included, for income lost while operations are suspended by covered damage.
- Extra expense
- Coverage, where included, for reasonable added costs to keep operating after a loss.
- Subrogation
- An insurer's effort to recover what it paid from a party responsible for the loss.
- Master policy
- An association's policy covering common elements in a condominium and, depending on the documents, parts of units.
- Sprinkler impairment
- Any period when a fire sprinkler system or zone is out of service. Notifications and interim protection may be required.
- Fire watch
- Trained people patrolling an area to watch for fire while protection systems are impaired.
- Proof of loss
- A sworn statement of the amount claimed, which some policies require within a set time after a request.
Common questions
Why does the water category on my estimate matter?
It drives which materials are cleaned, which are removed, and what protective measures are used. If you disagree with the category assigned, ask how it was determined and whether time since the release changed it.
Is drying class the same as damage severity?
Not exactly. Class describes the evaporation load: how much wet material there is and how readily it gives up water. A small area of saturated plaster can be harder to dry than a large area of wet carpet.
General information for Downtown Denver, not a quote or professional advice. In an emergency, call 911.