We start with truck-mounted pumps to pull standing water out fast, because every hour it sits is an hour it wicks further into drywall, subfloor and framing. Extraction is what actually stops the clock.
Once the standing water is gone, air movers and commercial dehumidifiers go in and run for days. We use moisture meters and thermal imaging to find water hiding inside wall cavities and under flooring, not just what is visible on the surface.
We log moisture readings daily until every material reaches dry standard, and remove carpet pad, insulation or drywall only where it cannot be saved - not as a default, but as a documented decision.
The water itself falls into three categories, and the category decides what we can save. Clean water from a supply line dries in place. Grey water from an appliance needs more care. Black water from sewage or a flooded river means the porous materials it touched are disposed of, not dried.
