What Is the Difference Between Gray Water Damage and Black Water Damage?

There’s a lot of water in our homes naturally thanks to our plumbing, and various plumbing problems can lead to different types of water spills. These spills can lead to significant water damage if they’re not handled properly. But proper handling of water spills depends on the type of water spilled.

Clean water spills are one thing, but what about gray water and black water? What are these, and how should these types of spills be handled?

Gray Water Damage

Gray water spills are common in homes. When properly handled, small gray water spills aren’t serious. However, you should approach gray water spills with caution, act quickly, and assess the level of the spill to determine whether it is a spill you can handle yourself.

What Is Gray Water?

Gray water, also called category 2 water, is mildly contaminated water. (Note: damage from category 2 water should not be confused with class 2 water damage, which classifies the extent of damage, not the type of water.)

The contaminants in gray water are not immediately dangerous, but they have the potential to become dangerous if they aren’t handled properly. Because all water is divided into only three categories, the types of contaminants in gray water can vary significantly, but include:

• Soap
• Food waste
• Urine
• Bacteria that grows in standing water that started as clean

People think that soap makes things clean, so why would it make water dirty? Soap itself isn’t clean: it’s mostly fat, and under the wrong conditions, soap like other fats can spoil and contribute to bacterial growth. Plus, there’s the effect of soap. Think what the water looks like after you’ve done a load of dishes. The soap has washed numerous contaminants off the dishes and into the water, and it will do this with any contaminants on the floor, wall, or other surfaces it contacts. Plus, soapy water often comes from appliances like washing machines and dishwashers, where soapy water has already encountered contaminants.

Food waste is a common component of gray water spills, often from dishwashers or leaky drains. Food waste is a rich source for bacterial growth, and if not cleaned up properly, it can cause the water to become more contaminated over time.

It’s a myth that urine is sterile, but bacterial levels in urine tend to be relatively low – in healthy individuals, the immune system keeps these levels under control. However, bacteria can grow rapidly in urine once it leaves the body.

Any water that starts out clean will become gray water if not cleaned up. Water fuels the growth of bacteria, mold, and other microorganisms.

How to Deal with Gray Water

It is reasonable to tackle a gray water spill on your own, provided you:

• Know what exactly is in the water
• Take proper precautions
• Know the water is from a one-time event
• Can clean and dry the area quickly
• Know the water hasn’t soaked into the floor, walls, or ceiling

If you don’t know what’s in the water, you should treat it as black water. Only treat standing water as gray water if you can track its origin to a clean source and know its full path.

Gray water is dangerous enough to make you sick if you get it in your eyes or mouth, or if it stays on your skin for very long. You should wear gloves when dealing with gray water. Protection to avoid getting it in your eyes or mouth is also recommended.

Gray water becomes black water if allowed to stagnate for a long period of time. If you don’t know that the water you’re cleaning is from a one-time event, you don’t know how much water has festered in walls and other absorbent materials. Treat a cleanup of repeated spills as black water.

If left standing too long, gray water becomes black water. Only handle a gray water spill yourself if you can get it fully cleaned and completely dry within a day.

Once water soaks into your house or office walls, it’s hard to assess the true level of damage without specialized tools. It’s also difficult to rectify this level of damage if you don’t have the training and tools to handle it.

Black Water Damage

Black water damage in your home should, hopefully, be relatively rare. If there is black water in your home, you should let professionals handle the damage.

What Is Black Water?

Black water, also known as category 3 water, is water containing highly toxic or contagious materials. The contaminants in black water either are or could be hazardous.

Sources of black water include:

• Sewage backflow
• Flooding from rivers, lakes, and saltwater bodies
• Runoff from heavy rains
• Clean or gray water in place for 24 hours or more

Some dangerous contaminants in black water include:

• Organic matter (including feces, decaying plant matter, and animal carcasses)
• Pesticides and other toxic chemicals
• Heavy metals
• Bacteria and fungi from soil or other contaminants

When you have water enter your home from sewage, flooding, or runoff, it can contain organic matter from many potential sources that it encountered before entering your home. Animals that died in a flood or in the body of water can make the water dangerous, even if you don’t see the carcass itself.

Runoff from agricultural fields can contain high levels of pesticides and fertilizers. In addition, water can pick up dangerous contaminants if it runs through an industrial area or even when flowing down a heavily trafficked road.

Heavy metals dissolved in water can come from many sources, and they can be very toxic in relatively small quantities.

Bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms are all around us, but they can become dangerous when they grow in high concentrations or if you introduce certain ones to your body.

In black water, all these potential contaminants can be dangerous, even if the water “looks clean.”

How to Deal with Black Water

When you have black water in your home, it’s best to leave it to the professionals.

Water damage restoration professionals will know how to approach black water to handle it safely, including when high-level safety gear is recommended. They will also know how to deal with the potential impacts of water damage. They will know, for example, what items can be wiped off and dried. They can also tell you if some items need to be disposed of or if they can be cleaned with special techniques. This includes structural elements in your home, such as drywall, wall studs, and floor joists.

Water Damage Restoration in Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan

If you have experienced flooding or a large water spill in your home or business, you need professional water damage restoration services. With over 45 years of experience handling water damage, Cousino Restoration & Environmental is here to help you.

Cousino Restoration & Environmental offers 24/7 emergency response water damage restoration services. We can be at your property quickly to stop water damage, including stopping the source of black or gray water when possible. We handle every step of the process, from plumbing repairs to pulling out damaged drywall to mold remediation and finish painting. We use the most advanced equipment and techniques included in the industry best practices.

Plus, we can coordinate with your insurance company to make filing your claim quick and easy. We will completely document the damage and the repairs so that you can get the full amount you are due under your coverage. However, note that flood damage is often not covered by general insurance policies – you may not be covered if you don’t have separate flood insurance.

For help with any type of water damage in northwest Ohio or southeast Michigan, please contact Cousino Restoration & Environmental today.