Damages due to water in a home is a business that generates over 10 billion dollars worth of repair bills per year. It is a business that is closely monitored by the IICRC, The Institute for Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification. The Institute offers certifications in carpet repair, fire and smoke damage restoration company, applied structural drying and many others. If you want to be the company to hire for water damage restoration Atlanta make sure you are certified in the correct requirements.
Setting the standards in the industry worldwide, the IICRC has certification classes all over the world. There is not a physical institute to attend but there are certificate trainers that are available and are located for testing and educating. There are also distance learning opportunities and different certification tracks depending on the education needed.
A class is typically 2 days longs, or 14 hours of education time not including breaks and the final examination. If you are interested in a Carpet Cleaning Technician (CCT) course you will be educated in practical application. A thorough understanding of the different carpet fibers and construction, style types and finishes and how to best treat them considering the particular soil conditions. A basic understanding of the different cleaning chemicals is also covered. This is a typical beginning course in the industry and a prerequisite for other in-depth restoration courses.
A Health and Safety Technician course (HST) is one that is more for your company then necessarily for your customers. Knowing the safety standards in the industry to accommodate OSHA standards, inspections, reducing penalties, understanding hazardous materials in confined spaces and blood-borne pathogens are covered. With this type of training, your insurance company can reduce your risks and policy premium charges.
Lastly, there are classes that are meant to take in conjunction with the basics so that your have specialized training. For instance the standard House Cleaning Technician (HCT) is supplemented with on the job training so that the basics in disinfectants, restoration, and normal maintenance for a residence are taught. This involves basic knowledge in the science behind many of the chemicals that are used in the industry.
