Portions of the pre civil war era home were like a frozen Popsicle. In January, the heating system failed in the nearly 5,000 ft² house — vacant and for sale — allowing water pipes to freeze and rupture in three places. Water ran from the second floor through the stairwell and into the kitchen and dining room. Occurring during an arctic cold blast that shot mercury readings to -19° F, the water froze as inside temperatures dropped below freezing.

The Paul Davis Restoration (PDR) franchise in Madison, Wis., received the call on Tuesday evening, January 13. “Water had been running in the house for as much as two weeks,” says Jim Hirsch, president of PDR of Lakeland Counties, resulting in significant damage to several rooms. “The condensation on the walls and windows had frozen into blocks of ice and the saturated carpet was frozen solid as well,” he adds.

A veteran restoration contractor of 13 years averaging nearly 400 jobs per year in Madison and the surrounding counties, PDR immediately went to work in order to prevent further damage to the structure and its contents. The historic building housed many high value items, including built-up and hand-planed molding, antique fixtures, crystal chandeliers and inlaid floors. “The walls were solid masonry with triple wythe brick, which caused us concern for moisture damage,” Hirsch recalls.

That night, Hirsch and PDR’s crews began weighing the various drying technologies available on the market. “We discussed everything from desiccant on down,” Hirsch says. After careful consideration, they kept on coming back to the MC5200 open drying system as the best technology for the application. According to Hirsch, “we couldn’t see where any other technology would work better.”

With many high value finishes, the historic house needed to be quickly dried in order to prevent further damage. Additionally, there were power requirements at the site, as the water had compromised the home’s electrical panel. The self-contained MC5200 with onboard generator helped with this issue as well.

Air Change Advantage
Not using open drying technology prior to the Jefferson application, PDR assumed the risk in reputation and building contents if it did not work as expected. Hirsch looked at different makes of open drying systems, but a couple of key advantages sold him on the MC5200. “It offers more BTUs and a higher CFM than competitive units,” he mentions.

The air exchanges were the deciding factor for renting the MC5200. PDR was looking to exhaust the moist air as quickly as possible and take in the dry outside air. Hirsch had a goal of turning the ice directly into water vapor. He wanted to limit the amount of melting ice and pooling water. “We had very little water resulting from the drying process, and what water there was didn’t stay around for long,” Hirsch says.

Featuring advanced drying technology, the MC5200 heat conditions outside air to a maximum 182° F at a 3 to 15% relative humidity. “The key to our exclusive Dryvection™ technology is we use outside air, rather than recycled air, to quickly dry flooded buildings and their contents,” explains Ken Cannella, product manager for Wacker Neuson Climate Control equipment. Also aiding in the drying process — and the deciding factor for PDR — the MC5200’s supply blower operates at 5,200 CFM and extraction blower at 4,100 CFM to maximize the removal of moisture-laden air from a building.

With the electricity from the home compromised by the water damage, the MC5200’s onboard 7 kW generator helped to further facilitate the drying process. “The MC5200’s generator powered the air movers and spot dryers inside the house,” Hirsch says.

Saving History
Within five days of receiving the call, PDR had dried the historic house to the point where it could pull the MC5200 off of the job. “The MC5200 worked exactly as we had expected,” summarizes Hirsch. “We were looking for the most efficient solution for the application, and it was the right drying technology for the job.”

By selecting the right equipment, Hirsch reports that PDR save time and money when drying the historic pre civil war era home. The crews were also able to salvage and prevent secondary damage to many precious items. “We salvaged the high value woodwork and flooring, and we were able to save most of the plaster and all of the double hung windows,” Hirsch says.

Since PDR is a full service restoration contractor, once crews completed the drying process, they continued with selective demolition of the damaged areas. After demolition, they restored the house to its original condition, so it could be sold.

Shortly after completing the job, PDR encountered water damage in a 1940s-era house in Madison, very similar to the Jefferson home. Once again, PDR chose the Dryvex™ MC5200 to quickly dry the structure and its contents.