Most water damage estimates are organized by room and list each task with a quantity: linear feet of baseboard removed, square feet of carpet pad, number of air movers per day. Insurers commonly use pricing software, and many restorers write estimates in the same format so they can be compared line by line. Knowing the vocabulary helps you spot items that look duplicated, missing or out of proportion to the damage you saw.

Terms A to Z

Air mover
A low-profile fan that blows air across wet surfaces to speed evaporation. Billed per unit per day.
Antimicrobial
A product applied to surfaces to inhibit microbial growth. It supports cleaning and drying; it does not replace them.
Class of water loss
A rating of how much evaporation is needed, based on how much and what kind of material is wet. Different from category.
Category of water
How contaminated the water is: 1 is clean, 2 is gray, 3 is black.
Containment
Plastic sheeting and zipper doors used to isolate a work area, often with negative air pressure, to keep dust or contaminants from spreading.
Content manipulation
Moving furniture and belongings so work can be done, then putting them back. Often a separate line item.
Dry standard
The moisture reading of similar, unaffected material in the same building. Drying is finished when wet materials match it.
Flood cut
Removing a horizontal strip of drywall above the wet line, often two feet or so, so the wall cavity can dry and wet insulation can come out.
LGR dehumidifier
Low grain refrigerant dehumidifier. A common type of commercial dehumidifier that can pull air down to drier levels than household units.
Desiccant dehumidifier
Uses a moisture-absorbing material rather than cold coils, so it keeps working in cool spaces like basements.
Mitigation
The emergency phase: stopping further damage through extraction, removal and drying. Rebuilding comes after.
Moisture map
A drawing of the affected area showing where readings were taken and how they changed over time.
Pack-out
Inventorying, packing and removing contents to off-site storage while work happens.
Tear-out
Removal of materials that cannot be dried, such as soaked pad, swollen laminate or wet insulation.
Xactimate
Estimating software widely used by insurance adjusters and contractors. Prices in it vary by region and are updated periodically.

Pairs people mix up

Category versus class
Category is how dirty the water is. Class is how much material got wet and how hard it will be to dry.
Mitigation versus restoration
Mitigation stops the damage. Restoration, or reconstruction, rebuilds what was removed. They are often billed separately.
Dry versus dry to standard
A surface can feel dry while the material inside is still wet. Only readings compared to the dry standard settle it.

General information for Parker, not a quote or professional advice. In an emergency, call 911.