Key Takeaways
- •Two questions drive every save-vs-discard decision: what category was the water (Cat 1, 2, 3), and was the item porous or non-porous.
- •Porous items (mattresses, upholstered furniture, carpet pad, drywall, particleboard) hit by Cat 2 or Cat 3 water are discarded under the IICRC S500 standard.
- •Non-porous items (sealed metal, glass, hard plastic, finished hardwood) can usually be cleaned and disinfected even after Cat 3 contact.
- •Photograph everything before anything leaves the house. The contents claim depends on documentation, not memory.
- •Mr. Fresh answers live 24/7 at (707) 816-7103. We walk the save-vs-discard list with you on the free on-site assessment before anything hits the curb.
The One Rule That Drives Every Decision
Water damage triage feels overwhelming because there are 200 items to think about and you are making decisions while still in shock. The good news is that the actual rule is simple, and once you have it, every individual item answers itself.
The rule has two parts. One, what category of water touched it. Two, how porous is the material. Cross those two and you have your answer for every item in the house.
The framework comes from the IICRC S500, the industry standard every legitimate Bay Area restoration company works to. It is the same framework your insurance adjuster uses when they evaluate your contents claim. Following it does two things at once: it keeps your family safe from contaminated materials, and it gives the adjuster the documentation they need to pay out cleanly.
Cat 1, Cat 2, Cat 3: What Each Means For Your Stuff
The IICRC defines three categories of water loss. The category sets the rules for what comes out of your house.
Cat 1: Clean Water
Sanitary source. Burst supply line under the sink. Refrigerator water line. AC condensate overflow. A leaking water heater on day one. Materials that got wet are usually salvageable if you call fast. The 48 hour window still matters because Cat 1 turns into Cat 2 when it sits long enough for microbial growth to start. Most items can be dried, cleaned, and kept.
Cat 2: Gray Water
Significant contamination. Washing machine overflow. Dishwasher discharge. Toilet overflow with urine but no fecal matter. Aquarium spill. Sump pump failure. Cat 1 water that sat longer than 48 hours. The S500 directs removal of porous materials that cannot be effectively cleaned and decontaminated. In practice that means most fabric, foam, and pressed-wood items in the affected area come out.
Cat 3: Black Water
Grossly contaminated. Sewage backup. Toilet overflow with fecal matter. Flood water from outside (creeks, storm drains, irrigation). Standing water that sat long enough to harbor bacteria, fungi, and parasites. Cat 2 water that aged. The S500 directs removal of every porous material the contaminated water touched, no exceptions. This is the category where the discard list gets long and where doing it yourself is genuinely dangerous.
Porous vs Non-Porous: The 30-Second Test
A material is porous if water can enter and stay inside the material structure where you cannot reach it to clean it. A material is non-porous if water only sits on the surface where soap and disinfectant can do their job.
The quick test: would the item absorb a few drops of water if you placed them on top? A foam mattress, a cardboard box, drywall, a leather couch, a wooden cutting board are all porous. A glass jar, a ceramic plate, a stainless steel pot, a sealed metal lamp base, a finished marble countertop are all non-porous.
Semi-porous items live in the middle. Finished hardwood is porous underneath the finish but the surface seals out most contact-level contamination. Glazed ceramic is non-porous on the glaze but porous on the unfinished base. Painted drywall is porous behind the paint. For these in-between items the call depends on water category and dwell time.
The reason this distinction matters is that you cannot disinfect what you cannot reach. A bottle of Lysol cleans the surface of a couch cushion. It does nothing to the contamination an inch and a half deep inside the foam. That is why the S500 protocol on Cat 2 and Cat 3 events directs removal of porous materials. Cleaning the surface does not solve the contamination problem.
Item-By-Item Save vs Discard Guide
This is the table we walk through with Fairfield clients on every water damage assessment. Use it as a starting point. The final call depends on water category, dwell time, and what shows up on the moisture meter when we get there.
Assumes water has sat 24 to 48 hours. Faster response improves Cat 1 outcomes meaningfully. Past 72 hours, Cat 1 starts behaving like Cat 2 because microbial growth is assumed.
A few items deserve their own paragraph
Photos, scrapbooks, and irreplaceable paper. Freeze them in zip bags as fast as you can. Freezing stops the deterioration and gives a paper restoration specialist time to slow-dry them under controlled conditions. We have seen 80-year-old family photos saved from a Cat 3 sewage event because they hit the freezer within the first hour.
Children's toys. Hard plastic toys clean up fine. Plush toys and anything with a stuffed core that took Cat 2 or Cat 3 water gets discarded, no matter how attached your kid is. The contamination inside the stuffing is the same contamination you would not let them touch on the floor.
Anything you are unsure about. Set it aside on a non-affected surface, photograph it, and let us assess on the walkthrough. The mistake is throwing things away before we document them, not the other way around.
Why You Photograph Everything Before It Hits The Curb
Your contents claim is paid based on what you can prove was destroyed, not what you remember owning. Carriers want photo evidence, an inventory list, and a reasonable estimate of replacement cost. If you throw a wet mattress on the curb before you photographed it, that mattress effectively did not exist as far as the claim is concerned.
Here is the short list of what to capture for every item that goes to discard.
- Wide shot showing the item in context (in the room where it was damaged)
- Close-up of the item itself
- Close-up of any visible damage (water stains, swelling, mold, delamination)
- Brand name, model number, or serial number if visible
- Approximate purchase date and original cost if you can recall
For furniture and electronics over a few hundred dollars, search your email for the original receipt while you are at it. Most carriers will reimburse at replacement cost rather than depreciated value if you can show the original purchase. The 20 minutes you spend searching emails on day one is often worth four figures on the claim.
What Insurance Will (And Will Not) Reimburse
On a covered loss, your standard HO-3 policy reimburses the discarded contents under personal property coverage. Coverage limits are usually 50 to 70 percent of your dwelling coverage. A $400,000 dwelling policy typically carries $200,000 to $280,000 in contents coverage. That is plenty for most water losses, but it is not unlimited and certain categories have sub-limits.
Watch the sub-limits
- Jewelry and watches: usually capped at $1,000 to $1,500 total unless you scheduled them separately
- Firearms: usually capped at $2,500 total
- Cash and securities: usually capped at $200 to $500
- Business property kept at home: usually capped at $2,500
- Fine art and collectibles: usually capped unless scheduled with an endorsement
What is not reimbursed
- Items damaged by water that is not from a covered peril (groundwater seepage, slow leaks past 14 days, exterior flooding without NFIP flood insurance)
- Items damaged by sewage backup if you do not have a sewer backup endorsement
- Items already in poor condition before the loss
- Items you discard without documentation (the claim adjuster may flag these)
For a full walkthrough of restoration cost ranges and what your deductible buys you, see our breakdown of water damage restoration cost in Fairfield in 2026.
The Five Mistakes Homeowners Make In The First 48 Hours
These are the ones we see most often, in order of how expensive each one tends to be.
- Throwing things away before they were photographed. Costs you a meaningful chunk of the contents claim. Photograph first, discard second, every single time.
- Trying to save porous items that hit Cat 2 or Cat 3 water. The mattress on the back porch drying in the sun is not going to be safe to sleep on. The contamination is inside the foam. Same with the upholstered couch in the garage.
- Plugging in electronics that were near the water. Humidity migrates. Circuit boards corrode. An unpowered device is a possible save, a powered-up device that shorts is a guaranteed loss.
- Treating it like a normal cleanup with bleach and a mop. Cat 2 and Cat 3 water needs antimicrobial treatment in PPE, not household bleach in flip flops. Bleach does not kill what is inside the materials.
- Waiting to call. The 48 hour window matters. Cat 1 turns into Cat 2 turns into Cat 3 over time. Items that could have been saved at hour 8 are usually past saving at hour 72.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the basic rule for what to throw away after water damage?
The IICRC S500 standard combines two questions. One, what category was the water (Cat 1 clean, Cat 2 gray, Cat 3 black). Two, was the affected item porous (drywall, carpet pad, mattress) or non-porous (glass, sealed metal, hard plastic). Porous items hit by Cat 2 or Cat 3 water are discarded almost without exception. Non-porous items can usually be cleaned and disinfected back to safe use. Cat 1 water that sat less than 48 hours gives you the most options. Past 48 hours, the rules tighten because microbial growth is assumed.
Do I have to throw away my mattress if it got wet?
If the water was Cat 1 and the mattress was lifted and dried inside 24 hours with commercial equipment, sometimes you can save it. Realistically, that almost never happens. A mattress is a six-inch thick block of porous foam and fabric that holds water like a sponge and dries from the outside in over a period of weeks. By the time the core dries, mold is already established inside. Any Cat 2 or Cat 3 contact and the mattress is discarded under the S500 standard, full stop. Document it with photos, note the brand and purchase date if you have it, and your insurance carrier should reimburse on a covered claim.
Can I keep my hardwood furniture that got wet?
Usually yes for solid hardwood. The wood is dense and non-porous on the surface once finished, so a wipe-down with an antimicrobial cleaner and a few days of controlled drying handles most exposures. Particleboard and MDF furniture is the opposite. The compressed wood fibers swell, the glue layers fail, and even after it looks dry the structural integrity is gone. We tell clients to plan on losing every particleboard piece that took direct water (IKEA dressers, big-box entertainment centers, melamine bookshelves) on any Cat 2 or worse loss.
What about electronics, computers, and TVs that were near the water?
Do not plug anything in. Even if a device did not get directly submerged, humidity from the room migrates into circuit boards and causes corrosion that shows up weeks later. For high-value electronics, professional electronics restoration (specialty firms that do ultrasonic cleaning and dry-out) can recover items that look totaled. For consumer electronics under $300, the cost of professional recovery exceeds replacement. We help you triage on the assessment and document the discarded items for the insurance claim.
Does the IICRC S500 standard actually require throwing things away?
Yes, for specific categories. The S500 (IICRC Standard for Professional Water Damage Restoration) is the industry guideline every legitimate Bay Area restoration company works to. It directs that porous materials contaminated by Cat 2 water be removed unless they can be effectively cleaned and decontaminated, and that porous materials contaminated by Cat 3 water be removed without exception. Carpet pad, drywall below the wet line, insulation, and most upholstered furniture are the items this catches most often.
Will my homeowners insurance pay to replace the items I throw away?
On a covered claim, yes. Your contents coverage (usually 50 to 70 percent of your dwelling coverage on a standard HO-3) pays to replace personal property destroyed by a covered peril. Two things matter for getting paid quickly. One, photograph everything before it leaves the house. Two, build an inventory list with item descriptions, approximate age, and replacement cost. We provide the moisture documentation and scope notes that back up your contents claim. Your adjuster handles the contents inventory side.
Can I clean and save items myself, or do I need a pro?
Non-porous items hit by Cat 1 water (dishes, glassware, sealed metal, hard plastic, sealed wood) you can clean yourself with a standard disinfectant. Anything that touched Cat 2 or Cat 3 water needs antimicrobial treatment that goes beyond household cleaners. Porous items past the save threshold do not benefit from cleaning regardless of what you use, because the contamination is inside the material. When in doubt, call us before you throw away or before you start cleaning. The 10-minute call usually saves people thousands.
How fast do I have to decide what to throw out?
Faster than you think. The 48 hour window matters because porous materials hit by water start growing microbial colonies right around that mark. Past 72 hours, items that could have been saved at hour 24 are usually past the point of safe recovery. We tell Fairfield homeowners the moment water hits the floor, three things happen in the same hour: stop the source, call the carrier, call us. The triage and discard list comes together on the on-site assessment.
Sorting Through Water-Damaged Stuff Right Now?
Live answer 24/7. Same-hour dispatch across Solano and the Bay Area. We walk the save-vs-discard list with you before anything hits the curb.
Call (707) 816-7103