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First steps after a leak or flood in Palm Beach

For Palm Beach, FL: the facts behind the questions callers ask most, in plain words.

Homes built before 1980 make up 71% of the housing in Palm Beach; across Palm Beach County the share is 34%.

Call (833) 728-2327
  • Calls answered 24/7
  • Written estimate before work starts
  • Water removal, drying and repair

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Technical drawing of water removal: basement pump-out, carpet and pad extraction and hard floor water removal.
Emergency Water Removal and Extraction covers basement pump-out, carpet and pad extraction and hard floor water removal.

What happens when you call

  1. Call (833) 728-2327

    Tell the person who answers what got wet and where the water came from. Calls are answered 24/7.

  2. Stop the source

    You get help shutting off the water or the power to a wet room while the crew is on the way.

  3. Inspection and written estimate

    Moisture readings, photos and a written estimate come before any work begins.

Call (833) 728-2327

A guide for water damage restoration in Palm Beach and the towns around it.

Building payments on flood claims in Palm Beach's ZIP codes averaged $37,177 in the ten years to 2025.

First, in Palm Beach

Palm Beach is a town of older condo buildings. Census figures show 67% of homes are in buildings with 5 or more units, and 71% predate 1980. That makes the building staff part of the first hour. Stop the water at the nearest valve if you can. Then call the building engineer or manager, who controls the risers and the main shutoff. Tell the units below you right away.

Switch off the breakers for wet rooms, especially where water has reached outlets or ceiling lights. Photograph the source, the wet walls and the floor before you clean, and save any messages with the building. Then move rugs, art, electronics and papers to a dry room. In Palm Beach, many units sit empty for the season, so note which neighbors are away.

Speed matters because water wicks up drywall and seeps into the subfloor under tile and wood. The EPA advises drying wet materials within 24 to 48 hours, before mold starts. In Palm Beach, 43% of homes are kept for seasonal or occasional use. So a leak may start while the owner is away and run until a neighbor sees a stain. If that is your situation, ask the building to shut off your unit's water and let in the restoration crew. Water removal starts once the source is closed and the damage is on record. Ceiling repair after a leak in a Palm Beach condo comes after the framing above has dried.

The first-hour checklist

Do these in order, and only what is safe to do.

  • Shut off the water at the main valve or the fixture valve.
  • Turn off power to wet rooms at the breaker if you can reach it without stepping in water.
  • Photograph every wet room, the source and the water line.
  • Lift furniture off wet carpet and move papers, photos and electronics to a dry room.
  • Call (833) 728-2327 for extraction and drying, and tell your insurer.
  • Keep people and pets away from sewage or floodwater.

Palm Beach figures worth knowing

Figures for Palm Beach, home to about 9,234 people.

For every $100,000 of buildings in Palm Beach's ZIP codes, FEMA's model expects about $46 a year in coastal flood damage, compared with $5 across Florida.

By FEMA's estimate, inland flooding costs homes and businesses in Palm Beach's ZIP codes about $43 a year per $100,000 of building value.

  • 71% Homes built before 1980Palm Beach County: 34% Palm Beach71%Palm Beach34%FL35%
  • 46 Yearly coastal flood loss per $100,000 of building valuePalm Beach County: 3 Palm Beach46Palm Beach3FL5
  • 43 Yearly inland flood loss per $100,000 of building valuePalm Beach County: 63 Palm Beach43Palm Beach63FL73
  • 43% Homes kept for seasonal or occasional usePalm Beach County: 10% Palm Beach43%Palm Beach10%FL8%
  • 67% Homes in buildings with 5 or more unitsPalm Beach County: 31% Palm Beach67%Palm Beach31%FL25%
  • 10,450 Housing units

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019-2023 5-year estimates; FEMA OpenFEMA, FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, claims from 2016 to 2025 (not endorsed by FEMA); FEMA OpenFEMA, NFIP Residential Penetration Rates v1 (not endorsed by FEMA); FEMA National Risk Index v1.20, December 2025 (not endorsed by FEMA); NOAA NCEI, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, nearest weather station; FEMA OpenFEMA, Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 (not endorsed by FEMA); NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to 2025.

What Palm Beach homes add to the list

Palm Beach has more housing units than residents, 10,450 against 9,234, and that changes the first steps. Census figures show 43% of homes are kept for seasonal or occasional use. A leak in a closed house or condo can run for days before anyone notices. Before you leave for the season, close the main shutoff. Leave a key with a manager or neighbor who can look in after storms.

Older homes need their own plan. About 71% of homes here were built before 1980, and 16% before 1950. Homes of that age often have an old gate valve as the main shutoff, near the street or in a utility room. It can stick, so test it while the house is dry. Original galvanized or cast iron lines also fail with age.

Condo owners start with the manager. Here 67% of homes are in buildings of 5 or more units. Your unit's valve may sit in a locked mechanical room, and the leak may come from above. After a storm, surge or street water is Category 3, so stay out of it until the power is off. Owners throughout the Palm Beach area follow the same order, as do neighbors who need water removal in Jupiter.

What to leave alone until help arrives

Some first moves make the damage worse. Stay out of water that may touch live wiring, and keep away from a ceiling that bulges or drips. A shop vacuum rated for water is fine for a small spill; a household vacuum is not. Turning the heat up does not dry a house; it moves moisture into rooms that were dry. Photograph damaged things before they go to the curb. Leave wet walls open and unpainted until moisture readings show they are dry. Clean-water carpet often comes back with carpet drying when work starts within a day or two.

What Palm Beach callers ask first

Should I run fans to dry water damage myself in Palm Beach?

Fans help the surface, but they do not dry water inside walls, under flooring or in carpet pad, and blowing air at sewage or mold spreads it. Open windows only if the air outside is drier than inside. Moisture meters show what household fans miss.

Is it safe to turn the power back on after water damage?

Keep power off to any area where water reached outlets, wiring or appliances until it has been checked. If the panel itself got wet, stay away from it and call an electrician.

Where is the main water shutoff in a Palm Beach house?

Usually where the water line enters the house: in a basement or crawl space near the front wall, next to the water heater, in a utility closet, or outside near the meter box. Turn the handle clockwise until it stops. Find it before you need it and show everyone in the house.

How long can water sit before mold starts in a Palm Beach home?

The EPA says to dry wet materials within 24 to 48 hours to prevent mold growth. After that, porous materials such as carpet pad and drywall often have to come out. Call for water removal early and keep the room ventilated if it is safe.

Can I stay in my Palm Beach home during water damage drying?

Often, yes. Clean-water drying runs with fans and dehumidifiers that are loud but not harmful, and many families stay home while it runs. Sewage, floodwater or mold change that: contaminated areas are closed off, and people with breathing problems, young children or weak immune systems may need to stay elsewhere until cleanup is done.

Related Palm Beach guides

Palm Beach guides on costs, first steps and floods

Calls answered 24/7 around Palm Beach

Any hour, any day. Nothing starts until you approve a written estimate.

Call (833) 728-2327Calls answered 24/7
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