Water damage reconstruction: putting the house back after it's dry

Reconstruction is everything after the drying: new drywall, baseboards, paint, flooring, tile, cabinets, and full bathrooms or kitchens when the damage went that far. We do both halves. Our IICRC-certified technicians dry the house, then the same remodeling crew rebuilds it, so you are not hiring a second company and waiting for them to start.

Water Damage Reconstruction Miami & South Florida

Updated November 3, 2026

Mitigation stops the damage. Reconstruction fixes it.

Most water damage companies do the first half: extraction, tear out and drying. Then they leave you with open walls and a bare slab and a list of trades to call. That is the part most homeowners do not expect.

We are a remodeling company first. Drywall, paint, tile, floors, kitchens and bathrooms are what we do every week. So when the drying is done, the same crew that knows what came out of the walls puts them back.

What reconstruction usually includes

Walls: new drywall where the flood cut was made, tape, mud, texture to match the rest of the room, primer and paint. We paint the whole wall or the whole room so the patch does not show. New baseboards and door casing.

Floors: new carpet and pad, new laminate or vinyl plank, refinished or replaced wood, or new tile. When tile is still bonded and the slab is dry it often stays. Hollow or cracked tile comes up. Cabinets: sink bases and vanities that swelled get replaced. Sometimes it makes sense to redo the whole kitchen or bathroom instead of matching one cabinet.

Why one crew for both halves matters

The moisture log from drying is the proof the walls were dry before we closed them. When one company dries and another rebuilds, that handoff is where mistakes happen: walls closed too early, or a second company that will not touch the job until it sees paperwork it never got.

One crew also means one written scope for your adjuster. The tear out, the drying and the reconstruction are on the same document with the same photos. If water got to electrical outlets or plumbing, those parts go to those trades, and we work around their schedule.

Rebuilding with less risk next time

If you are rebuilding anyway, it is a good time to make choices that handle water better. Tile or vinyl plank instead of carpet in rooms near the AC closet or a sliding door. A pan with a drain under the water heater and washing machine. A float switch on the AC drain line.

For homes near canals or the coast, the king tide pages cover materials that survive saltwater. For everything else, start with where the water came from so the same leak does not ruin the new work.

Common questions

Do you do the reconstruction or only the water removal?

Both. We take the call 24/7, extract the water, take out what can't be saved, dry the house with IICRC-certified technicians, and then rebuild it. Drywall, texture, paint, baseboards, doors, flooring, tile, cabinets, and full bathroom or kitchen remodels when the damage calls for it. Remodeling is our main trade, so the rebuild is not a side service. For you it means one phone number, one crew that knows the house, and one written scope with the drying log and the rebuild on the same paper. The only parts we do not do are electrical and plumbing repairs. If water reached the panel or a pipe has to be fixed, those trades handle that piece and we schedule around them. You do not have to find, vet and wait on a second company once the fans are gone.

How long does water damage reconstruction take?

It depends on how much came out, and on the insurance timeline more than the work itself. A few feet of drywall and baseboard in one or two rooms is a short job once the walls read dry. Replacing flooring through the whole house, or cabinets that have to be ordered, takes longer because of material lead times. A full kitchen or bathroom rebuild is a remodel and is scheduled like one. The step that slows most jobs down is waiting on the adjuster to approve the scope. That is why we document everything during drying: dated photos, moisture readings and a written scope you can send in. We will not close a wall before the readings say it is dry, even if it would be faster. A wall closed wet is how you end up paying for the same wall twice. When we see the house, we give you a realistic schedule in writing.

Will the new drywall and paint match the rest of the house?

The usual problem with water damage repairs is a clean patch that still looks like a patch. Most South Florida homes have a knockdown or orange peel texture on the walls and sometimes popcorn on the ceiling. We match the texture before we prime. Then we paint the full wall, corner to corner, or the whole room. Painting just the patched strip almost never matches, even with the exact same paint, because the old paint has faded and the sheen reads different. With flooring, matching is harder. Discontinued laminate or vinyl plank often cannot be matched, so we talk with you about replacing the floor through to a natural break, like a doorway. Your policy language on matching decides what insurance pays for, so read it and ask your agent. We just tell you what it will look like.

Can I use my insurance money to upgrade while you rebuild?

Many homeowners do. If the policy pays to replace damaged carpet, some people put that money toward tile or vinyl plank and pay the difference. If the vanity has to be replaced, some go ahead and redo the whole bathroom. How your policy and your mortgage company handle that money is between you, your insurer and your lender, so check with them first, and keep receipts for everything. What we do is keep the scope clean: one line for the repair the damage requires, and a separate line for anything you choose to add. That way the claim file only shows the damage, and you can see exactly what the upgrade costs you. We do bathroom remodeling and kitchen remodeling every week, so we can price both sides when we walk the house.

Other kinds of water damage

Sources

The image on this page is an illustration, not a photo of one of our jobs.