Hoarding is a serious issue here in Cape Cod & The Islands

3/21/2016 (Permalink)

When a room gets buried in stuff sometimes it's better to call SERVPRO of help to clean and organize it up.

Many of us are guilty, embarrassed or even ashamed of keeping things longer than we probably should and collecting items that we really don’t need; for some reason, however, we cannot bring ourselves to toss these things out. Does this behavior make us hoarders? More than likely, the answer to that question is no. Many of us use the word hoarding when we really mean to say we have clutter. It is a good indication, however, that we need some storage and organization solutions, to keep the things we love and get rid of the things that are taking up too much space in our homes and our lives. However, if you can not sleep in your bed, bath in your tub or cook on your cook top in your kitchen because of piles of "stuff" it may be a warning that there may be a more serious issue than clutter.

What is hoarding? Hoarding can be described as either the acquisition of or the failure to discard a large number of possessions. This condition impacts approximately 15 million people in the U.S. Hoarding is not bias and effects people of every age, race and financial demographic in our country.  The main difference between hoarding and squalor is even though a room may be heavily cluttered, there are no signs of infestation, mold, rotting food or human/animal waste. As a restoration company that offers “extreme cleaning services,” I have seen hoarding situations.  My number one concern is to be respectful and protect a person's privacy while working through this experience. By the time we arrive on the scene in these homes, the collection of debris has gotten to a point where it is classified as a health issue. If there are pets living in the home, the situation can be even worse.

My team has cleaned properties that were in squalor condition. The person living there had fallen into a deep depression and not cleaned up after himself or his four dogs for at least nine months. In addition to all of the stuff he had amassed, the dogs had not been walked and there was fecal matter…along with bacteria... throughout the home. We came into the home and removed what needed to be thrown out and cleaned everything else to the level of cleanliness to please a health inspector. This is what I call extreme cleaning and it requires the services of a professional company that has the equipment and trained professionals who are "empathetic but not emotionally connected” to the things that need to be removed and the ability to sanitize what is left that has been neglected for an extended amount of time or even years. If you or someone you know needs help there are services.

Extreme cleaning is something that is far beyond day to day cleaning. It is even beyond the spring and fall cleaning most homeowners do when they pull out the furniture and vacuum under it and pull down window treatments to clean them…and the windows, too! If you or someone you know is in over their head with "stuff" that they have acquired or not thrown away we can help restore a safe and health home again. For more information please visit our website.