Bellingham and all of Whatcom County
Water and fire damage help in Bellingham, WA
Split pipe after a freeze, a stain spreading across the ceiling, the Nooksack in the garage, smoke through the house. One request goes to a single restoration company that covers your ZIP, and the price comes on paper first.
Split pipe after a freeze, a stain spreading across the ceiling, the Nooksack in the garage, smoke through the house. Skip the round of phone calls. We hand your request to a single Whatcom County restoration company that covers your ZIP; it phones you, comes to see the damage, and writes up the price before anyone starts.
Calls and texts answered 7am to 9pm, 7 days. Text photos any time.
- Dry-outs after leaks and floods, soot cleanup after fires
- The scope on paper first, so a second bid is easy
- Every company we refer holds a Washington L&I registration
- Nothing to pay us, and you can say no
Costs you nothingSay no anytime
Price on paperBefore any work starts
Meter logReadings and photos at the start and finish
Whatcom CountyFairhaven to Sumas
Is water running right now?
Get in touch, and work through this list until someone calls.
- Cut off the supply. Use the little valve behind the toilet or under the sink, or the main where the line comes into the crawl space or garage. A leaking water heater has a cold valve on top.
- Keep clear of electricity. If outlets or cords are near the water, stay out of it. Shut off breakers only if the panel is somewhere dry.
- Pictures, then furniture. Photograph the rooms and the source first, then get rugs and furniture up off the floor.
After a fire, nobody goes back in until the fire crew says so. If it is river water, keep out of it entirely. Hour one through day two.
The local numbers
169
wet days a year at the Bellingham airport (1991-2020); October through March brings 69% of the rain.
3°F
at the bottom of January 2024's freeze, after 6 nights in a row at 20°F or colder. Frozen pipe calls to city crews and firefighters: almost 100.
56,300
cubic feet per second through Ferndale on November 16, 2021, second only to 1990 in a record going back to 1945.
1,211
NFIP flood claims filed in Whatcom County, with $53.0 million paid out. Three valley towns account for 59% of them.
NOAA ACIS station USW00024217 through October 28, 2026; USGS station 12213100; OpenFEMA NFIP claims; The Bellingham Herald, January 16, 2024. Method and full data.
What we can help with
The jobs we pass along
Owned or rented homes from Blaine to Sudden Valley, condos included. For a commercial building, mention that in the request.
- Water damage restorationSplit supply lines, roof leaks, a failed water heater. Water out, house dried, meter log in hand.How it works
- Fire and smoke damagePlywood and tarps first, then soot off the walls and the hose water out of the floors.How it works
- Burst and frozen pipesShutoff steps, and why the flooding starts on the warm day after a Fraser outflow.How it works
- Flood cleanupNooksack overflow and storm runoff. What gets torn out and what can be saved.How it works
- Repair and rebuildWalls and floors put back once the meter says dry, by an L&I registered contractor.How it works
- Mold removalContainment and tear-out after a leak or a long wet season, once the source is fixed.How it works
- Sewage backup cleanupA floor drain or toilet pushing up sewage. The black water rate and the tear-out list.How it works
How it works
Skip the phone tree
- Describe the damage. The form takes a minute, or text us pictures instead. A rough idea of when it started helps.
- One Whatcom County company phones you. Expect a couple of questions and a time for someone to come see it.
- The price comes on paper first. Nothing starts until you say yes. If a claim is likely, ask how they record readings and photos for the adjuster.
Our conditions for referred companies
Four commitments
Restoration jobs tend to go sideways over a fuzzy scope, a house nobody proved was dry, or paperwork signed on the porch. These four are meant to head that off. If a company misses one, call us at (360) 323-8913.
- The scope and price on paper before any work. It should list what comes out, what stays to be dried or cleaned, and the expected number of days.
- Meter readings and photos on day one and the last day. That record is what shows an adjuster the house actually got dry.
- Time to read before signing. Any form, and especially one that mentions your insurance, can wait while you read it.
- An active Washington L&I contractor registration. L&I's lookup page lets you confirm it from your phone.
Price check
Ranges published for this work
The table is national data from cost sites, so treat it as a yardstick for a Whatcom County job. Your actual number comes from the company, on paper, after it sees the damage.
Got an estimate in hand already? Go through it line by line.
| Job | Published range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Water damage restoration | $1,200 to $5,000, $3,000 average | Fixr, Jan 2025 |
| Water extraction | $3.75 to $7.50 per square foot | Fixr, Jan 2025 |
| Flood or sewage water, per sq ft | $7 to $7.50 | Fixr, Jan 2025 |
| Fire and smoke restoration | $2,900 to $38,325, $20,470 average | LawnStarter, Jul 2026 |
| Fire and smoke, per sq ft | $4.25 to $6.50 per square foot | LawnStarter, Jul 2026 |
| Mold remediation | $1,500 to $9,000, $3,500 average | Fixr, Aug 2025 |
| Roof leak repair | $350 to $1,500, $800 average | Fixr, Jan 2026 |
Figures are national, published by Fixr and LawnStarter. They are not Whatcom County averages and not a price from us; the cost guide lists each source and date.
Our own read of NOAA and USGS records
How water gets into houses here
Start with the drizzle. The airport's yearly total is 33.8 inches, which is unremarkable for the Northwest, but it is spread over roughly 169 wet days and packed into the half of the year from October to March. Months of that wear on roof valleys and gutters, and on crawl space vents, and a house with the windows shut all winter gives the water no easy way out.
Then add a Fraser outflow. A few times in most winters, arctic air pours south through the Fraser River gap and settles over the county. Over 2016-2025 the airport averaged 5.3 nights a year at 20°F or below; the December 2021 and January 2024 snaps lasted about a week apiece. Lines in outside walls and vented crawl spaces split under the ice, and they start spraying on the first mild day. Burst and frozen pipes.
Last comes the river. An atmospheric river can dump warm rain on the snow up around Mount Baker, and the Nooksack climbs fast. In November 2021 the airport logged its wettest three days on record, 5.57 inches, and the Ferndale gauge hit 23.89 feet, where major flood stage is 23. Four years later, in December 2025, the same valley towns went under again. Where the Nooksack floods.
Highest flow each water year, Nooksack River at Ferndale (cubic feet per second)
Nights per year at 20°F or colder, Bellingham International Airport
Old plumbing in town, river risk out in the valley
Across the 14 ZIP codes we serve there are 102,273 homes, and 23% of them went up before 1980 (Census ACS 2020-2024). The south side of Bellingham skews older still: a median build year of 1976, with 41% built before 1980. Galvanized supply pipe and basements that were never heated come with that age.
River flooding is a much narrower problem. Of Whatcom County's 1,211 federal flood insurance claims, the largest counts are in 98295 (Sumas, 348), 98247 (Everson, 294), 98248 (Ferndale, 166). Bellingham itself files very few, and when a house in town gets wet, the source is nearly always indoors.
Flood maps don't settle it, though. 16% of paid NFIP claims here were on property mapped outside the high-risk A and V zones. Insurance claims in Washington.
Background reading
Guides for Whatcom County homes
For owners and tenants from Fairhaven to Sumas. Sources for each guide are listed at the bottom of its page.
- What restoration costsNational price figures for drying and smoke cleanup, plus mold, each dated.
- Is this quote fair?Reading an estimate line by line, and the clipboard forms to slow down on.
- The first 48 hours after water damageHour one, day one, day two: the order things should happen.
- What to do after a house fireGetting back in, opening the claim, and plywood before the next storm.
- How long restoration takesThree phases, and why a December dry-out here runs slow.
- Insurance claims in WashingtonWhich policy pays for which water, the NFIP 30-day wait, and who the adjuster works for.
- Where the Nooksack floodsEvery annual peak at Ferndale and the ZIP codes that file the claims.
- Bellingham rain and moldMonths of drizzle behind shut windows, and where mold shows up first indoors.
- Leaks and mold in a rentalRCW 59.18 repair deadlines and how to put the landlord on notice.
- Choosing a restoration companyThe L&I lookup, plus questions that show who knows the work.
Coverage
Neighborhoods and towns in the county
- South Bellingham and Fairhaven98225
- North Bellingham98226
- Lake Whatcom and Sudden Valley98229
- Ferndale98248
- Lynden98264
- Blaine and Birch Bay98230
- Nooksack Valley98247 98276 98295
- Mount Baker Foothills98244 98266
Custer and Point Roberts are included, as are the islands. Whether your road is in range gets confirmed on the first call.
Questions Whatcom County homeowners ask
How much does water damage restoration cost in Bellingham?
Nationally, Fixr's span is $1,200 to $5,000 with $3,000 as the average, and Bob Vila's is $1,305 to $5,707. The kind of water moves the rate. Clean supply-line water runs $3.75 to $4.25 a square foot; sewage and river water run $7 to $7.50. New drywall and floors are billed on top of that.
How much does fire damage restoration cost?
LawnStarter's national average is $20,470. Small and large fires spread that across $2,900 to $38,325, or $4.25 to $6.50 per square foot of affected area. Because a running furnace carries smoke into every room, a stovetop fire can turn into whole-house cleaning, and replacing charred framing is a separate cost.
How long does water damage restoration take?
Fixr says drying takes three days or more, and Bob Vila says about 72 hours for most spaces. Putting the house back together adds weeks, sometimes months, depending on how much was torn out. The adjuster's schedule and backordered materials stretch it further.
What should I do if my pipes freeze?
Shut off the main, open a low faucet so the line can drain, and never put a torch to a frozen pipe. Lines inside exterior walls and in crawl spaces are the usual failures, and they tend to leak on the thaw rather than during the freeze. During the January 2024 cold snap, The Bellingham Herald reported almost 100 frozen pipe calls to Bellingham Public Works and firefighters in a few days.
Will my homeowners insurance pay for this?
Sudden, accidental water from inside the house, such as a split pipe, is generally covered. River or surface flooding generally isn't; the Washington Insurance Commissioner says a typical home policy excludes flood, which takes its own policy. Leaks and seepage that went on for a long time are commonly excluded too. Check your policy language and call your agent.
Who will come to my house?
A restoration company that works independently of us and covers your ZIP code. Whatcom Restoration Desk only makes the introduction, which saves you a morning of phone calls. Ask the company how it records moisture readings, and look up its Washington L&I contractor registration, before you agree to any work.
Dry it out, close it up, move back in
Send it once. A company in Whatcom County calls, and the price is on paper before work begins.