Can I dry my carpet after a water leak?

5/14/2018 (Permalink)

This photo shows how we can save your wet carpet and dry it out in place after a water damage.

It doesn’t matter where the water damage stems from; discovering soggy, wet carpet in your home is never ideal. We at SERVPRO of West Riverside City understand how unfortunate it is to stumble upon water damage in your flooring and want to help. That’s why we’re sharing these important facts to know about water damage pertaining specifically to your carpet. Take a look! 

1. Know if your carpet can be saved:

Depending on how extensive the damage is, you might not need us to remove any of your carpet. It all comes down to the source of the water damage. If the damage is coming from a sewage-contaminated leak, then you will most likely have to remove the carpets for health safety reasons. Sewage contains dangerous bacteria that can be hazardous to you and your family’s health. So if your carpet is wet with this type of water, it’s probably safest to remove the carpet. However, if the water damage is coming from a non-sewage leak source, SERVPRO of West Riverside City will do everything we can to save your carpet. 

Whether or not we are able to save your carpet also depends on how long the water damage has been there. If the damage has been soaking for a long time, it becomes more difficult to properly remove all of the water from the carpet. And if the water damage is not cleaned up in its entirety, you might have to deal with removing mold from your carpets as well. The amount of mold will affect whether or not your carpet can be saved.  That’s why it’s so important to contact a professional like SERVPRO of West Riverside City as soon as you detect the water damage. 

2. How to dry savable carpet:

If you accidentally spill water on the carpet, it’s easy to dry it out by stomping on the area with some dry towels until it stays dry. But anything bigger than a tiny spill should be checked out by a water damage remediation professional like SERVPRO of West Riverside City. We’ll send out our talented team and set up the proper drying equipment, like air movers and dehumidifiers. If the damage is more severe, we have the proper training to remove any water damage that cannot be dried in place. 

3. How to take care of the carpet pad: 

The carpet pad, located in between the flooring and carpet, will most likely need to be replaced once it’s been hit by water damage. If the pad gets soaked with water, fortunately SERVPRO of West Riverside City’s team of technicians can come in and remove the pad. This is because if the pad is wet, the underlying flooring will need thorough drying as well. 

We had a homeowner in Riverside contact us after a supply line in her laundry room burst and started to flood her home. Her plumber suggested that she turn her water off and call a water damage remediation company to help with the rest. What company did he recommend? SERVPRO of West Riverside City, of course ;)

Once we received her call, we sent our Crew Chief, Gary out to the home. He discovered that the damage had made its way to the hallway, bathroom and bedroom. After his initial inspection, Gary brought his team of technicians out to the home and got started on the clean up. 

We ended up having to remove the carpet and padding from the bedroom, but we were able to save the drywall. Drying equipment was also set up in order to clean up the rest of the damage and prevent mold from growing. 

The homeowner was very pleased with our work. She loved and appreciated how fast we were able to come out and get started on her house. She also told us that she’d be calling us again in the future for help with any of her water damage needs. 

4. Mold affecting your carpet: 

As mentioned earlier, water damage that’s left as is in your carpets can lead to a serious mold problem. In fact, after about 48 to 78 hours, mold can begin to grow in the affected areas of your home. That’s because a moist area attracts mold, which if left undetected, can lead to a huge removal process. 

We had a homeowner call us after they found mold and water damage in their carpet. Not sure of how to remove it, they searched the Internet for the best water damage remediation and mold removal companies around. SERVPRO of West Riverside City was at the top of the list. 

After talking to the homeowners on the phone, we sent our crew chief Gary out to the home immediately. His inspection found mold in four different rooms.

Along with our team of excellent technicians, Gary got to work right away. They first removed all of the affected drywall and flooring. Then, to make sure that no future mold would grow, they sprayed down an antimicrobial agent. An air mover was then set up to eliminate any left over water damage and mold. 

The homeowner was so happy with our work! After seeing how thorough we were with removing the mold and water damage, they knew they had made the right choice by calling SERVPRO of West Riverside City. 

5. How to prevent carpet mold from spreading: 

As mentioned earlier, a homeowner never wants to hear that they have mold in their home, especially if there’s water damage to clean up as well. Not only can mold smell, but it can also be dangerous to your health and is always a hassle to clean up. You can’t always prevent water damage from reaching your carpets, but there are some ways to prevent mold from settling in to your floors and spreading to other parts of your home. As you wait for SERVPRO of West Riverside City to come and remediate the damage, try these helpful tips to prevent carpet mold from spreading. 

• Check your furniture. 

To keep your furniture safe from mold, check the bottoms and see if they are wet from the carpet’s water damage. If they are, be sure to tell SERVPRO of West Riverside City and we will dry them to the best of our ability. Regardless of whether or not it is wet, it is best to remove any and all furniture from the affected rooms. This will help minimize the amount of clean up that’s needed on your home and prevent mold from latching on to these items. 

• Sanitize and clean your walls and baseboards. 

If there is mold forming in your carpet, prevent it from spreading to your walls and baseboards by cleaning them off with soap and water. You may not have the ability to control the wet and moldy carpet, but you can try to control how much it spreads to other areas of your house. 

• Wait for SERVPRO of West Riverside City's help.

We know that you want to put your home back together as soon as possible. The best way to do that is to let SERVPRO of West Riverside City come out and clean up the rest of the water damage and mold for you. We’ve got the proper dehumidifiers, fans and all other equipment that’s needed to prevent mold from seeping into your carpets. You can count on us to provide the best service and do everything we can to save your home. 

Whether it’s just water damage or potential mold entering your carpets, SERVPRO of West Riverside City is here to help. Call us to remediate any and all water damage problems you might have!