Flooded Basement? Simple Steps To A Dry Carpet.

6/6/2017 (Permalink)

After your basement floods quick action can save your carpet and other possessions.

A pipe breaks. Your hot water tank leaks. Rain pours into your basement. A snow melt floods your floor. If your basement floods you have to act fast. Mold and mildew can start to set in within hours, and the damage to your carpet can be permanent. But getting your carpet dry again is difficult. And it can be dangerous. If you don’t want to take on this task yourself, call SERVPRO of Bloomfield/Enfield at (860) 216-2785. If you want to do as much as you can on your own here are some tips.

 1. Turn Off Your Electricity

It sounds simple and it is. But people who forget this step are at great risk. The combination of water and electricity can be deadly. Don’t set foot on your squishy carpet until you’ve turned off all power to your basement. If your circuit breakers aren’t marked turn them all off, then turn them on one at a time to confirm which one controls the basement electricity. If your circuit breakers are in the basement, call a professional to make sure your power is turned off before you head downstairs. Next, remove any extension cords and power strips from the floor and unplug or switch off all electrical appliances (washer, dryer, HVAC).

2. Find The Cause

This can be obvious, but not always. The cause for your flooded basement could be six inches of rain in the last 24 hours or a fast snow melt. If your problem isn’t obvious, look for broken or leaky pipes. If clean water is leaking (say from a kitchen sink or bathroom shower) you can start drying out your basement. If the leak is from a sewer pipe or water is spilling out of your washing machine, you need to disinfect. To do that job right you should call a professional. You’ll also need the pros if your flood comes from an overflowing river. River overflows can contain all sorts of dangerous chemicals and debris like manufacturing plant chemicals or decaying animals. 

3. Remove Everything

Think of a going out of business sale—everything must go. Furniture, exercise equipment, storage units—those items may have suffered water damage, so they could be heavy and hard to move. Get someone to help you.

Move any electronics upstairs so their components don’t corrode. Get artwork or photos off your basement walls to spare them damage from humidity. If you can’t move furniture, wrap the furniture legs in aluminum foil.

You can sometimes save books by freezing them (the freezing process pulls water out of the pages). Remember that just because something isn’t actually underwater doesn’t mean the flooded basement won’t affect it. Lots of damage comes from the high humidity that exists in any flooded basement. 

4. Remove Flood Water

Now you can get at and treat the carpet. The tools you need depend in part on how much water you’re dealing with. Start with a wet/dry vacuum to remove as much water as quickly as possible. If you don’t have one, you can rent one at your local home improvement store.

If the amount of standing water is beyond the capacity of a wet/dry vacuum, rent an extractor instead to pull water out of the carpet. Extraction is 1,200 times more effective than dehumidification. Use the extractor very slowly so it slurps up as much water as it possibly can.

For A Flooded Basement Or Other Water Damage Call SERVPRO Of Bloomfield/Enfield At (860) 216-2785

5. Bring In The Fans And A Dehumidifier

You may think vacuuming and extracting rides your carpet of all water but it doesn’t. At this point your basement carpet isn’t soaking wet but it will still be damp. Don’t stop. Keep drying. If you don’t, mold and mildew will grow and work their damage.

Turn on every fan you’ve got, but home fans usually aren’t super powerful. Consider renting high-powered fans from your home improvement store. Keep those fans running while you’re working, since they also circulate fresh air, which mold and mildew hate.

Plug in your dehumidifier but do know that your home dehumidifier isn’t built for a job like this. Large home dehumidifiers pull only four gallons of water out of the air every 24 hours. Rent the largest  dehumidifier you can find so you can pull 30 gallons of water a day. Do keep checking on the dehumidifier and emptying it. 

6. Think Before You Heat

If your furnace is in your basement, don’t turn on the heat until you make sure it hasn’t been damaged by the flooding and that it’s safe to use. Even if your furnace isn’t affected by the flooding keep the basement heat in the mid 70s. Heat the basement more than that and you’re not doing that much to dry out your carpet while you are encouraging mold and mildew to grow. They both love high temperatures.

7. Dry The Carpet Pad

The pad under your carpet (most carpets have one) is probably just as soaked as your carpet.

After you’ve removed the water from your carpet, peel the carpet back. Watch out for carpet tacks. Remove the wet pad, even if you have to cut it into strips. Take it outside to dry if the weather is warm and sunny. Or keep it inside and use the fans and dehumidifier to dry it out. If it’s too badly damaged, you may want to replace it. 

8. Clean Up & Sanitize

Often you will have to deal with some odors from the water damage. They’re likely to get worse if you don’t deal with them right away. Once your carpet is dry you should steam clean it to deodorize the basement.

If your flooding was caused by storm water, river water, or a leaky sewer pipe, slip on your rubber gloves and sanitize the room. Use detergent to clean everything that the water touched, including hard floors and walls. Sanitize and disinfect everything with a chlorine bleach solution.

For A Flooded Basement Or Other Water Damage Call SERVPRO Of Bloomfield/Enfield At (860) 216-2785 

9. Take Preventive Measures.

Basements that flood once tend to flood again. Think about how to prevent future repetitions so you can avoid doing all this work again.

Can you do something to prevent outside water from coming toward your foundation? That might mean building a swale or extending your downspouts so rain is deposited on the ground at least 10 feet away from your foundation. Keep your gutters cleaned out so they don’t overflow. Make sure water drains away from your home rather than pooling up right next to it.

Look for any depressions in the ground next to your home’s foundation walls. If you find any, fill them in with dirt so the water drains away from the house. Use a clay-type soil that sheds water instead of sandy soil that allows water to soak into the ground. Make sure to keep at least eight inches between the top of the earth and any wood or stucco on your house. 

If water entered your home through cracks in your foundation or basement walls, patch them and seal them. Use polyethylene masonry caulk for small cracks, and upgrade to hydraulic cement for cracks that are 1/4” wide or larger. If you suffered a leaky or broken pipe, you’ll need to replace the pipe and repair any drywall or plaster that was damaged in the leak. 

Help Is Here

The team at SERVPRO of Bloomfield/Enfield has specialized training and experience in fire restoration services, natural disaster prevention, water damage, and natural disaster cleanup. Call SERVPRO of Bloomfield/Enfield (860)216-2785 anytime, 24/7.

We serve businesses and residents in Bloomfield, East Granby, Enfield, Granby, Hartland, and beyond.

SERVPRO of Bloomfield/Enfield

100 Peters Road, Bloomfield, CT 06002
IICRC Certified
Noemi Garcia
Franchise Owner
Call (860) 216-2785 24 hour emergency service