How to Dry Carpet After a Flood

Floods inside the home can be devastating, especially if you have carpeted floors. When a pipe or supply hose bursts, or there’s a plumbing backup in your home, it can be overwhelming to know where to begin. It’s important to dry out your carpet as soon as possible, meaning IMMEDIATELY. Otherwise, you run the risk of allowing dangerous mold to grow. If your carpets are wet from a sewage backup, you may need to throw them out entirely due to hazardous contaminants, but if the flooding was caused by clean water, saving your carpets is definitely a possibility.

Ways to Dry Carpet After a Flood

Once you’ve identified and stopped the leak that caused the flooding, follow these steps to save your carpets.

1. Remove Water - Using a shop vac or the water extractor on a carpet cleaning machine, suck as much water as possible out of the wet carpets. Pull back the corners of your carpeting and use a heavy-duty shop vac to remove any standing water underneath the pads.
2. Use Strong Fans - Gather up as many fans as possible, borrow from neighbors if you must, and set them up all over the wet area. You can rent high-powered fans to help the process along, but it will take several days for your carpet to dry completely. A dehumidifier will also help speed things up.
3. Clean and Sanitize the Flooded Areas - Even if the flood water was clean, it’s essential to clean and sanitize anything the water has dampened to ensure no mold or mildew can begin to grow. First, clean the surfaces using soap and water. Then deep-clean using a solution made from one cup of bleach to one gallon of water. Wear protective rubber gloves when handling bleach.
4. Move all Furniture - Water damage can be hard to spot with heavy furniture covering it up, so be sure to move all your furniture and inspect every area of the carpet for possible dampness.

Save the Hassle, Call the Professionals

Drying floors after a flood can be quite a process. To avoid renting expensive, heavy equipment and spending hours of work salvaging your carpet, call for reinforcements. The experts at your local Mr. Rooter® Plumbing can help take the headache out of an inconvenient water leak. For 24/7 emergency plumbing or to schedule an appointment, call your local Mr. Rooter Plumbing.