Water Damage Basement Carpet

Tips For Treating And Restoring Water Damage Basement Carpet

Have basement carpet that has suffered from water damage? If so you are not the first and you will not be the last. Treating basement flooring that is water logged can surely be a tough job. Before you start doing the cleaning and drying of the carpet yourself there are a few things you will want to keep in mind.

Knowing when to call a professional

If the water damage to your basement carpet came from a guest spilling a glass of spring water, you will probably be able to handle it yourself. But you will want to seek the advice of a professional technician if the damage is from something worse. For example, flooding from a rainstorm can bring excess dirt, mud, soil, and all kinds of other outdoor materials that can severely damage your carpet.

Knowing the details

Before being able to come up with a treatment plan you first need to know the smaller details.

A good place to start is looking at the type of water the caused the damage. Floodwater, back up sewers, drain water, etc. are some of the more severe things that can cause damage.

Second, what is the sub flooring made of? A wood based sub flooring will carry more damage than if it were made of concrete.

Third, what condition was the carpet in before the water damage occurred? Was it brand new or was it carpet that is several decades old?

Fourth, how well does the carpet hold moisture? Some newer carpets are specially made to not absorb any excess moisture. This makes the cleaning, drying, and restoration process much faster and easier. However, if the carpet is made from material that absorbs moisture like a sponge, you will have a more complicated task at hand.

If you do not know all these things offhand then do not worry. An experienced carpet cleaning technician will know exactly what information they will need before they can start the restoration process.

Your health and safety

This is especially important for anyone who has kids or pets. Water damaged carpet can quickly start to grow mold and bacteria that is harmful to humans and animals. This is not something you will want to experiment with. You may not be able to control the cause of the water damage but you can control the steps you take to ensure your
basement carpet is fully restored without posing any threat to the inhabitants. When in doubt, call a professional!

Doing it yourself

That being said, if the water damage is not major then there is a good chance you can take care of it yourself. Any kind of smaller scale freshwater damage that covers a relatively small area of your carpet can usually be treated with minimal supplies. You may have to pull the carpet up in the water logged area and use a wet shop vacuum to get as much of the moisture out of the sub flooring and padding as you can.

Once you do that you will want to spray a disinfectant over the area to prevent mold and bacteria from growing. You will then have to put on a fan to help accelerate the drying process. This may take several days before you are ready to lay the carpet down again, but its effective nevertheless.

When in doubt, call a professional treat your water damaged basement carpet. Good luck!