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Julieboo
Member
02-05-2002
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 12:34 pm
Our whole basement flooded the day after Christmas. About one-two inches total. We have wet vacced everything. The cement floors are now almost all the way dry. The carpeted part is a lot more dry than it was, but that dang padding is impossible. THE QUESTION: Is there any way we can save the carpet?? Like if we pull it up and lose the padding can we save the carpet? Or is it a lost cause?
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Happymom
Member
01-20-2003
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:04 pm
It looks like you can save that carpeting but not the padding. I don't have personal experience with this. Sorry you have to go through all this. http://www.readarticles.com/restoration-and-cleaning-of-a-carpet-soaked-in-flood-water/ Here is another article. It is from West Virginia Univ. Disaster Management Disaster and Emergency Management ResourcesCleaning Up Flood-damaged Carpet•The decision to clean or replace flood-damaged carpet depends on a number offactors:If sewage-contaminated floodwater covered your carpeting, discard it for healthreasons. Also discard if the carpet was under water for 24 hours or more.If your damage is less severe, you can try to clean the carpet, but you may facehealth risks, specifically possible contamination with infectious organisms or thedevelopment of mold or mildew.The age and condition should be considered as well as whether the damaged iscovered by insurance.Padding is nearly impossible to clean so it should be replaced.•Clean carpets and rugs as quickly as possible.If it's not glued down, roll up the carpet and take it outside to a driveway, patio,or garage floor.If the carpet is too heavy to move, lift it off the floor and prop it up on saw-horses, old chairs, or other supports to drain. It may be light enough to moveoutside after it drains. Do not let your carpet dry this way if you want to save itbecause it will be stretched out of shape and will not be flat when dry.Remove the spongy pad underneath and discard.After you have taken up the carpet and pad, clean the floors with detergentsolution and bleach before dealing with the carpet, so you can minimize odor andmildew in the house.The best approach is to have your carpet cleaned by professionals, preferably attheir shop. Professional cleaners charge by the square foot or the hour. Get acost estimate before you order the service.A steam-cleaning (hot-water extraction) method is preferred. Professionalcleaners will apply chemicals to help sanitize the carpet. They will return it toyou dry, but your home must be ready for it.WVU Extension Service Disaster and Emergency Management ResourcesCleaning Up Flood-damaged CarpetSection 13.5 Page 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 2 • You can rent a steam-cleaning machine and buy the appropriate shampoo to use incleaning. If a machine is not available, you can take the following steps.Take the carpet outside to lay flat on a dry concrete area, such as a driveway,patio, or garage floor, preferably in full sun. A sloping driveway would bethe best choice.Use a garden hose with a strong spray nozzle. Start at one end and "sweep" thecarpet with water. Do this once. Turn it over and hose the back side. Then"sweep" the face with water again.Pour on an all-purpose liquid ammonia or pine-based cleaner and let it soak afew minutes. (Do not use full-strength ammonia.) Check ingredient labels onbrand name products. Your carpet may change color or fade after contact withthese cleaners.•Sweep" the carpet again, forcing the cleaning foam and dirt ahead of you.Rinse thoroughly until all of the cleaning foam has been removed. You MUSTrinse before any bleaching to remove stains to avoid producing toxic fumes thatresult when bleach and ammonia are mixed.After the cleaner is rinsed out completely, use a wet-and-dry vacuum to get waterout of the carpet.•Dry the carpet immediately after cleaning to avoid mildew.Use a wet-and-dry vacuum to pull water out of the carpet.Place the carpet in full sun. Turn it over occasionally to speed drying. If youhave to leave the carpet outside in the rain, it won't be further damaged as long asit is left flat.If you need to dry the carpet inside, run the central air conditioner anddehumidifiers to help remove moisture. Fans will help to circulate the air, butthey won't remove moisture.Dry out the basement as much as possible. Run a dehumidifier and airconditioner to help remove moisture.Close windows on the house if outside air has high humidity. If outside air isdrier, open all doors and windows.Run fans to circulate air in tight places, such as closets.Adapted from resource material developed by the Iowa State Extension ServiceWVU Extension Service Disaster and Emergency Management ResourcesCleaning Up Flood-damaged CarpetSection 13.5 Page 2
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Hukdonreality
Member
09-29-2003
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:12 pm
Our basement has flooded countless times. We just prop the carpeting up as best we can (use anything such as a plastic lawn chair, etc) and run our big box fans for a couple of days. Your padding is probably a lost cause though.
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Hukdonreality
Member
09-29-2003
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:19 pm
If you have flooding fairly regularly and never want to have it again, look into a drainage system for your basement. They grind out a ditch all the way around it (interior) and fill it with stone, then they waterproof the interior as well as exterior foundation to minimize any that could slip in. I can't remember what that drainage system is called though...
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Texannie
Member
07-16-2001
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:20 pm
no advice, but i am sure sorry you are having to deal with this!
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:32 pm
Yeah, we don't have a lot of experience with basements here in Texas, but I sure am sorry you had to deal with that...especially during the holidays.
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Rissa
Member
03-20-2006
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:55 pm
We've had a flooded basement a couple times and I agree with all points alrdy made above. #1 is to get that carpet dry as fast as possible before mold has a chance to grab hold. If it's been three days you could already be too late. A steam cleaner and big fans under the carpet are a must. You should be able to rent the fans from a big hardware store. If you can get the carpet up easily then I would do that and discard the underpad asap (at the least it is slowing down the drying process so trying to save it will just jeopardize the main carpet, worst case... that's where the mold will originate). If you can't get the fans then I would steam clean the carpet with boiling or next to boiling water and an antibacterial nonsudsing soap, cleaning it on both sides might be helpfull as would a tiny bit of bleach. Also keep in mind that high levels of humidity in the air can damage/destroy electronics. We had a 50" TV written off, never had a drop of water on it but the spkrs began cutting out due to humidity caused corosion inside. Anything you are worried about should be moved to a higher floor. If it happens again and you plan to claim on your home insurance anyway please call them immediately. They will have tried to mitigate your damages by getting an emergency response team to your home. We had half a dozen fans going, affected drywall, underpad and all other garbage removed in less then 2 hours. They took our carpets with them to their facility where they were professionally cleaned, dried then returned and re-installed. Our insurance rates didn't go up a single cent but even if they had it would have been cheaper then the several thousands we had in damage (unlike car insurance which we pay for but never use because we live in terror of rate spikes - but that's another story LOL). Good luck, hope it didn't mess up your holidays too terribly.
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Texannie
Member
07-16-2001
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 1:57 pm
always wanted a basement, but if we had one it would be flooded all the time! LOL
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Sunday, December 28, 2008 - 3:33 pm
When my waterbed developed a leak (that started in the heater under the liner, so it put a hole in the liner before the waterbed mattress was hit.. so it was a rather sudden occurrence that happened while I was away from home and squished into at 3am. Had to drain and disassemble the bed, pull up the carpet.. but ended up having a service take out and clean the carpet, had to replace the carpet padding (and the wood floor under that was never the same). But with proper treatment, the carpet didn't develop mold, at least. Good luck!
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