Important update: One of the main considerations when examining the water damage to your home after a flood, burst pipe, or water damage from a storm, is to access the interior of the walls. It’s a great idea to call reputable house painters near me to look inside the walls for signs of water damage. They will do a deep check and remove and replace the damaged areas and thoroughly dry everything else. Only once everything is repaired, cleaned, dried and approved will the best painting companies begin the painting process. While this takes longer and may cost more, in the long run it will save you money and protect the health of your family.

Part of the headache that comes from damage to your home is dealing with your homeowner’s insurance company. However, most responsible house painting companies will work with your insurance company to get you the most out of our coverage. How wonderful to have that weight taken off of your shoulders! Many times you can end up paying nothing out of pocket. Sometimes you can get more rooms painted with the home insurance you have already purchased than you ever thought possible. It never hurts to let the experts do the heavy lifting. That’s why you want to choose reputable companies before hiring any work done.

How Common is Water Damage to Homeowners?

Water damage is common to homeowners and many people need to know the proper water damage carpet restoration tips. Statistics have shown that up to 40% of homeowners experience some type of water damage, to some degree. It usually leads to the property and structural damage. Often times the damage to your foundation warrants the need for wet concrete repair.

One of the things that are commonly damaged by water is carpet and carpet pads. It’s therefore important for homeowners to know how to manage, repair and restore their carpets, whenever they experience water damage. However, it’s always best to hire a water damage restoration expert if the water damage is severe, and you’re not sure if you can put a stop to it. You must prevent the further damage of your properties and buildings. The rule of thumb is that homeowners should hire water damage restoration experts if the affected area is more 100 square meters. This piece focuses on the various steps you should take in restoring your carpet, and every necessary thing to know water damage and its effect on the carpet.

What To Do When Water Damages Your Carpet?

1. Assess the situation: The first thing you should do even before attempting to dry the carpeting, is to evaluate the situation. Call your home insurance agent. You should check if the source of the water damage has been identified and stopped. You should ensure that it’s safe for you to fix the water damaged carpeting yourself. Other things you have to consider include if there are hazardous materials involved and so on. In a situation where you want to dry your carpet instead of throwing it out, the water that caused the water damage has to be category 1 water. This means that the source of the water has to be clean. Category 1 water is usually water from broken pipes, needed drain cleaning, supply lines, rain or snow. It’s not safe to restore or fix your carpeting if the damage is caused by any other categories of water. This is because of the things that are usually in flood water. Flood water can be dangerous, depending on the source of the water. Below are the classifications of flood water:

• Clean water damage: This is the type of water damage in which the source is a clean water source. Examples of this include plumbing supply line or a wet structure that hasn’t become contaminated. If you need an emergency plumber click here.
• Gray water damage: This is the type of water damage in which the source of the water contains chemicals or other substances that could lead to discomfort or sickness to the occupants. Examples of grey water damage include appliance discharge, a broken waterbed or fish tank, overflows from toilet bowls and so on. It’s important to know that clean water damage can turn grey if left too long before the water is extracted.
• Black water: Blackwater is the most dangerous type of flood water. It’s mostly from sources such as toilet trap, flooding from seawater, ground surface water, rising water from streams and rivers. It’s best to avoid exposing yourself to this type of water totally. There are situations in which greywater can also turn into the black. This would happen when grey water is left sitting in a space for a long time.You should not attempt to salvage, repair or restore any carpeting that has absorbed black water. This is because of the toxic substances they have absorbed from the black water. A different set of restoration method is usually used in restoring and repairing structures and properties that have been affected with black water. Care must be taken not to disturb the bacteria in the water and make them airborne. Bacteria that is well contained in the water and not airborne makes it not easily breathable by restoration workers or occupants. Some of the ways to ensure this includes closing all the doors during a clean-up. The industrial fans and air conditioners typically used for drying outbuildings should be avoided, as they would further distribute these bacteria. Special machines such as negative air machines, with filters and whole house air purifiers should be used in removing bacteria and other contaminants from the air during restoration work. Have your HAVAC system checked to be sure it has not sustained damage.

Your work becomes clear when you’re certain of the type of floodwater you’re dealing with. You should wear protective gears, such as masks, gloves and rubber boots if you’re not going to hire a professional  commercial cleaning service to get the job done for you. You also note that people should keep off the carpet as much as possible, while it’s still wet.

1. Start The Drying Process As Soon As Possible

It has been shown that molds start growing within 12 to 48 hours after been soaked in water. This is why it’s important to start the drying process as soon as possible if you want to salvage your carpeting. You must successfully complete the drying process within 48 hours, to get the desired result. Although, this isn’t always realistic, because some people don’t know about the water damage until a long time after it has occurred. Some other people may have problems drying the carpeting, because of its size. Regardless of the situation, you should be quick carrying out the drying process.

 How Do You Dry Wet Carpet?

There are various ways of drying a wet carpet, especially after water damage. One of the ways is by making use a wet-vac. This method is inexpensive, and it involves making use of vacuum in long stroke with many passes to dry the carpet. Moving the vacuum back and forth, like you would with a dry vacuum may not get the desired result. Other equipment and machines you can use to quicken the process include blowers, fans, dehumidifiers. They help to circulate the air in your house. You may also open your window; if the weather is dry and hot, else you should avoid opening your windows. The instruction above only applies if you have carpeting without a pad. People that have carpeting with pads would have to take an extra step to achieve the desired result.

Can You Use The Same Padding When The Carpet Gets Wet?

A lot of people as if they can use the same padding when their carpet gets wet. It’d be best to avoid using the same padding when the carpet gets wet. You should think of the carpet padding like a giant sponge. The carpet padding soaks up the water, and it won’t dry out. The wetness of the carpet padding encourages the growth of mold and mildew, which do cause a bad smell, and also unsafe conditions under the carpet. It’d be impossible to dry the carpet padding, no matter how hard you try. What you should do after water damage is to lift up the carpet carefully, and remove the pad that is under it. Ensure you wear gloves while doing this, to prevent the flood water from touching your nose. You should discard the carpet padding, after removing it from under the carpet. You can decide to get a new carpet pad, and lay the carpet back in place. It might be best to hire a professional to help in drying and laying the carpet. This is to ensure that the carpet is in place, and properly secure.

How Do You Clean Water Damaged Carpeting?

After successfully drying your carpet, the next thing to do is to clean and sanitize the carpet. The purpose of doing is to rid the carpet of germs, and other contaminants that may remain after drying it. Some of the things you may use include a home carpet cleaning system, you could rent a machine, and you can also hire a professional water damage restoration expert to help clean things up.

If you choose this yourself, then you have to apply an anti-microbial cleaner at the end of the cleaning process, to prevent the growth of molds, bacteria and so on. It’s not a good idea to bleach your carpet, because the chemical may damage the back of the carpeting and the flooring underneath. People with white carpets may benefit from bleaching. However, people with colored carpets should avoid using bleach, because it can strip the color from the fibers. Overall, bleaching should be your last option, and should only be considered when other methods have been tried.

What Are The Health Implications Of Water Damage And Flood?

Water is capable of causing damages on properties and lives in some cases. However, it can also cause the development of health problems. This usually includes physical, mental and psychological problems. In addition, flood water may also contain toxic substances, dangerous animals, especially when caused by storms and so on. All these factors contribute to the impairment of people’s health, even after the water damage. Below are some of the health risks associated with water damage:

1. Infection: Microorganisms breed and grow in water bodies that have been stagnant for some days. This could lead to the development of infections, which people might suffer from. The respiratory and gastrointestinal system are usually the most affected systems of the body. Examples of infections that are associated with floodwater include pneumonic plague, military fever, dysentery and so on.
2. Mental conditions: The loss of valuable properties and lives in serious cases may cause a lot of stress to homeowners. This is worse when the homeowner doesn’t have insurance. Examples of mental conditions that may occur because of water damage include frustration, anger, chronic stress and so on. Studies have shown that people affected by water damage do present with the following conditions:

• Depressive disorder
• Stress, frustration, and anxiety
• Post-traumatic stress disorder.

1. Tetanus infection: Tetanus occurs when an individual gets in contact with the body fluid of someone affected with the disease. Clostridium tetani are the organism responsible for the development of tetanus infection. This is why important to avoid exposing yourself to the flood water. You should wear gloves and rubber boots if you walked into the water.

How Long Does It Take For Mold To Start Growing On A Wet Carpet?

Molds are a fungus that poses a lot of risk to human health. Although not all molds are toxic, some people have hypersensitivity to it. This is why it’s always best to avoid any exposure to them. Molds can grow on carpeting after water damage. This mostly occurs when there is a delay in the removal of water from the enclosed space, and also wet materials are not dried in time, such as furniture, walls, carpet paddings, carpet and so on. Studies have shown that it takes between 12 to 48 hours for molds to start growing. The initial mold growth may not visible to the eyes. It takes about a week or 2 before they become visible.

What Are Molds?

Molds are fungus and have microscopic spores which exist almost everywhere. They are indoors and outdoors, which makes it difficult to remove them from homes or businesses. Below are some of the things you have to know about molds:

• Molds are present everywhere.
• Molds release spores, which are microscopic, and float along the air. They can easily enter homes, cars, and so on.
• Molds thrive in a humid and moist condition such as the condition after water
• You would have to remove water and reduce the humidity before mold remediation can start.
• Molds do give off a strong and musty odor.
• You must ensure to keep the humidity level in your home below 45% to prevent the growth of molds.

                          What Are The Health Implications Of Mold?

Some of the signs and symptoms of mold infestation include the following:

• Persons affected may have difficulty concentrating and focusing on carrying out tasks.
• Persons affected with mold poisoning might develop nasal congestion.
• They might experience pains and discomfort in their joint.
• They may manifest skin reactions such as itching. In addition, some areas of their skin might also become numb.
• Patients might develop vertigo and lightheadedness.

One of the best ways to deal with the stress of flooding and the entire water mitigation and restoration process is to exercise and relax. One of the most fun and meditative ways to work off that stress would be to join your local world fencing academy. Or board your pet and take a nice low cost vacation!