How Do Floods Damage floors?

4/16/2021 (Permalink)

Floods can cause huge damage to your floors if it has been submerged or wet for a long time. In the case where your floor is flooded with standing water, you should dry it with a cloth or mop within 72 hours. If you do not do so, the floor could be damaged by the water, and this will mean you need to fork out even more money to get the floors replaced or fixed. Mold can also grow if there is an abundance of moisture both above and within the floor. Some damage that may come as a result include damaged foundations, hardwood that has buckled or swollen laminate flooring. Hence, it is important to engage water damage repair and restoration services after a flood.

What to Do in the Event of a Flood?

You will first need to check out where the flood is occurring. If it happens in your basement, the first thing you must do is to turn off the basement breaker switch if it is not located in the flooded area. If the circuit breaker switch is located in the basement or flooded area, you may call an electrician or technician to help you turn it off. Once the switch has been turned off, you will be able to access the basement safely to evaluate the problem without worry.

Drying the Area

Before you attempt to air out or dry the floor, you should first take a look at the items affected and decide what can be saved. Furniture, carpets or other items that can still be saved should be removed from the affected area. You will also need to figure out where the source of the flood is from. For example, is it due to a leaking pipe? Or is it due to a faulty sump pump? If you have no idea where the source of the flood is coming from, it will be best to engage the help of a professional and not attempt to dry the floor all by yourself.

What You Can Do

If there is only a small amount of water on the floor, you may use towels to dry it up. Furthermore, you can rent other basic equipment like dehumidifiers to dry up the entire space, including the furniture and the wet floor. If some of your boxes have gotten wet, take out all the contents within the boxes and dry them out. If your carpet has become wet due to the flood, you can put dry towels over the carpet to absorb the water. Ensure that the temperature of the basement does not go higher than 75 degrees when you are drying the floor in the basement. In the case where the temperature exceeds 75 degrees, the growth pace of bacteria will quicken up, and bacteria will multiply in the basement.

Hardwood Flooring

If your flooring is made of hardwood, you will need to be extra cautious. Because of the tough nature of hardwood, it does not absorb much moisture. However, at the same time it will make releasing the moisture even more difficult once the hardwood has absorbed it. If the flooding occurs in an area with hardwood flooring, the first thing you should do is check the floor to see if it can still be salvaged. If your hardwood flooring has merely buckled a bit, it is likely that the flooring can be salvaged. If you are thinking of how you can dry hardwood, you should consult a professional. 

In the event of flooding, professionals like SERVPRO of Hoboken/Union City are able to help with drying out the place. Our team of experts can assess the situation quickly and effectively get to work in a short amount of time to salvage your home. Feel free to contact us to find out more about the services we offer today!