It is important to dry your wet carpet quickly so that you can prevent mold and further damage. The most suitable way of drying carpet is by getting rid of water and using fans for drying. When you try to dry carpets while they are soaked, this might ruin them further. You will need bucket, mop, bleach, towels with pump, vacuum dryer, dehumidifier and fans for drying carpets as soon as possible. Here are some tried and tested steps to make the carpets dry.
6 Steps to make the carpets dry
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Remove water
Before drying the wet carpets, it is necessary to get rid of water at first. When you cover carpets with some inches of water, use a pump for removing it. If there is less than one inch of water, then choosing wet-dry vacuum is the right option. Try to move pump slowly across carpet to suck the water. Another way is to use towels and spread over the wet area for pressing them firmly on the carpet. This will work the best when a small section of carpet is wet only. But for extremely wet carpets, try to sprinkle one layer of kitty litter and press it in the carpet with towel. After suturing kitty litter, make sure you vacuum it with shop vac. You need to repeat the procedure till the carpet gets dry completely.
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Dry wet carpet
When you want to dry the wet carpet, use fans and dehumidifiers all around the room. Though the fans in your house will work, it is a good idea to rent structural drying dehumidifiers and high volume fans. This will speed up dry process and prevent odors and mold. You need to check in every few hours if the carpet is drying and move fans as necessary. Try to lift carpet up and position the fans below and above it to lessen dying time. You will be able to increase the chances of saving carpet padding as well as subflooring.
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Check carpet padding
Most carpet padding is made of urethane foam known as rebond though the old houses might have fiber pads or wool. Though rebond is highly resistant to water damage than fiber pads and wool, water takes its toll on them. You may try to dry carpet padding in place which might retain water and take long time to dry completely. The padding often falls apart when you want to remove it when wet. When clean water causes the damage, you should dry the padding. Make sure you remove and replace the padding when it happens due to groundwater or sewage.
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Check the subfloor
When there is lots of water on the carpet, it is essential to check the subfloor too. You may rollback carpet and padding quickly and if the subfloor remains wet, then use dehumidifiers and fans for drying it. Consider subfloor panels to detect any signs of warping and buckling for replacing the sections of carpets which are no more in good condition. After the subfloor becomes dry, try to disinfect the area with one cup of bleach and water. Use spray bottle for applying bleach and allow it to air dry. Make sure you repeat the procedure again so that the floor is free from any kind of infection. As bleach may cause stain to the carpet, try to use it for disinfecting the subfloor.
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Reinstall the carpet
After disinfecting the sub-floor, you can use a shop vac for eliminating any dirt or debris and install carpet padding. Most padding is available in rolls, but sometimes you get it in tiles or sheets. Try to cut the padding so that it fits perfectly in the space by covering the entire area between tack strips. After installing carpet padding, you may reinstall the carpet again. Try to check if the tack strips are in good condition and then replace them when necessary. You can use a knee kicker tool for tacking the carpet down to tack strips.
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Clean carpet properly
Finally, you need to clean the carpeting thoroughly to get rid of all kinds of stains and odors. You may rent a machine or hire a reputable company to restore carpet pile. When you want to clean carpets by yourself, begin by vacuuming it several times first to eliminate the dirt and dust. After this, you should follow the instructions of your cleaner. Make sure the carpets dry completely before you want to shift furniture back into the room.
Thus, you should dry carpet quickly due to two reasons. Firstly, the mold may begin to grow within 24 to 28 hours and secondly, the water causes carpet to fall apart. So, when you walk on wet carpets, they will ruin soon. By taking the help of a reliable carpet cleaning company, the professionals will dry wet carpets and you can use them for a long time.
