Restoration Specialists has been providing diverse restoration and repair services for more than four decades and now serves clients from its offices in Lecanto, Brooksville, Gainesville, Leesburg, Lake City, and Ocala, Florida. Capable of handling virtually any type of property damage, including water damage, Restoration Specialists saves everything from drywall and plaster to carpeting.
In many cases, carpet and carpet pads are the first thing to go with flooding. However, water damage does not automatically mean carpet must be replaced. Rather, carpet can often be saved as long as professionals are called in to remove the water immediately.
Usually, water must be removed from carpet within 24 to 48 hours after the carpet is saturated. To ensure all water is removed, professionals use specialized water extractors that lift moisture from the carpet and pad without requiring the carpet to be detached and lifted up. Removing this liquid immediately is key to preserving carpet, since it keeps mold from developing in the carpet fibers.
Salvaging carpet isn’t only dependent on removing liquid quickly, though. Some carpet, such as carpet made from synthetic materials, can withstand flooding better than other carpets, such as those made of wool. Natural materials are more prone to rot and, even if they are dried out successfully, may shrink because of their exposure to water.
Another factor that determines whether carpet can be saved after flooding is the type of water that saturates it. For clean water from a ruptured water supply, pipe, or icemaker line, drying the carpet out within 48 hours is usually enough to save the carpet and pad.
This isn’t the case with gray water, which includes shower drain water, or contaminated black water from a sewer backup. With grey water, the pad usually requires replacing and the carpet must be thoroughly cleaned. Meanwhile, both the carpet and pad are unsalvageable when flooded with black water.
