In the light of recent floods in Mexico, Europe and Australia and due to the fact that floods are happening more often today, homeowners often have to deal with different kinds of flood damage. Floors are usually the first ones to take the punch from a disaster. Once your area gets flooded, there is a big chance that you will have to deal with flood-damaged floors in the first place.
Water damage can cause massive losses for any home or a business owner. It devalues the property significantly and can carry severe long-term consequences. Flood-damaged floors are unsafe, unesthetic and can become an ultimate incubator for mould, pests, etc.
This article shall discuss what you can do with flood-damaged floors and how to minimise your losses from flooding and its consequences.
Not all flood damages are equal.
First, you need to understand that the scale of damage and the costs of repair will entirely depend on the material used for flooring in your house or business.
However, there are 2 main problems you will have to face no matter whether you have concrete or wooden floors:
- Damage to the flooring material itself
- Contamination
Even if the floor was exposed to water for only several minutes, there is a big chance that it will ruin or damage its finishing or get soaked into the materials, causing erosion and leading to cracking, swelling and other deformations. Not to mention mould - the inevitable consequence of almost any kind of water damage.
Depending on the type of water that has entered the building, you can also cave to deal with different levels of contamination - from dirt and debris brought from outside to severe and anti sanitary consequences of flooding with sewers water.
Is there a point to fix a flood-damaged floor?
Most homeowners and contractors will instantly tell you that as soon as floodwater touches anything in your house, it is better to get rid of it as quickly as possible rather than try to revive the materials.
However, when it comes to flooring, the costs of total replacement may appear unreasonable. Especially if you live in a flood-prone area. In this case, most experts say that there is a point and chance to fully repair flood damaged floors. But only if you start taking action within the first week after the disaster.
Also, 3 flooring materials can become a real problem once damaged with water, and therefore it will be easier to discard and replace them entirely rather than try and fix them:
- Carpet
- Tiled floor;
- Vinyl
These flooring materials tend to accumulate water and collect it in hard-to-reach places. After some time, water damage in such floors inevitably leads to the development of mould, bacteria, pests, etc.
When and how to start fixing flood damaged floors?
Technically, you can only start repairing or replacing your water-damaged flooring after a thorough cleaning and dehumidifying of the whole house.
However, different materials can be treated in varying levels of humidity:
- Carpet - once you have discarded the damaged carpet flooring, you should wait until the excessive moisture dries out. However, there is no point in drying the entire surface as carpets have pores, and humidity can continue evaporating through it after you have covered the floor. You can start re-carpeting after about 3 days;
- Wood - excessive humidity is wood`s worst enemy. Moreover, most adhesive materials for wooden floors are water-based and therefore won`t work correctly on wet surfaces. Most experts will recommend you to wait for at least 5 days before fixing wooden floors and test the area thoroughly to make sure that the humidity level is appropriate and won`t affect the wood and adhesive or finishing materials;
- Polymer - this type of floor is considered to most robust and therefore hardly ever requires any severe repairs. However, some cracking or damage to finishing is inevitable, especially if you had to deal with winter flooding with its temperature fluctuations or used harsh chemicals to get rid of sewers water contaminations.
Depending on the materials of the floor, required repairs and the time your floor was exposed to water, you may need to wait between 3 and 5 days before you get down to work.
Once you hire a professional contractor, they will test the humidity level and recommend the best way to dry the place out, considering the ventilation and architecture peculiarities of the building.
In case you decide to deal with flood damaged floors yourself, it is essential to pay attention to the materials you choose and keep in mind that eco-friendly and most convenient adhesives and finishing solutions are always water-based. It means that they will not work correctly if the surface is still wet or the air is humid.
How to prevent water damage to floors
Prevention is always better and cheaper than treatment. Knowing that thousands of home and business owners and professional contractors prefer to prevent any kind of damage rather than looking for the most lucrative ways to fix their consequences.
Dam easy Flood Barriers have been tested worldwide in private properties and specialised facilities and proved themselves the most efficient way to seal the passages in a building a prevent water from getting in.
Our flood barriers can be adjusted for any door, gate or passage and protect your house as well as garage or basement from floodwater, minimising the damage and its costly consequences.
Contact Dam Easy today and learn more about our flood barriers and other innovative solutions that will keep you and your property safe and sound in the face of the most severe flooding.
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