Can my carpet be saved after flood damage?

4/10/2017 (Permalink)

Flooding from Clean Water can save you money. Call SERVPRO immediately to remediate!

The Three Types of Water that Can Flood Your Home

One of the major casualties of a flooded home is flooring, particularly carpets. Once it's soaked, both it and the underlying padding will potentially need replacing, which is an added expense that most homeowners would like to avoid. In the case of heavy flooding, whether it's from a natural disaster, broken appliance, burst pipe, or other water emergency, many people think that there's no chance their carpet can ever be saved. 
 
Homeowners who have experienced flood damage in Orange County are often unaware that it's not just the amount of water in a home that affects whether they'll have to get new flooring, but the type of water as well. Here's some information about the three types of water damage that can occur due to flooding and how each affects carpet and rugs. 
 
Clean Water 
 
If the flood damage in your home is caused by a burst pipe, malfunctioning appliance, or tub or sink that has overflowed, odds are it's a result of what's called clean water. Basically, this type of water is treated and contains no contaminants or waste and is the least risky to clean up. When you contact SERVPRO and you have flood damage resulting from clean water, we're typically able to save your area rugs, carpeting, and floor pads so you don't have to incur the extra expense of replacing it. 
 
Gray Water 
 
This type of water doesn't contain any solid animal or human waste, but it has been used. An example of this would be a toilet that's overflown or a broken washing machine that leaks a large amount of water mid-cycle. Flood damage from gray water comes with more risks than clean water, as it has significantly more potential to cause illness if it's touched. However, the threat of disease usually isn't present since there's no solid waste. Though the carpet pad that's been soaked with gray water has to be thrown out for safety reasons, the carpet itself can often be saved. SERVPRO will carefully clean and dry it so that you can save money by only having a new pad installed. 
 
Black Water 
 
This is the most dangerous type of water involved in flood damage and it's unsanitary because it either has organisms in it that can potentially carry disease or solid waste. If your home was flooded due to a natural disaster, storm, or sewage backup, it likely involves black water. While some area rugs can be disinfected by our team, cleaned, and thoroughly dried, carpet and padding need to be replaced for the sake of keeping your family safe.