Question: Hello there, Robert. I hope you’re doing well. I’m sure you must be so busy with this weather we’re having. My question is in fact, weather related. We have two windows leaking and I know that we have to wait until we have dry weather before any repairs can be done.
My question revolves around the wet carpet. We can’t prevent all of the water from still coming in so the carpet isn’t catching a break from being wet. We are afraid of mold and keep sopping it all up with towels and we have a fan on it, but what else can we do?
I know the padding underneath isn’t getting dry. Can you advise us on what to do? We aren’t even calling a window company yet because we know we’re just stuck until the weather clears long enough. Thanks for your helpful advice.
— Justin V.
Answer: Justin, you absolutely will need to pull up the carpeting. If you are able, move all furniture to the other side of the room or out completely. Lift the carpet from a corner, roll it back. Get all of the wet padding pulled up and tossed.
You may have to replace all new padding, depending on the age of the existing, because new will be a different height from the old. If that’s the case, you can work with the rest of the room later. Deal with the wet area for now.
While that carpet is pulled, now is the time to remove any wet drywall. Try and remove it in as straight of a horizontal line as possible, and go just above the wet area. A drywaller will have less work, if lines are straight for repairs.
Once the wet padding is removed, roll the carpet back to its fully laid out position. However, have some supports under it so that it is not laying against the foundation – you need space between there for air flow, and the fan needs to run full time under it, so that most of the water is drying.
There are commercial fans available for rent at rental yards, I highly recommend these. They are obnoxiously loud but speed up the drying process greatly. Be certain that the fan is not near the water source, for safety reasons.
Also, be sure that the fan has the ability to intake air and is not suffocated by the carpet. This, along with towels changed often, will help keep the area from molding. If by chance, you pull up the carpet and already see mold, get back to me and I will walk you through next steps.
Once the weather passes and windows are repaired or replaced, you can then move on to a carpet installer and see if your carpet can be restretched over new padding. Best of luck.
Robert Lamoureux has more than 40 years of experience as a general contractor, with separate licenses in electrical and plumbing contracting. He owns IMS Construction Inc. in Valencia. His opinions are his own, not necessarily those of The Signal. Opinions expressed in this column are not meant to replace the recommendations of a qualified contractor after that contractor has made a thorough visual inspection. Email questions to Robert at [email protected].
