To prevent mold growth in a flooded home, remember that the clock starts ticking as soon as water enters the house. Most experts agree you've got 24 to 36 hours before active mold growth begins in a wet indoor environment. Flooding that affects an area of the house larger than 10 feet by 10 feet is not a do-it-yourself project. Therefore, one of your first priorities should be to make contact with a water damage and mold remediation service. Don't devote time to DIY efforts until after you've arranged for a professional to intervene ASAP.
Once qualified water damage assistance has been contacted, here are some priorities to prevent mold growth in a flooded home:
- Relocate as many water-saturated items outside the house into the back yard or garage as possible. This would include sofas, curtains, loose rugs, mattresses and anything else that has soaked up a large quantity of water. Don't pull up wet carpeting — a water damage professional may utilize extractors to pull water out of carpets without removal. Soggy non-essential papers, fabrics and other absorbent items can be thrown out now.
- Open windows and use fans (be mindful of electrical hazards in a wet environment) to get air circulating throughout the home. After a flood, moisture migrates into areas not actually contacted by water due to extremely high humidity levels. Water vapor penetrates deep into the structure to trigger hidden mold growth. In addition to ventilating continuously, other steps you can take including running the air conditioner or even renting a dehumidifier can help prevent mold growth in a flooded home.
- Where standing water on hard-surface floors can be manually pushed out the door with a floor squeegee or broom, remove as much water from the house as possible. However, stay out of deep standing water due to electrocution hazard and possible contamination from water-borne toxins. Leave the use of pumps, wet/dry vacuums or other electrical devices to the professionals.
For experienced advice about what you can do to prevent mold growth in a flooded home, contact Rytech, Inc.
