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Posts Tagged ‘repairing a flooded basement’

When a basement becomes flooded it can be frustrating to clean as well as the amount of items that become ruined. A basement in most homes becomes a catch all for unused seasonal items, might need someday paperwork and a lot of mementos. It may take several days to get a specialist to come out and clean up the mess or you could do it yourself. You can do the clean up but you should do it in a process to avoid any further damage.

You will need to evaluate where liquid is coming from. A majority of floods are due to backed up drains or the result of water coming from the outside of your home being flooded and the liquid has seeped into the area. The important thing is to get the water out. Using a dry wet vacuum, such as a shop vac will do a good job of soaking up most if not all of the water.

After cleaning up all liquid, sort the boxes and remove anything you can salvage. Dry the items removed from the cardboard boxes and place them in a plastic tub with a lid. The plastic will protect the items should the flooding happen in the future. Do not put wet items in the storage containers as they will mold .

Since you are already in the basement now would be a good time to do some much needed cleaning. With a Dyson upright vacuum cleaner and attachments remove all cobwebs out of corners and from the ceiling. Wash all windows with a vinegar and water solution to prevent future buildup of dust.

While doing other clean up jobs it may be necessary to use a delonghi space heater to completely dry the areas affected by water before putting any items on the wet areas. The heater should be plugged into an outlet that did not have any contact with the water.

When all areas are clean and dry apply a good quality water proofing paint on all exposed walls to prevent moisture from seeping in and causing the walls to weaken. Once the paint is dry put all plastic cartons back in the area. Stack them up away from areas that may produce possible damage.

If you discovered the flooding occurred due to a backed up drain or a bad sump pump, call a plumber to inspect and repair the problem to avoid another flood. If this is the situation you should wait to put any items back in the basement until the problem is addressed.