Rug Water Damage Care

If you’ve experienced the unfortunate incidence of flooding or leaks in your home or office, your Oriental Rugs may have suffered water damage. Depending on how quickly the water is cleaned up, this damage may or may not be able to be remedied. Here’s a guide to controlling water damage on rugs, by the rug cleaning experts at Aladdin Oriental Rug.

Step One

First extract the water. This helps minimize physical damage, and remove the chances of bacteria, mold, and mildew growth. This risk is double when basement water is involved, due to the natural humidity levels lower in the ground.

Step Two

Then salvage what parts of the rug are unaffected. Remove flood affected items, and inspect them for mold. Sanitize all surfaces and upholstery. FInd hidden areas of water saturation, including those in walls that can emit bad smells.

Step Three

You will need to deodorize and sanitize the process and clean it thoroughly to remove not only mold spores, but potential bacteria and pathogens that can foster and negatively affect your health. The goal is to sanitize surfaces to the level that they were before the water damage.

Decide if you’re Throwing Away or Not

You won’t necessarily need to dispose of your rug. If the water was generally clean, you can hold onto it. If the water was sewage or toxic chemical laden, you might want to consider replacing your rug. A professional carpet cleaner can help you identify whether or not your rug is able to be salvaged.

Step Four

Then dry the rug in a minimally trafficked area. You can use a wet/dry vacuum device, open windows, and high power fans to speed up the drying process. It’s best to get the rug as dry as possible as fast as possible to decrease the amount of time that mold has to take hold. If you’re using a dehumidifier, make sure that all the windows are shut.

Step Five

After the rug has all the water extracted and is dried, then steam clean it to fully sanitize it and remove all nasty odors. You will likely have to replace the padding on the underside of the rug – which is a much cheaper compromise than the cost of fully replacing the rug.