Do you live at the bottom of a hill?
Is your home in a flood zone?
Has part of your home plumbing burst?
If so, a wet carpet might be on the cards in your near future!
Wet carpets aren’t just annoying – given enough time, they can also facilitate mould growth. Not to mention, it can ruin your carpets too.
When this happens, you’ll need to know how to dry a carpet.
Haven’t the foggiest idea where to start? Good thing we’re here!
Okay, so you’ve got a waterlogged carpet. First thing’s first, you’ll want to…
Need to dry a wet carpet? Act now!
Take it from us, the last thing you want to do is leave your carpet to air out on its own.
For starters, moist, stagnant air creates the perfect environment for mould growth.
Not to mention, in many cases the water that’s soaked into your carpet won’t be very clean. By leaving your carpet to air dry, you’re leaving these messes in it too.
The first thing you’ll want to do is figure where the water is coming from.
In cases of burst pipes, it might be necessary to shut off your water supply to stop the flooding.
It’s also a good idea to shut off your power. Water and electricity don’t play nice – cutting the power protects you from appliance damage or electrocution.
Finally, be sure to remove any pieces of furniture or items that may suffer from water damage.
In addition to removing electronics, that also means moving any sensitive pieces of furniture. For example, velvet furniture is especially sensitive to water.
Ventilate your home immediately
Like we mentioned above, humid air is to mould what a bright light is to moths.
If you want to avoid mould growth, the next thing you’ll want to do after removing sensitive items is to air out any humidity. Mould usually starts growing after 48 to 72 hours, so you’ll want to get as much humidity out of your home as possible.
That means:
- Opening up your windows
- Using fans to circulate air and redirect humidity outside
- If you have a “wet” vacuum cleaner, use it
Not only will proper air ventilation remove humidity, but it’ll also improve breathability and just make your home that much more comfortable.
Get rid of the smell with baking soda
Baking powder is more than just a handy general-purpose house cleaner – when it comes to your carpets, it’s also a potent anti-deodorant too!
It’s really straightforward – all you need to do is sprinkle a generous among of baking soda over your wet carpet and let it sit. The baking soda not only absorbs moisture, but it’ll also absorb any nasty odours.
As it soaks up moisture, baking soda cakes up, making it easy to remove after the fact – just go over your carpet with a vacuum once it’s dry and you’re set.
This tactic is an easy, affordable way of drying a carpet if all you’re dealing with is a small patch.
Of course, if you have a large area of carpet that’s affected by indoor flooding or leaks, you might need to burn through multiple canisters of the stuff – not ideal!
What about steam cleaning?
When dealing with a wet carpet, many people might default to steam cleaning.
However, if you ask us, that’s not the way to go!
We’re going to let you in on a bit of a secret: steam cleaning isn’t all that good at cleaning.
Hot steam might loosen debris, dirt and messes, sure. The problem is that there’s nothing to remove those messes – much of the bacteria, debris and dirt stays in your carpet fibers after they dry, leaving you where you started.
Enter hot water extraction.
Like the name suggests, hot water extraction machines don’t just clean carpets – they also remove moisture too, ensuring a faster dry and hoovering up debris in the process.
That’s not the only way they ensure a deeper clean than steam cleaning however. In addition to using heat, hot water extraction also rinses your carpet with detergent, helping loosen even the most stubborn messes.
Want to know how to dry a carpet?
Choose professional carpet cleaning in Melbourne, that’s how!
If all else fails, you can always call a professional carpet cleaner like MasterClean Carpet Care.
Our team of carpet experts apply an carpet cleaning process that is safe on carpets. We follow four easy methods during emergency carpet cleaning:
Step 1: Water damage inspection
Before we start, we conduct an onsite carpet inspection to determine the extent of water damage and tell you honestly whether it is still possible to save your carpet.
Step 2: Deep cleaning
Once we determine that your carpet can still be saved, we get to work. Using advanced hot water extraction, we remove even the deepest debris in your waterlogged carpet.
Step 3: Drying
While hot water extraction is quicker to dry, we can also apply quick-drying methods such as using air movers and dehumidifiers to improve proper air ventilation and cut drying time even further.
Our team of carpet experts offers same-day carpet cleaning that get rid of stains, mould and protect your carpets against permanent damage.
Contact us today on 1300 556 748 or click here to request a quote for emergency carpet cleaning in Melbourne.
