How to dry timber floors after a minor water spill.
As with any water spill or water damage the key is to act fast, mop up the water from the timber floor as fast as possible, this will limit how much moisture and water soaks into the timber itself. Once you have mopped up as much water from the timbe floor as possible, go over the water affected area with some dry towels to further remove any standing moisture.
Next step is to apply a disinfectant and clean the water affected area, this can assist with preventing any mould growth, be sure to dry down the area with towels as much as possible after you finish the cleaning.
If it is a warm dry day outside, open up the windows of the house to let the warm dry air into the house and to allow the wet air inside out. This air exchange process will assist with drying.
Try to heat up the affected room or affected area as much as possible, you can turn the air conditioning on and up to high heat, you can also use a small portable heater and place it near the affected area of wet timber flooring. Placing a portable blow heater is also extremely helpful as it will blow hot air directly onto the water affected timber flooring. By heating up the water affected timber flooring you will be increasing the evaporation rate of the timber floor which will aid with the drying process.
Introduce additional airflow to the wet timber floor by using a household oscillating fan or something similar, you can even hire an air mover from your local hardware or equipment hire yard.
Applying gentle warm air is the most effective way to dry wet timber floors, be patient with the drying process it can often take 2 or 3 days of constant warm airflow to dry deep into the structure of the timber floor.
An overview of the timber floor drying process for minor spills.
Below is an overview of the timber floor drying process for minor spills only, if your timber floors have been flooded or significantly water damaged you may need to seek help or guidance from a professional water damage restoration company or a timber floor specialist.
- Act fast don’t let water sit on the timber floors for too long
- Mop up all excess water, then go over the wet timber floors with dry towels.
- Clean the water affected timber floors with a household disinfectant.
- Heat up the affected area or affected room & place a portable heater on the timber floors.
- Introduce additional gentle airflow to the timber floors.
- Be patient drying wet timber floors can take a few days.
- Call in water damage restoration experts if the timber floors have been significantly water damaged.
What flooding can do to my timber floors.
Timber floors are relatively robust and can generally take the odd minor water spill from time-to-time if the water is cleaned up and dried quickly. However, when timber floors are flooded or significantly water damaged from burst pipes inside the home or from major water ingress from outside due to localised flooding then they can show the effects of the water impact.
The following issues can occur to timber floors when they have been flooded or significantly impacted by water damage.
- Swelling, the timbers can swell due to the increased moisture.
- Cupping, this is where the edges of the timber flooring curve up due to the moisture.
- Buckling, the timber floor can begin to buckle as the timber boards swell and put pressure on each other.
- Gapping, the timber boards can actually shrink as they dry back down leaving gaps in the timber joins.
- Mould, if the timber floor is left wet for too long, the timber can go mouldy.
Professional, structural drying can often rectify or greatly improve most of these issues with the water damaged timber flooring. However, you will need a timber floor drying specialist to achieve successful drying and remediation results on your water damaged timber floors.
How can Flood Fixers help with timber floor drying in Adelaide.
If your timber floors have been badly flooded and they are showing obvious signs of swelling and water damage, then you will need to call in a professional water damage restoration company to assist you with rectifying or at least reducing the impact of the water damage to your timber floors.
The expert team at Flood Fixers have been successfully drying water damaged timber floors in Adelaide for many years and we are only too happy to help you with your timber floor issues.
Our friendly team can inspect and assess your water damaged timber floors in Adelaide and then advise you how we can help with the drying and restoration process. As with any water damage situation it’s best to act fast, the sooner we can inspect and begin drying your water damaged timber floors the more chance we will have of providing a successful outcome.
What process does Flood Fixers use for wet timber floor drying in Adelaide.
When we are dealing with wet timber floors typically there is not a lot of moisture to remove, it is not like wet carpets that have underlay underneath soaking up water like a sponge. Timber floors for the most part are relatively nonporous and they don’t hold a great deal of moisture, however the moisture that is there sits deep within the structure of the timber and can be extremely difficult to remove.
In the water damage restoration industry, we refer to this as bound moisture and this deeply bound moisture in the timber flooring takes expertise to effectively remove. The team at Flood Fixers have found that the most effective way to remove this bound moisture from deep within the timber flooring is by using our advanced heat drying system.
As our expert team heats up the timber flooring, we are dramatically increasing the evaporation rate of the wet timber floor which releases the moisture from the timber. As we continue this heat drying process the timber relaxes as it dries and the floor starts to straighten out, removing the majority of the cupping and the unevenness of the floor caused by the water damage.
In some cases, the timber flooring may require sanding and re-finishing, however in most cases we can save the structural integrity of the timber floor itself. By saving the timber floors we are saving our valued customers a lot of money and also the major inconvenience of having to replace the timber floors.
- Remove and extract as much moisture as possible.
- Clean the timber floors with anti-bacterial treatments.
- Set up specialised heat drying to evaporate the moisture from the wet timber floors.
- Monitor the timber floor drying process carefully.
- Take regular moisture readings to confirm the drying process.
- Be patient wet timber floor drying can take some time.
- Sanding and re-finishing of the timber floor may be required in some cases.
Water damaged timber floor assessment in Adelaide.
First things first, if your timber floors have been flooded or badly water damaged the team at Flood Fixers are available to assist with a water damage assessment in Adelaide. Once our team have inspected your water damaged timber floors, they can suggest the best course of action with regard to the structural drying and remediation process.
Our water damage inspection for your timber floors would typically include the following:
- A careful visual inspection.
- Thermal imaging of the water damaged timber floors.
- Moisture readings to determine the amount of bound moisture in the timber floors.
- Relative humidity readings in the area to determine the levels of moisture in the air.
- Particle count readings to establish if there is any airborne mould present.
The helpful Flood Fixers team are always available to assist our customers as best we can with any type of water damage restoration service in Adelaide that you may need help with. We are also more than happy to provide obligation free advice anytime!
