After the flood....

[eas11]

So, we had a pretty significant flood in the basement, due to a blown away gutter/downspout thingy.
In addition to it being awful, it caused me to miss the BOSTON KLATCH on Saturday.....whine, whine, boohoo, :mad: etc.

In addition to our very own excess junk, we had JUST loaded the basement with stuff shipped up from my MIL, so we had a lot of moving stuff and cleaning to do. Now that that's all taken care of, I'm wondering what to do about the carpet. It is just about dry after the heat and fans have been blasting for 4 days, but I still think we should get rid of it (it is not tacked down and is on top of a linoleum (sp?) tiled floor, which itself is very old and in poor condition) it has a foam rubbery type of backing.
DH says it will be fine after drying and I think we should dump it cause it has got to be moldy after being completely soaked.....right?

[colleency]

(((eas11))) Missing the klatch was insult to injury.

If it doesn't smell moldy yet, you could try to see if it will dry. Can you kind of lift it up off the ground and drape it over something?

[rosen]

Been there & done that. The carpet may or may not be salvagable. Depends on how long it stayed wet & the original quality of the carpet. Even when it feels & looks dry--if you took a wet/dry industrial shop vac to it, you'd probably still get gallons of water out of it. Either rent one of these puppies or have a company come in that does this kind of work to do it for you.

I'm more concerned about how high the water went & what your walls are made of. If they are sealed cement, you're ok w/ a good scrubbing. If they are drywall, I'd be worried about dampness & mold taking hold there.

You'll realize in time if the carpet is worth keeping by the smell. If a couple of weeks from now it still smells musty down there, that's a sign that it is still damp.

If you do decide to dump it... please think about not just dumping it in a landfill. There are carpet companies that will reclaim old carpet & send it to be recycled. It really is worth calling around to find a dealer that participates.

Good luck!

[Lauren]

Ellyn,

You've gotten some good advice in regards to the carpet.

I just wanted to send you some {{{hugs.}}} I'm sorry you had to deal with this and wanted you to know you were missed by all on Saturday. :(