Help- Our kitchen flooded & the carpet stinks

[Mimi Q]

We had a water line pop off under our kitchen sink Thursday. Luckily DH came home shortly after it happened, but some water got into our living room and dining room carpet. I vacuumed all the water out that I could, but now it smells like mildew and is still a little damp two days later. Any ideas how to deal with the terrible odor?

 

[Otto's Doll]

No help here (sorry) but a suggestion to call your insurance company. We had a washer flood a few years ago, and ruin the carpet and floor underneath (we lived in a mobile home at the time) and our homeowners insurance covered the replacement.

 

[JetMom]

Maybe renting one of those rug doctor machines ( about $20) and giving the carpet a good steam cleaning might help.

 

[chell]

Please let me know if you find something that works well.

 

[legs22]

We had a flood from our water treatment system in the kitchen. It soaked the wall to wall carpeting in the living room and down the hall... the smell was awful! We called our insurance company and it was covered. They said the rug could go in the trash. They couldn't salvage it. The money we got from our insurance was enough to pay for tile!

 

[we3luvdisney]

I agree with Otto's Doll --- call the insurance company. We had a water leak to the frig and the insurance covered it; minus the deductible

 

[ZachnElli]

You need to call some carpet specialists to get ALL the water out. You didn't, if it still smells and still damp, it's still in there. They can also spray and treat it with anti-mildew stuff. I just had to do this summer (we have an indoor fountain and it leaked) and we had a pipe freeze and burst in our old house. Homeowner's will cover it, but it may cost less than your deductible. It only cost $100 this summer.

 

[poohkinandpiglet]

If anyone in your house suffers from allergies, I would suggest replacing it. It's very hard to get the smell out and IMO the carpet in NEVER the same after in gets wet.

 

[SplshMtn99]

I work in an insurance agency....and it always bothers me when people say "flood" was covered by their insurance. Just a correction here for future reference for others. What you experienced is not FLOOD damage by definition. Flood is the overflow of a stream or lake or other body of water. FLOOD is NOT COVERED BY HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE.

What you want to say to your agent is that you have "WATER DAMAGE" from a burst pipe. THAT IS COVERED. Of course, subject to your deductible. Just a word of caution however...if you are going to receive a small payout, and you've filed or will need to file another claim in a 3 yr period....then don't file this one. 2 or more claims in a 3 yr period will get you cancelled in most cases. So if this is a small claim, then save your insurance for catastrophic losses. That's what it should used for in the first place. Not maintenance type issues.

Also, try a dehumidifier or large fans. That's what the insurance companies would have done in the first place. Don't let it go too long, because then you will have extra damage which may not be paid for since it could have been prevented in the first place (ex: mold). We have a similar ongoing claim right now in our office that is DENIED. A gentleman did not take proper steps to clean up his water damage when it happened. He didn't file the claim since it was small. But now, he has a larger mold problem. MOLD IS NOT COVERED ---- and it could have been prevented.

You can also call a company like ServiceMaster. They specialize in loss clean-up. They might be able to give you some free tips.

Good luck!

 

[Mimi Q]

Thanks for the replies.

 

[SeeDisney]

We had a considerable leak in our finished basement and I sprinkled some baking soda several times over the damaged carpet and then vacuum. It seemed to work.

You can also tried Lysol spray.

Good luck

 

[hipporina]

Our bedroom flooded in some heavy rain back in May and we had a similar problem. When I called the carpet cleaning people to fix it, all they could do is vacuum up the water and then pull back the carpet and pad and put fans on them. It was going to cost us about $100 and we HATED that carpet adn wanted to replace it anyway, so we replaced it for $200 instead. It would be pretty easy to pull it back to dry yourself, I think.

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

Most likely there is still some moisture in the carpet padding. If you just used a household vacuum, that's not really designed to get water out of carpet or the padding.

You could try using a shop vac and pull back the carpet to suck the water out of the padding, but your best bet would be to contact a professional like ServPro or Servicemaster. They're trained and specialize in things like this, and have the equipment to do the job.

Two days could be borderline. On one hand, it may have been wet long enough to cause mildew and mold to start to form. In that case, you definitely will have to replace the carpet and pad. On the other hand, it may still be soon enough for a professional to save the carpet and pad.

Speaking as a salesperson in the carpet industry, I would definitely recommend getting a professional in there to at least attempt it. I'm sure that's one question that your insurance company will ask if you decide to file a claim; I know that's one thing our claims department asks with regard to staining claims.

Good luck.

 

[JayBee]

wHEN THIS HAPPENED TO ME i CONTACTED MY iNSURANCE AGENT WITH my Homeowner's Policy. They sent a crew who loosened the carpet and put several giant fans and a humidifier in my house for a couple of days. They cleaned the carpets and put new padding in(it will not dry). This was much cheaper for the insurance company than replacing my carpets.

 

[Lisa F]

Another warning to not file claims for something small like this. If you file too many claims not only will you personally have a tough time getting insurance but if you ever try to sell your house, the new owners may not be able to get insurance on the house because of its history of claims. Insurance should be for something catastrophic... it's not a home warranty program. It seems like insurance companies are looking for reasons to cancel people nowadays (trampolines, wrong kind of dog, pool in the yard etc). Don't give them a reason.

 

[JayBee]

Originally posted by SplshMtn99
2 or more claims in a 3 yr period will get you cancelled in most cases. So if this is a small claim, then save your insurance for catastrophic losses. That's what it should used for in the first place. Not maintenance type issues.

Well 2 years ago I got a settlement to replace my roof after a hurricane.

And the burst pipe (flooded my bathroom and living)-got a small settlement for that also.-but they took care of the crew that supplied the fans etc...and I wasn't cancelled. I've had Allstate for 25 years (home, cars, life), and felt the flooding(water damage) was NOT "maintenance"...it was a lot cheaper than replacing all my wall-to-wall carpeting(1600 sq feet downstairs)

 

[Laz]

After the sump pump broke in my basement, I learned a lot about water damage. Your Insurance will know best and I did contact my insurance. Make sure you contact a restoration company, not just a carpet cleaner. While your carpet could be saved, your pad is probably ruined. Your carpet needs to be pulled up and the flooring needs dried completely. The company I used took three days of drying and dehumidifying before I could put things back together, and I only had wet carpet! A restoration company will also check your walls. If ANY dampness get behind the walls, you could get mold. They have a device that checks for mosture behind the wall and can dry behind the wall. My Insurance agent had the same device to check up on the restorers. Your biggest enemy is mold and mildew and they can be a health hazard.

 

[cati]

 

[Maddle]

Yep - The best thing you can do right now is pull the carpet up - and let it dry underneath - the padding too. Detach it from the wall, and fold it back. Lift the pad, and get something to elevate that, like a small step stool. Depending on how wet it was (say, just a portion of a room) you won't have to pull it out completely - just make sure air is circulating all around it. Blow some fans on it. You may also need to get air to the subfloor depending on how saturated the whole thing was. After a few days, try some kind of order nuetralizer.

You will have to use your best judgement on calling the insurance company. Maybe you have an independent agent that could advise you before you make a claim?....it's a tough call from here, because we don't know how much damage there was, what your deductible is, etc. I have heard stories about MY insurance company that they flag people just for inquiries. (Now that really stinks.)

Maddle

 

[legs22]

I have had State Farm for years and have had many claims (both home and auto) and have never been dropped. Filing another claim now after Hurricane Francis because of roof damage.