How To Clean A Flooded Basement Effectively

If, after a heavy rain, you found your basement flooded, don't freak out. A flooded basement can be a major disaster and cleaning out your flooded basement is no easy task. A few hours after water has collected on the floor, your basement develops an unpleasant odor. In no time at all, mold and mildew can grow in varied locations.

Cleaning a flooded basement can be time-consuming and messy, and often, hiring professional cleaners are simply beyond our household budgets. The following are some tips to make cleaning your flooded basement more manageable and less straining.

First, get additional hand if there is any available to help you clean out your flooded basement. Your husband/wife or child can ease the strain if you need to move things around. If there's no help around, take extreme care when pushing or sliding things around as the area would still be slippery even after you've pumped out the water.

Determine to what extent has the floodwater done damage to your basement. If there's a dry area in your basement, push your furniture to that part of the basement. If all areas are wet, at least move all things to one part of the basement. Free as much space to clean as you can.

Use gloves when removing contaminated and soaked items such as cardboard boxes, newspapers, and folder files. If there are damaged items that you are having difficulty parting with, determine if they can still be salvaged and cleaned properly. If you find molds on the item, it would be for your safety and health to discard them.

Hang wet items to dry as soon as you can in sunlight or by using dehumidifier (if there's no sunlight) in order to prevent mold and mildew and to keep it from rotting.

Take out carpets and rugs, and spread them out to dry. Thoroughly soaked rugs and carpets are likely hard to dry and clean once dry. You can give a try, though, then hire professional help later with the carpet cleaning, or you can clean the carpet yourself using a rented carpet cleaner. However, if mold and mildew have developed on your carpet or rug, discarding them is highly recommended. Molds and mildews can cause health and allergy problems inside your home.

Next, determine the extent of furniture damage. Sofas and chairs made of fabric might require professional cleaning services. If all furniture were severely damaged, you might need to buy new ones to replace them. If your home insurance has flood coverage, take pictures of your home for insurance claims before start of cleanup. If they are covered by your insurance, then you don't have to pay for the new ones.

A flooded basement is susceptible to bacteria contamination as well as mold and mildew growth. Therefore, disinfecting a flooded basement is a must. First, hose down the walls and floors with clean water. Afterwards, water down all parts of the basement with warm, soapy water. Use sump pump to drain water.

To disinfect, use bleach solution of about 8 tbsp chlorine bleach to a galloon of water. Disinfect not only the floors and walls but every item that has come in contact with floodwater like hard wood chairs and tables.

Cleaning a flooded basement can be meticulous and difficult. Organize your tasks, get extra help, and keep working at it so your life would resume to normal as soon as you can.

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