Come Home To A Flood? 4 Steps You Should Take To Clean Up The Mess

If you came home to find that your toilet sprung a leak and the inside of your home is now under water, you're going to need to act fast. Water can severely damage your home, especially if it's allow to sit for too long. Here are four steps you should take to clean up the water and restore your home to livable condition.

Turn Off the Water

If the toilet is still running, you'll need to turn off the fill valve located on the wall behind the toilet. If that doesn't stop the water – which can happen if the valve itself is broken – you'll need to locate the main water shut-off located outside your home. Leave the water off until repairs can be made to the plumbing.

Call the Professionals

Once you have the water turned off to the house, you'll need to call in a professional water damage contractor. Depending on how long the water has been standing – or how deep the water got – there could be damage to the foundation and drywall in your home. A water damage restoration team will be able to take care of all the repairs that will be needed to make your home livable again.

Open the Windows

Water inside your home creates the perfect environment for mold growth. This is particularly true if the weather is warm outside. The added humidity can increase the speed in which mold develops. You can help circulate the air and slow down the rate of mold growth by opening the windows in your home. The open windows will also help dry out the walls and flooring once you've removed the water.

Clear Out the Water

Since it might be a few hours before the water damage restoration team can get out to your home – especially if it's after hours – you'll need to start cleaning up the water to prevent further damage. If the flood is confined to a small area, you can use a wet/dry shop vacuum to remove the water. However, if the water is deep or is covering a large portion of your home, you should use sump pumps to remove the water. Leave the pumps running until the water is removed. Use a shop vacuum to remove as much water from your carpeting as possible. The water damage repair team will pull the carpet back and remove the damaged padding once they arrive.

If you've got a flood in your home, you need to get rid of the water as quickly as possible. Use the steps provided above to help you clean up from a flood. 

For water damage repair, contact a company such as Minnesota  Disaster Restoration Services.