Here's What Happens When Flooding Hits Your Building Materials

5/19/2022 (Permalink)

Drying process after water damage.

What Happens When Your Building Materials Get Flooded

When flooding or heavy rain strikes the home you're building, swelling wood, especially in your subfloor and cabinets, can result in costly damage while other materials, depending on what they're made of, can be saved.
For water pipe repair, you'll need to hire a plumber. Once the source of flooding is fixed, contact water damage restoration specialists to completely dry your home and remove whatever mold may have resulted.
Here's what happens when flooding hits your building materials.

When OSB Is Flooded by a Broken Supply Line
OSB stands for oriented strand board and it's made up of layers of chipped wood that are pressed together under tremendous pressure to make panels. OSB is typically used in subflooring and in cabinets because of its low cost. When OSB panels are exposed to flooding, however, swelling wood inside the panels is impossible to restore. In such instances, the panels must be replaced.

When Drywall and Real Wood Are Soaked
When the swelling wood that resulted from flooding is real wood or drywall, it can be dried and preserved by following these steps:

• Clear out the standing water by using a wet/dry vacuum
  
• Use a sponge to mop up the remaining water
  
• Remove any damp material covering the wood
  
• Open doors and windows to allow a draft if the weather is warm
  
• Bring in fans to dry the wood
  
• Use Electric Heaters to Produce a Dry Heat
  
  

Once the wood is completely dry, you can cover it once more or use it in your building projects.
If flooding soaks your home, some materials using OSB will have to be replaced, but you can restore many other materials by removing the water and allowing them to dry using warm air. By taking these steps and having professionals remove any mold, your building materials will be good as new.