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#1
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Flooded Basement
Today I found my basement flooded. I found the float switch to be bad and
replaced it. I had around 4 inches across the whole floor. The basement is not finished and is all concrete. I am very concerned about mold now. Pretty much everything on the floor was in plastic containers so they will be easy to wipe down. However, I had a sauter entertainment center and another book shelf that got wet. Do I need to throw them out or can they be salvaged? The floor has several coats of Dry Loc paint. What do I need to do to make sure that the basement does not get "musty" or moldy? Amy |
#2
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Flooded Basement
Get a dehumidifier if you don't have one already - this won't solve all
your problems, but it sure will help. One of my friends who had a basement flood got a good-quality (~$300) ozone air cleaner, and he says it made a big difference with his mold problem. However, in high concentrations, ozone isn't good for you, so keep your basement closed while you use it. If your entertainment center and bookshelf are solid wood, and they still look OK, they should be fine once they dry thoroughly. If they're MDF or chipboard or some other manufactured wood product, they're probably shot. Unless you want to cut off the bottom 6" and just have a shorter bookshelf... Andy |
#3
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Flooded Basement
According to :
If your entertainment center and bookshelf are solid wood, and they still look OK, they should be fine once they dry thoroughly. If they're MDF or chipboard or some other manufactured wood product, they're probably shot. Unless you want to cut off the bottom 6" and just have a shorter bookshelf... Amy said "Sauter". I think she meant "Sauder" - very large US "kit furniture" manufacturer. It's fairly nice stuff ... for MDF ... If she's managed to drain the floor real fast, and put fans and/or humidifiers around it, she might be able to save it because MDF is somewhat more resistant to moisture than particle board and the facing is reasonably good quality. I rather doubt it but it won't hurt to try. -- Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them. |
#4
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Flooded Basement
one cup of bleach per gallon of water. retreat as mold may reappear as
needed. remember there is no residual action. read all about mold at http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/mold/ |
#5
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Flooded Basement
Mold doesn't grow instantly. If you follow the advice to use fans
and/or a dehumidifier you should not have a mold problem. I'd go with the dehumidifier, unless the outside air is a suitable temp and low humidity and you can easily get a lot of it moving through the basement. |
#6
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Flooded Basement
Amy L. wrote:
Today I found my basement flooded. I found the float switch to be bad and replaced it. I had around 4 inches across the whole floor. The basement is not finished and is all concrete. I am very concerned about mold now. Pretty much everything on the floor was in plastic containers so they will be easy to wipe down. However, I had a sauter entertainment center and another book shelf that got wet. Do I need to throw them out or can they be salvaged? The floor has several coats of Dry Loc paint. What do I need to do to make sure that the basement does not get "musty" or moldy? Amy Get it dry quickly and no problem. Fans heat and dehumidifiers all can help. -- Joseph Meehan Dia duit |
#7
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Flooded Basement
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#8
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Flooded Basement
I have a nice dehumidifier and it has been running since I drained all
of the water out. I am going to run it for the next couple of days. So far I have no mold but its been less than 24 hours and I am not sure how fast mold grows. What I can say is the dehumidifier is spitting out water at a fairly good rate. Amy |
#9
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Flooded Basement
Amy L. wrote:
Today I found my basement flooded. I found the float switch to be bad and replaced it. I had around 4 inches across the whole floor. The basement is not finished and is all concrete. I am very concerned about mold now. Pretty much everything on the floor was in plastic containers so they will be easy to wipe down. However, I had a sauter entertainment center and another book shelf that got wet. Do I need to throw them out or can they be salvaged? The floor has several coats of Dry Loc paint. What do I need to do to make sure that the basement does not get "musty" or moldy? Amy My basement was flooded w/ 2" of water during the huricane Isabel 2 years ago. I pumped out water two days after the flood. I opened the basement windows for a couple of days, and used 2 fans. Well. I got those musty smell for over 2 years, even after I finished the basement this spring. I guess part of the reason is that my basement humidity often gets over 80% during summer, and I do not use a dehumidifier. I always thought that musty smell was normal for a basement, as there are worse basements I visited. I did find there were a few black spots on some joists in the basement. I bought a Sears dehumidifier this summer, and set the humidity at 60%. I found the musty smell is gone this fall. So I would say at least mould is deactivated now, and I would not really concerned about it. |
#10
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Flooded Basement
The spores are there , using a garden sprayer with bleach and water mix
will kill them I would not dilute more than 50%. You will stop them from spreading through the house, although its not serious at all its just good to know you have killed it, and next time it will take alot longer to grow. |
#11
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Flooded Basement
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#12
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Flooded Basement
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