by Rex Coker

Created on: June 12, 2008   Last Updated: July 29, 2008

Coming back from a three day get away, my wife and I walked in to a nightmare. The house was flooded by water and every where you stepped the water squished over the tops of our shoes. We had only been in the house for three months and this was a big blow to our moral. I guess being a homeowner has its draw backs. We were fortunate enough to be able to start over. Water damage to your home is a tough situation to bounce back from. Thank God for home owners insurance.

A hose on the back of the washing machine had burst and we had no idea how long the water had been running. I quickly assessed the damage and after a quick call to my insurance company about the mishap, I hurriedly made my way to the local Lowe's to rent a rug cleaner to extract the water and try to save the sub flooring. I spent two days removing the water from the carpet. I did the best that I could in retrieving the water from the carpet. It turned out to be a lost cause. The particle board that the contractors used when building the house had begun to mound up and the plywood sub-flooring began to deteriorate and buckle.

The contractor and the insurance company sent to estimators to assess the damage and said I had fought a good fight but the damage was done. The estimate for replacement was in the area of six thousand dollars. Sub flooring and the hard wood floors would have to be replaced. The carpet would have been OK, if it had not shrunk due to quick drying. The contractor wanted to try and put the same carpet back in but I put my foot down and said no. It would not stretch back to it's original width and length. Replacing the insulation under the house would have to be done also. The particle board sub flooring had to be ripped up and replaced and a mixture of mold retardant would have to be applied, to keep mold from rotting the good wood underneath.

The best rule of thumb to use in water damage to your floors carpet and wood flooring is to replace it all. No one wants mold growing under the new carpet and coverings. The health risk are to great and you are never able to get rid of the musky smell that goes along with the damage. Even though I tried to save the carpet with a carpet cleaning water extractor, the carpet was still a loss. The fibers of the carpet would break and fray when ever they tried to stretch it to the corners of the room. I let the contractor know, I was not going to sign the check for a non-professional job and for him to replace the carpet the right way with out cutting corners.

People that have water damage to their homes should never cut corners to save a little money. Things will always come back to haunt you in the end. Health risk to you and your family from the unseen mold that the water has made should be a major concern for you and your family. Water damage is a heart breaking ordeal for a home owner, but if the repair is done right you can rest assured that your family will shortly get back to normal quicker, with the new installation of floor coverings.

Doing things the right way will ensure your homes longevity for years to come. Accidents will happen to your home over the course of many years and it is always best to learn from mishaps. Home owners can save themselves a lot of grief, when things happen to their homes by not panicking and making good recoverable decisions.

Learn more about this author, Rex Coker.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.