What Is Involved in Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning After a Natural Disaster?

Our homes can protect us in the event of many natural events. Typical storms will blow around the house, rainwater bounces off and drains away, and snow is supported by the roof, then melts and drains away. However, some events can damage or destroy the home, leading to extensive damage to the interior. Flooding, severe winds, wildfires and other natural disasters can all lead to extensive damage to the structure and the contents within. When that happens, carpets and upholstery often get the worst of it and require specialty cleaning services.

Can It Be Saved?

There are some situations where carpet and upholstery can be saved, and other situations where it can’t. In general, there are three factors to consider when deciding whether carpet and upholstery can be saved:

Water category
Time
Value

Water damage is common in natural disasters where carpet and upholstery need to be cleaned. The category of water that affected your carpets and upholstery will impact what’s involved in cleaning it. We will talk about water categories in a moment.

When water is involved, it starts a clock on your restoration. Anything you can start treating within 24-48 hours after water exposure is much more likely to be salvageable than anything exposed to water for longer.

Finally, you need to consider the value of the items. Balance the cost of restoration against the cost of potential replacement. Only the most valuable items are worth preserving when badly damaged.

Three Categories of Water

Although water is highly variable, we often divide it into three categories, which help determine how difficult it will be to restore carpet and upholstery.

This is clean water. Water that comes from a broken pipe, rainwater falling directly into the house, or water from fire hoses is considered clean water. Items affected by Category 1 water can normally be saved if it is treated quickly.

This is lightly contaminated water, often described as greywater. This is water that overflows from appliances, rainwater that runs down the slope into your house (if you don’t have livestock), and similar sources. Many items affected by Category 2 water can be saved if treated quickly, but many are best discarded.

Often called blackwater, this is water that is contaminated by potentially infectious or hazardous substances. This includes flood waters from rivers, backed-up sewers, and water scooped from reservoirs to drop on wildfires. Most carpets and upholstery affected by Category 3 water can’t be cleaned effectively.

The Cleaning Process for Wet Carpet and Upholstery

If carpet and upholstery can be saved after water damage, disaster restoration services will follow several steps to make sure the material is clean, dry, and safe to use.

Excess Water Extraction

The first step in cleaning wet carpet and upholstery is removing excess water. This must be done relatively quickly, or else the water will encourage the growth of toxic microorganisms that can make the material unsafe. If carpet is soaked down to the pad and cushions are wet through, they require professional-strength tools to pull enough water out to allow drying to proceed normally.

Disposal of Padding

If water can’t be extracted soon enough or if the padding was exposed to Category 2 water, the padding should be thrown away. This means pulling up the carpet or opening the cushions on furniture to get the padding out. Then the carpet or upholstery fabric can be cleaned, disinfected, and dried.

Cleaning or Replacement of Springs and Webbing

In taking apart wet furniture, you can determine if the springs and/or webbing can be cleaned or need to be replaced. S-springs can often be cleaned, but coil springs and webbing may need to be replaced as they cannot be cleaned reliably.

Drying of Frame

With the upholstery and springs off a piece of furniture, the frame can be dried. If you are doing this at home, you must monitor it carefully to avoid warping and the accumulation of mildew on the wood. Check the frame frequently to wipe off mildew and ensure it’s not starting to warp. Professional disaster restoration services use controlled conditions to avoid mildew and warping of furniture frames.

Odor Removal

Even after fabric is cleaned thoroughly, odors may remain. These will need to be neutralized, sometimes by the injection of odor-neutralizing compounds that break down the molecules responsible for smells.

Smoke-Damaged Carpet and Upholstery

Another situation where it might be hard to clean carpet and upholstery is when there was a fire, and the smoke spread throughout the house. This can be just as challenging to resolve, but it’s not as intricate.

Surface Cleaning

Cleaning carpet or upholstery that has smoke or soot residue on it means understanding the right chemicals and techniques to use. With the proper approach, this can be done in most cases, but the wrong approach can drive soot into the carpet or upholstery, making it much harder to clean. Other times, using the wrong cleaner can damage the fabric. Trying cleaning with the wrong approach can make cleaning all but impossible. If you don’t know immediately how to remove the soot from your carpet or upholstery, it’s best to work with a professional who will.

Deodorization

Smoke odors can penetrate deep into upholstery and carpet. Unless these are properly neutralized, the smell can linger as long as the materials endure. A professional knows how to get rid of the odor, which might be done best under controlled conditions rather than at your house.

Choose Dayspring Restoration for Upholstery and Carpet Cleaning

After most natural disasters, you won’t be able to fully clean, disinfect, and deodorize the upholstery and carpet in your home. It’s best to leave this task to professionals. Dayspring Restoration has been the leading restoration provider in Missoula, Bozeman and the surrounding areas since 1989. We offer 24/7 emergency response services so we can be at your property quickly and get started cleaning your carpet and upholstery immediately. Our meticulous process utilizes the most advanced techniques and technologies that adhere to industry standards.

We have experience working with all insurance companies, and we can coordinate your claims process, submitting documentation directly to your insurance company to help you get payment faster and in the full amount due under the terms of your coverage.

To learn how we can provide optimal restoration services for your home after a natural disaster, please contact Dayspring Restoration today.

Some of the Reasons You Can Trust Dayspring Restoration

Serving Your Local Area Since 1989

24/7 Emergency Response

Insurance Claims Assistance

Licensed, Bonded, and Insured

Advanced Certification Training

Full-Service Restoration From Demo to Rebuild

3D Site Imaging with Docusketch

Reviews From Our Customers

“Following a devastating fire, Dayspring’s ability to pull resources from all over the state within hours was incredible. They had over 50 workers onsite within 2-3 hours! We would never have been able to have our students back in school within 2 days were it not for the quick response and the quality of work provided by them. Their quality of work was excellent!”

Kalli Kind

Helena Public Schools

“Over the past eighteen years I have worked with Dayspring on a daily basis. I have worked with them professionally and have had them work for me personally. In both instances I have found them to be professional, courteous, and helpful.”