How To Fix Wood Floors That Got Wet

Dishwasher or washing machine a fire with water used to extinguish the fire water spills accidents pet accidents a high water table in the ground that then forces.

How to fix wood floors that got wet.

Hardwood floors are a great choice for home flooring. Laminate flooring is a beautiful addition to any home and has become very popular in recent years. However hardwood flooring does have one draw back it can t stand up to prolonged exposure to water so if water is allowed to stay on a hardwood floor the wood will be damaged either stained or warped. Not only do they look good they re easy to care for resist wear and they re even eco friendly.

According to flooring america laminate flooring has four layers. Solid hardwood flooring offers the broadest range of options as you can sand and scrape away up to 1 4 of an inch of the wood to remove cupping or surface mold and. The area underneath your wood floor won t dry while the wood is still wet. Then rinse the wood surface and dry once more.

If your wood flooring is covered by wet rugs mats or carpeting you ll need to remove them immediately. The type of wood flooring you have affects the repair options available. Wood can get wet or moist in a number of ways a flood from outside from the rain leaky pipes or frozen pipes ice damming a toilet overflow a leaky roof a hurricane or storm an appliance breaks or leaks e g. A cushioned bottom layer a fiberboard core that is similar to particle board a design layer above the core that gives your floor its color and a top coating of aluminum oxide known as the wear layer which provides protection from fading stains and burns the wear layer is constructed to protect against spilled water on a.

How to fix a laminate floor that got wet. Laminate floors modernize any space in a home or business and is designed to fit all interior design preferences. The sooner you can attend to your wet floors the better. Place it in the center of the room and leave it on for at least 24.

Sometimes floors that appear dry to the naked eye can be soaked and the job might require industrial size fans and other equipment that removes water beneath the wood down into the subfloor. Therefore you should start pulling off the water with your shop vacuum as soon as possible. Wood s cellulose fibers rapidly soak up water but release that water more slowly. Even if you believe your wood floors are so well finished that water cannot penetrate to the raw wood think again.

The good news is that hardwood floor cupping can be reversed setting the planks back to their original condition. However this isn t a reason to tick hardwood floors off your list. Wood is hygroscopic in nature and thereby tends to absorb moisture from its surroundings causing problems in hardwood floors. As suggested in the wood flooring 101 section of our website the type of wood flooring you have limits the range of possible repairs for your wood floor.

While the wood flooring appears dry water could have penetrated throughout the plank as you can t remove it with the wet vacuum.