Carpets are amongst the most common fixtures in homes and offices, next to tables, chairs and curtains. They provide a room with a touch of class and elegance.  However, despite their popularity, many homeowners and building maintenance managers, are not exactly sure of how to deal with wet carpets.

What will you do if somebody accidentally spilled water on the carpet or, for some reason, rain water got in and soaked your carpet? Or worst, the water that seeped into the carpet was dirty?

The course of action depends on how big the carpet is, how much water got in and what type of liquid got spilled.

In this blog, we will cover the immediate courses of action that RPC Cleaning would recommend, right after the incident happens, before you make arrangements to take your carpet to the carpet cleaning professionals or find a solution to remedy the situation.

Dealing with a small, wet rug or carpet is easy. Simply remove it from the floor and hang it in an open or well-ventilated space to dry out completely.

But if the carpet covers the entire reception area of an office, for example, it will be too heavy to lift. So what do you do?

Get as much of the liquid as you can off the carpet, and;

• Spread absorbent cloth, such as towels, over the entire wet area to absorb the liquid.  You may need to put weights over the cloth to ensure maximum absorbency.
• After the liquid has saturated the cloths, replace them with dry ones. You may have to repeat the process many times over until all the liquid has been absorbed.
• Also, check the floor underneath the carpet to make sure that it is not “flooding”.

Vacuum the wet carpet

• Use a vacuum especially intended for liquids, and not your ordinary vacuum cleaner.

Let the moisture evaporate, and:

• Let the water evaporate from the carpet with the help of a few tools that are commonly found at home or office. Your option includes a ceiling fan or stand fan, dehumidifier, hairdryer or whatever cooling or drying device is available.
• Direct the air generated by these devices to the wet surface until all water has evaporated.
• Again, don’t forget the area underneath the carpet.

If the water that got the carpet wet is dirty, immediately call the professional carpet cleaners.  The danger in vacuuming dirty water is that the dirt can stick to the fabric when it dries. When it does, it will be more difficult to remove. Another reason why you need to call the carpet cleaning professionals is that they can help with the potential stains left by liquids.

When in doubt and you are a resident of London or nearby areas, call:  RPC Cleaning  020 8994 4778.

Our staff will be happy to assist you with your enquiries.