When your home floods, you face the distress of losing possessions and the headache of dealing with all the work to ensure your home is safe and healthy again.You want the water to dry quickly – but how? Water damage can be a big problem. If left for too long, it will cause permanent structural damage to your home or commercial property.
Water damage can take 12-72 hours or weeks to dry out. It depends on the type of wet surface and whether a window well ventilates the area. Fortunately, we have the latest and most advanced water extraction and damage restoration technologies in Portland, Oregon. Confused about how long does water damage take to dry out? We have put together this water damage guide to help you understand better.
How Can You Dry Water In Your Home?
You can dry water in your home using several ways:
Use a Dehumidifier
Dehumidifying is the process of removing moisture from the air. To do this, you must use a cooling element device. This device will extract moisture from the air through evaporation. The most common dehumidifying method is desiccants, substances that absorb moisture from their surroundings. Desiccants include silica gel, activated carbon, zeolites, molecular sieves, and synthetic resins.
Put the Wet Areas In Direct Sunlight
put the wet area in direct sunlight. The sun’s rays will cause evaporation, which will speed up the drying process and help keep things more sanitary until the area is completely dry.
Install a Ventilation System
Ventilation systems remove moisture from the air, which helps prevent mold growth. They should be installed in the attic or crawlspace of your home. Ventilation systems can also be installed in basements and garages to keep those areas dry during periods of high humidity.
Use Fans
Fans are another effective way to dry your home after a flood or storm. Fans help keep air circulating throughout the house, preventing mold from growing on wet surfaces such as walls and floors.
What are the Tips for Drying out Water?
If you’ve suffered water damage, you know how important it is to get it dried up as soon as possible. If you have a wet basement, water can cause mold and mildew to grow, leading to various health problems. If you have a flooded home, the longer you wait to dry out your home, the more damage will occur.
Here are some tips for drying out your basement:
- Turn off the power and ensure no standing water in your basement before turning on any lights or appliances. It includes washing machines and dryers, as well as light fixtures and appliances such as refrigerators or freezers that might have been exposed to contaminated water from floods or broken pipes. You should also cover any electrical outlets in your basement with plastic bags until an electrician can inspect them.
- Remove all furniture from the area where the leak occurred or where there has been flooding from rain or snow meltwater. It will make it easier for everyone to clean up after an event like this!
- Cover all items that cannot be moved with plastic sheeting, so no further damage occurs while they are being dried out by fans set at low speed.
- Remove as much water as possible from the affected area. It may mean directing water flow into buckets or other containers.
- Open doors and windows throughout your home so that air can circulate through the building more easily.
- Work in sections to ensure you don’t miss drying out a part.
Does Temperature Affect the Rate of Water Drying?
Water evaporates longer when it’s cold outside because its molecules move slower. Water vapor is also slower to rise into the air, meaning that if you live in an area where it’s cold, you’re more likely to experience fog or other low-level clouds. The water vapor has trouble rising from lower altitudes up into the colder air above.
In addition, cold temperatures mean that water droplets will condense on surfaces more quickly than in warmer temperatures because there’s less energy in their particles—they have less kinetic energy and therefore move around slower.
The process depends on the type and extent of the damage, as well as the construction and insulation of your home. It also depends on whether you have adequate HVAC ventilation and moisture-reducing equipment. Depending on the severity of the damage, you might need to hire a professional with experience drying out houses or commercial buildings after water damage. Regardless, the water must be gone before any molds can form.
