Wet Carpet

[mixsonci]

The carpet in my front room is soaking wet, however, it is not coming from the window, which is completely dry. What could cause it?

Also, who can I call to come and completely dry the carpet so it doesn't mold?

[mulligan]

It would be helpful to know what type of house you have. (frame, block, poured concrete )

[billethkid]

One thing to check is your downspouts and where they empty. Most have no splash blocks and most are a foot or less away from the slab. Heavy rains, let alone sustained tropical rains for hours on end push a very large volume of water down the spouts.

Not all direct the water sufficiently far enough from the house.

Long story....sustained water volume is able to get under the slab or between the slab and the house framing (and even blocks).

I have put extenders (available home depot/lowes) on all our downspouts taking the water 3 feet away from the base of the house.

Just one thing to check.

Do you have a double exterior door? Very frequently a direct driving rain will come between the doors.

Just to name a couple.

Good luck.

[mixsonci]

Its cement stucco (poured concrete I guess is the same?) Maybe a silly question to some, but , whats the difference between block, poured concrete and cement stucco?

[Carla B]

The designer model, Allamanda, is the only house built of poured concrete, to my knowledge, unless some courtyard villas may be poured concrete? The other houses are concrete block with a stucco finish or (CBS).

[mixsonci]

One thing to check is your downspouts and where they empty. Most have no splash blocks and most are a foot or less away from the slab. Heavy rains, let alone sustained tropical rains for hours on end push a very large volume of water down the spouts.

Not all direct the water sufficiently far enough from the house.

Long story....sustained water volume is able to get under the slab or between the slab and the house framing (and even blocks).

I have put extenders (available home depot/lowes) on all our downspouts taking the water 3 feet away from the base of the house.


Just one thing to check.

Do you have a double exterior door? Very frequently a direct driving rain will come between the doors.

Just to name a couple.

Good luck.

I don't know how to do any of this, do you know who I can call to do it for me?

I appreciate your advice, but I can't climb up on ladders for extenders, which I don't even know how or what or where to put them.

Also, who can I call to dry the carpet before it gets mildew?

Please I just need the name of companies that do this stuff?

[Bjeanj]

Try ServiceMaster
ServiceMaster Restoration by Top Notch provides water damage restoration, residential and commercial cleaning services (https://www.servicemasterrestore.com/locations/fl/belleview/servicemaster-restoration-by-top-notch-10017)

[mixsonci]

thank you

[jimbo2012]

Service pro can clean it up, but maybe want to think about just replacing the carpet after the slab and moldings dry out.

Mold starts to grow quick

Either way it's an insurance claim

[DeanFL]

same thing happened here. 4 year old block house. A Holly. Our 3rd bedroom in front faces outside wall which faces directly EAST. All night it was pummeled with such heavy wind and rain. When looking out the window in bare feet this morning I felt dampness in the carpeting by the baseboard.
The outside - sand/dirt and landscape rock coverage is an inch or so higher than the concrete slab level. I assume a very small amount of water seeped into the crack between the slab and bottom of the block in that area.

I rolled up a couple bath towels to cover - although all it really needs is air to dry out. I may run a hairdryer over the area. I would say a cup or so of water seeped in. Nothing to worry about.

OP depends on amount that came in - if small as for us...it's nothing - and will probably never happen again unless Irma II arrives in the future.

[dewilson58]

Very difficult to get the pad dry.

Contact your insurance asap.

More likely than not, they will say replace.

[CWGUY]

I don't know how to do any of this, do you know who I can call to do it for me?

I appreciate your advice, but I can't climb up on ladders for extenders, which I don't even know how or what or where to put them.

Also, who can I call to dry the carpet before it gets mildew?

Please I just need the name of companies that do this stuff?

Don't think it will help your problem.... but this is what he was talking about - Shop Amerimax FLEX-A-SPOUT 24-in White Vinyl Downspout Extension at Lowes.com (https://www.lowes.com/pd/Amerimax-FLEX-A-SPOUT-24-in-White-Vinyl-Downspout-Extension/1103181)

:wave:Good luck. I would think about calling Insurance Company.

[Bjeanj]

I don't know how to do any of this, do you know who I can call to do it for me?

I appreciate your advice, but I can't climb up on ladders for extenders, which I don't even know how or what or where to put them.

Extenders are put on the *bottom* of downspouts and direct the water away from your foundation. You can also put down splash blocks that do the same thing.

Don't worry, if you don't know how to do something, just ask your friends, neighbors, or here on TOTV. We are all happy to help you. Don't despair.

[Sgroemm]

I have used Floor Masters 352-748-544four for my carpets before. It is a very nice reputable father and daughter. They were very good!

[Shoolie]

I agree with contacting Service Master. Depending on your insurance, you may be able to get assistance with the payment. I used Service master years ago when half my house was flooded due to a leak in washer hose. They did a wonderful job & they will set up fans & dry it Do not try to have it dry cleaned.

[maureenod]

The carpet in my front room is soaking wet, however, it is not coming from the window, which is completely dry. What could cause it?

Also, who can I call to come and completely dry the carpet so it doesn't mold?

Best to have gutters all around the house, taking water away from foundation slab.

[Boomer]

The carpet in my front room is soaking wet, however, it is not coming from the window, which is completely dry. What could cause it?

Also, who can I call to come and completely dry the carpet so it doesn't mold?


To get started on mitigation as you wait for the insurance company, or clean-up company, to get to you, you might want to call one of our local carpet stores to see if you can hire someone from their installation crew to pull out the pad and take it away. It will never dry.

If the carpet is totally saturated, I might be inclined to pull it completely out, too. But if not, I would at least pull it away from the wall because moisture can wick into the wallboard. Pulling the woodwork also can be a good idea.

The insurance company has big dehumidifiers that they can bring in. Make sure your walls are checked for moisture. Run your AC.

Don't forget to take pictures for the insurance company.

[rubicon]

Service pro can clean it up, but maybe want to think about just replacing the carpet after the slab and moldings dry out.

Mold starts to grow quick

Either way it's an insurance claim

The homeowner may want to check his/her insurance policy first. Water damage covered claims usually occur from within a plumbing/water pipes bursting, etc and/or if the water damage occurred because wind caused an opening, etc .

Also never would or should an insurance company answer a question of coverage unless it is an actual loss and the insurance company has examined the damage.

We don't know that it is/is not an insurance claims until after [t]he insurance company has made an inspection

Personal Best Regards:

[DeanFL]

same thing happened here. 4 year old block house. A Holly. Our 3rd bedroom in front faces outside wall which faces directly EAST. All night it was pummeled with such heavy wind and rain. When looking out the window in bare feet this morning I felt dampness in the carpeting by the baseboard.
The outside - sand/dirt and landscape rock coverage is an inch or so higher than the concrete slab level. I assume a very small amount of water seeped into the crack between the slab and bottom of the block in that area.

I rolled up a couple bath towels to cover - although all it really needs is air to dry out. I may run a hairdryer over the area. I would say a cup or so of water seeped in. Nothing to worry about.

OP depends on amount that came in - if small as for us...it's nothing - and will probably never happen again unless Irma II arrives in the future.


Update - we haven't heard from OP for some time now. Would have been good to know how "soaking wet" their carpet was - ie, the entire room or 2" from the wall. As I mentioned above same happened to our home. The area (in the front bedroom) is covered by gutters and there are no downspouts close - they are on the corners. Our details are in my posting copied above - the carpeting is almost completely dry now, the padding et al should be soon as well. I'm not worried at all. This was the only problem we had during Irma. The front of our home got pummeled all night by the storm and I consider this a one-off due to locale.

[plmtree]

We had a small amount in our front room also. It does appear it was not from the window but like the prior post thought - where slab and concrete meet which if water can get in so can bugs, etc............ correct? What can one do - dig and find it and seal it? Is this not a warranty issue with The Villages as my home is only 3 years old. Comments welcomed. Thank you.

[mixsonci]

I've had many different opinions on the problem. What it boils down to is, the water supposedly soaked through the concrete. Was told that happens sometimes with cement stucco. Also, there is a slight crack right at the window sill on the outside. I think this is where it came from but not sure. Before my house was a year old, my inspection noted this crack, supposedly it was fixed by warranty, but if it was, they did a terrible job, one inch on either side of the crack is a completely different color paint. I was not here at the time and had renters in the house.

I have a patio in front of my house with pavers so water didn't puddle there although I suppose it could have gotten under the pavers.

The wet part of the rug is about 4 ft long by 1 1/2 feet wide, on one side only of a double window.

I was advised by Stanley Steemer that they are not allowed by State laws to dry the carpet, they can only "cut" the carpet out where it got wet. Another company wanted $200 just to walk through the door and who knows how much after that.

This has never happened before even with the driving rain we get sometimes, but the hurricane really pounded that window.

I think I'm going to have the carpet removed and have laminate installed, which I was thinking about doing anyway. However, the concern is how do I prevent this from happening again.

I don't think gutters or extenders are the problem or the cure, but I'm not sure. Who do I call for that since I can't do this myself.

[electricblue]

We live in an Aspen model. Our front two bedrooms each have double windows with an eyebrow window on top. Both rooms are soaking wet bout 2 feet out from the windows. The sheetrock is also wet in the window casing itself and we can see some of the moulding on the floor has pulled away. We're thinking the eyebrow windows might be the problem? The water came from the top not the from the floor base. Any one else have this problem?

[DangeloInspections]

Perhaps I can share a bit of light on this. Bear with me as I am responding from my phone as I still do not have power. It is very common to have moisture intrusion on a block/stucco home through the mortar joints when your home is pummeled by a Cat 1 hurricane.....especially if you have hairline cracks in the stucco. This storm you would most likely find it on the East wall. The water either comes from between the blocks or in some cases between the monolithic slab and the block wall. You may find the carpet wet for a few feet in from the wall. This happened even at my home on the east side.....and I have no power to dry it out. Another source of water intrusion is the double windows with the arch window above it. Water comes in through the horizontal and vertical mullion between the windows. I am sorry I have not been more helpful here but without power and internet and with all the roof inspections we have been doing it has been challenging. Hope this has helped. Frank D.

[JCMSr]

Another way for water to have penetrated your home could be via the vented soffits along the roof line. Several homes in our area experienced moisture along the east walls as Frank mentioned above. High winds could push moisture into the soffit and eventually into the wall cavity (even concrete walls have an air space between the drywall and concrete).

[electricblue]

Thanks Frank, I have a call into the warranty dept for info as to whom would be responsible. Do you think there was not enough caulk put on the window? Or poor installation? Any light you could shed would be appreciated..

[C. C. Rider]

Before calling your insurance company, you might want to check your homeowners insurance policy. I looked at mine a few days ago and found that it has a SEPARATE (larger) deductible for hurricanes. In my policy, the hurricane damage deductible is 2% of the Dwelling coverage. My Dwelling coverage is nearly $300,000 so my hurricane deductible is nearly $6,000.

Personally, I wouldn't contact the insurance company unless I were reasonably certain that the damage was well above my deductible.

[rubicon]

Water intrusion problems were a big concern both in Arizona and Minnesota in the 1990's. Many of the problems were associated with the improper manner in which workers installed windows for stucco homes. Also some windows had defective seals that eventually shrank with the contraction from heat and cold allowing water to enter between outside and inside walls . some were due to the fake stucco some contractors were applying to homes.

[mixsonci]

Perhaps I can share a bit of light on this. Bear with me as I am responding from my phone as I still do not have power. It is very common to have moisture intrusion on a block/stucco home through the mortar joints when your home is pummeled by a Cat 1 hurricane.....especially if you have hairline cracks in the stucco. This storm you would most likely find it on the East wall. The water either comes from between the blocks or in some cases between the monolithic slab and the block wall. You may find the carpet wet for a few feet in from the wall. This happened even at my home on the east side.....and I have no power to dry it out. Another source of water intrusion is the double windows with the arch window above it. Water comes in through the horizontal and vertical mullion between the windows. I am sorry I have not been more helpful here but without power and internet and with all the roof inspections we have been doing it has been challenging. Hope this has helped. Frank D.

This makes a lot of sense. It is the east facing wall and has never happened before even with some of the driving rain we have had in the past. It was an area about 4ft long and 1 1/2 ft wide directly under the window, but the window and framing was completely dry.

[Ooper]

Concrete slabs crack as they cure... it is a natural process and it occurs all the time. If the crack appears near the edge of the slab, saturated ground near the slab will push water up through the crack. When your rugs get damp and there is no indication of water coming through the window or the bottom of the wall, pull the carpet back and inspect the slab under the pad where it is wet. I can almost guarantee you that you'll see a crack that allowed the water to seep up through.

[mixsonci]

How do I fix that?

[Chellybean]

One thing to check is your downspouts and where they empty. Most have no splash blocks and most are a foot or less away from the slab. Heavy rains, let alone sustained tropical rains for hours on end push a very large volume of water down the spouts.

Not all direct the water sufficiently far enough from the house.

Long story....sustained water volume is able to get under the slab or between the slab and the house framing (and even blocks).

I have put extenders (available home depot/lowes) on all our downspouts taking the water 3 feet away from the base of the house.

Just one thing to check.

Do you have a double exterior door? Very frequently a direct driving rain will come between the doors.

Just to name a couple.

Good luck.

Right you are my friend. We had 14 inches of rain over 10 hours with 60 + mph winds and it will push throw hair line cracks in block, under concrete and even absorb through concrete.
I just spent all day putting pop ups 20 feet away on my downspouts. also the grades around hear are done poorly!
Just some FYI

[maureenod]

How do I fix that?

GUTTERS all around. If I didn't have gutters on my house up north, my basement would be full of water. They take water away from the house, and they are cheap fix.

[Investment Painting Contractors]

Check your plumbing roof vents. We lost our Oak kitchen floor because the rubber seal on the vents got brittle and the rain came down thru the center of the block and exited under our cabinets. There is no water stains on walls or ceiling. Dave Wilt our handyman found the problem. Check yours. Len

[Chellybean]

Check your plumbing roof vents. We lost our Oak kitchen floor because the rubber seal on the vents got brittle and the rain came down thru the center of the block and exited under our cabinets. There is no water stains on walls or ceiling. Dave Wilt our handyman found the problem. Check yours. Len

the new flashing should be lead not rubber

[perrjojo]

Also, many landscapers build up the soil against the house. Never allow this as water will come in where the walls meet the slab. I see this on so many homes. It's also an invitation for termites.

[autumnspring]

The carpet in my front room is soaking wet, however, it is not coming from the window, which is completely dry. What could cause it?

Also, who can I call to come and completely dry the carpet so it doesn't mold?

Frankly, I slept through most of Irma. Typical for me, I can sleep through anything. About 3am the darn thing woke me up so I did a look around. It was not only raining very hard but the rain, driven by the wind was coming at the front of my home horizontally.

Your home is designed to keep out rain, water, flowing down not flowing horizontally. We had a little bit of water go through the edges of our front door.

For your wet carpet, there are so many possible causes.
Your roof may have been damaged. Water will flow, can flow a long way before it finds a hole to exit. You see a leak by a window, the water can be seeping through the seams of the window, the calking or simply flowing from the roof and exiting at the bottom of the wall.

I would take pictures, making it easier to find how the water got in. Use towels to soak up as much of the water as you can. Obviously, put the wet towels outside to dry. Then, turn down the dehumidifier control on your air conditioner and use fans to pass more air past the wet spot and so speed up the rate of evaporation.

[mixsonci]

Also, many landscapers build up the soil against the house. Never allow this as water will come in where the walls meet the slab. I see this on so many homes. It's also an invitation for termites.

Please explain more on this?

I have a patio with pavers right outside this window? There is a space between the pavers and the house about 1/2 inch or more. Should I/can I have this caulked?

[Investment Painting Contractors]

the new flashing should be lead not rubber

If they would have installed lead I probably wouldn't have had the problem. My house is 20 years old.

[davefin]

The designer model, Allamanda, is the only house built of poured concrete, to my knowledge, unless some courtyard villas may be poured concrete? The other houses are concrete block with a stucco finish or (CBS).

I own a Cedar model that is poured concrete. Also had a leak at baseboard on east facing wall. Turned out to be some hairline cracks in the stucco. Going to fill them with sealer when completely dry.

[mixsonci]

I own a Cedar model that is poured concrete. Also had a leak at baseboard on east facing wall. Turned out to be some hairline cracks in the stucco. Going to fill them with sealer when completely dry.

I have a Zinnia model and according to the papers I have my house is also poured concrete.

What kind of sealer do I use on these hairline cracks?

[davefin]

I bought from Lowe's. GE 100% silicone for masonry, brick, concrete, etc. My home is painted gray, so I am trying the gray silicone so I may get away without painting afterwards. Also purchased a tube of clear if the gray shows too much. Going to try a small area first and see how it cures.

[mixsonci]

thank you all. Think what I will do is fill the cracks with the silicone and re-paint (still have sample cans of paint) and then have gutters installed. Hopefully, that will take care of the problem.