What To Do If Your Furniture Is Damaged By Water

12/7/2022 (Permalink)

What To Do If Your Furniture Is Damaged By Water

Water is a powerful force that can wreak havoc on your home and furniture. Whether it's from a broken pipe, flooding due to heavy rains, or even just spilling something on the table, water damage can cause significant stains and even rot or mold. Thankfully, there are ways you can salvage your damaged piece of furniture, so it doesn't have to go in the dumpster!

Ventilate the room

Once you've dried up your furniture, you'll want to make sure the room is well-ventilated. Open windows and doors where possible and use a fan to get air circulating in the area. This will help air out any damp odors or lingering moisture.

If your furniture has taken on water, it may be best to remove it from the room as soon as possible. Leaving wet items in closed spaces can increase their chances of molding over time.

Wipe down heavy residue from the surface

If there is any heavy residue on the furniture, use a soft, damp cloth to wipe it down. Be careful not to rub too hard or you could damage your furniture even further.

If you have excess water in the crevices of your furniture and you're worried about getting it all out, use a small brush to clean them out and make sure everything dries properly.

Use a hair dryer or fan to dry the furniture

If you don't have a hair dryer or a fan, you can still use the heat from another source to dry your furniture. Just try not to damage it by doing so.

• Don't use a heat gun: A heat gun is basically just like a hairdryer, but stronger. They can pose a major fire hazard.
• Do not use a heat lamp: A common mistake when trying to dry out furniture is using a heat lamp instead of something less intense like an air conditioner or fan. Heat lamps are very powerful and will likely damage your piece significantly.

Sort out books and papers that have gotten wet

If the book pages are still intact, you can remove them from the furniture to dry in a warm place. The book spine should be flat on top of a piece of cardboard so that no water seeps through it. If any pages have torn or become loose from their binding, they need to be handled with care: use tweezers or an old toothbrush to gently pry them open and then set them aside until they've dried out.

As for clothing and other items that were inside your bookshelves when they got wet—don't dry those out! It's best not to risk using heat for anything but the most necessary tasks here; remember that mold spores can grow on materials even at room temperature. Instead, set these items aside for now; if there's any mold present in the fabric or clothing fibers after 24 hours, discard them.

Leave objects alone until they dry out

The most important thing you can do when you discover that something has been damaged by water is to leave it alone. Your first instinct might be to move the furniture or put things back where they belong but doing so could damage them more and make the situation worse. Instead, put off any rearranging or moving until the objects are completely dry and safe.

Furniture can take a while to dry out, but if you follow these steps you can salvage it.

If your furniture has been damaged by water, it can be difficult to know what to do. Most people assume that the best thing to do is take the object and throw it away. But there are a few steps you can take that could save your ruined items and keep them from ending up in the landfill.

It can be a relief to know that there are steps you can take if your furniture gets wet. It’s unfortunate that this happened, but there’s no need to panic! By following these steps, you can save your furniture from water damage and make sure it doesn’t happen again.