Dishwasher Leaked Onto Wood Flooring

Did you dishwasher leak onto your wood flooring? Do you want to avoid your wood floors cupping?

Immediately

Shut off the water supply to the dishwasher. Whether you have a individual water shut off for your dishwasher or if you need to shut off the water to the whole property. Prompt action will reduce the spread of additional water.

Assess the situation. Most property owners won’t be able to solve this issue themselves because of the complexity involved. If you can confidently answer each bullet point below, you will have a better chance at successfully fixing the water damage.

What type of flooring do you have? Hardwood, Engineered Hardwood, Vinyl, Vinyl Tile, Luxury Vinyl Tile, Linoleum, and Tile all have different challenges. Do you know what flooring needs to be removed versus what can be dried in place?
Do you have the correct moisture meters? Correct moisture meters can perform invasive and non-invasive measurements
Do you know how and where to use the moisture meters? Some meters won’t reach the subfloor depending on what type of primary flooring you have. Is the subfloor wet?
Did water run down the walls?
Did water run under the cabinets?
Is the insulation wet?
Do you have adequate equipment? Wood floors can sometimes be saved with specialized wood floor drying mats.
Do you know what materials can be removed or saved?
Can you access the all of the damaged areas?
Do you know what documentation and photos will be required if you’re submitting a claim?

Listed above are only some of the complexities to consider when handling water damage. Most property owners haven’t dealt with these issues frequently enough to have a solid plan of attack to performing the mitigation. Some property owners choose to take a DIY approach, just note it can be grounds for the loss being not covered by your insurance carrier.

Process

If you’re still reading, you may believe in your capabilities to dry down your property. Follow along as we provide a short summary of a game plan.

Properly extract any standing water, but avoid damaging the flooring if it can be saved
Inspect all areas with meters and intuition for potential mold and to learn where the water wet so you know what to dry
Remove any unsalvageable materials.
Use air movers and dehumidifiers to dry out the property. Please note, table fans, bedroom oscillating fans, residential dehumidifiers won’t have the correct cubic feet per minute air movement and/or pints per day moisture removal for most dishwasher leaks. Specifically, if you’re trying to save hardwood flooring from cupping, you’ll want to use commercial grade equipment and potentially wood floor drying mats.
After you have set up all your equipment, continuously monitor the moisture content in materials to ensure the materials are properly drying down to normal levels.

Unfortunately, most of us will experience some sort of water damage loss. Take proper steps to mitigate the chance for mold to occur. Prompt action is vital to minimize damage. If you start a DIY approach and realize the loss is far greater than expected or if you just want immediate help – call the pros at Service Restoration to give you peace of mind that your property is in the hands of a professional who has successfully countless dishwasher leaked onto wood flooring claims.