Tessa

The ceiling in my room recently caved in because of a leak in a pipe. (The repair guy commented that he's never seen a leak at a T-joint before. I guess that's a bit rare?) The water had been collecting for about three days, at least. I noticed water on the carpet in one corner of my room. We thought that it might be coming from the tub because it is on the other side of the wall, but the repair guy said that the water from the leak probably soaked into the wall and traveled downward. The insulation in the attic was soaked and sticks onto my desk and other things in my room. There's also the lingering odor of stale water (if that made sense).

I hope the Cleaning section is appropriate for my three main concerns:

1. My mom won't be happy if I try to pry the carpet up to check for mold. What would be the best thing for me to do to clean? I am considering calling a professional carpet cleaning company. If this might be a better idea than doing it myself, does anyone have any company recommendations or any suggestions on what I should ask when I call?

2. Other than the potential mold under the carpet, is there any other health hazards I should be concerned about? My friend kept joking about asbestos in my room, but it's made me really paranoid. We have vacuumed everything possible, but I keep wondering if there's some lingering chemicals or other in my room.

3. The repair guy recommended sprinkling baking soda onto the carpet to get rid of the odor, then vacuuming it after a few hours. Is this a good recommendation to follow or is there a better solution?

Any help or recommendations would be highly appreciated.

BridgeMan

I had a similar experience many years ago. And I'd like to suggest you plan on taking up all of the soggy carpet and pad, or it's likely to never dry out and stop smelling, especially in Houston's climate.

My attic leak was also caused by a broken waterline, and dropped most of a bedroom ceiling and its insulation. My home owner's insurance paid for everything, even had a plumber there within an hour. The remediation outfit started cleaning up the mess that night, and pulled up all of the affected carpet, and set up 3 or 4 large fans and heaters, running continuously. I was surprised how quickly the place dried out, and never smelled a bit (they did spray a mold inhibitor on everything as it was drying). Carpet was reinstalled a few days later.

Tessa

Thanks for the tip! We dried the area and I can't smell it anymore. I'm not sure if my parents' homeowner insurance covers this, but I'll make sure to ask. I think I'd feel more comfortable having someone pull up the carpet and check for damage and mold.

Thanks a bunch, BridgeMan! =)