Owner`s manual

REMOVING MILDEW
To remove surface mildew on
walls or ceilings, use a mildew
surface cleaner (available at
paint stores) or: scrub the
mildew with household
detergent, then scrub with a
solution of one-quarter cup
bleach to 1 quart water. Rinse
well with clean water. Once fully
dry, apply a coat of paint
containing an anti-mildew agent.
To remove surface mildew on
floors and woodwork, use a
phosphate cleaning solution
such as powdered automatic
dishwashing detergent or
trisodium phosphate (4 to 6
tablespoons to a gallon of
water), available in hardware
stores. Rinse with water, and
when dry, apply a
mildew-resistant finish.
Additional resources:
Your county family living agent, your
local emergency government office, the
American Red Cross, the Federal
Emergency Management Agency
Related publications:
“Repairing Your Flooded Home,”
American Red Cross/Federal
Emergency Management Agency, 1992.
UW-Extension Publications–
“Removing Water From the Building
Materials of a Water Damaged Home;”
“High Humidity After Water Damage
and the Growth of Mildew and Mites.”
To clean surfaces:
♦ Thoroughly wash and disinfect walls, ceilings, exposed wall cavities
and studs.
♦ Use a good disinfectant to prevent mildew build-up. One cup of
chlorine bleach mixed with a gallon of water works well. For a
soapier cleaning solution, add a half cup of mild detergent. Wear
rubber gloves.
♦ If walls have already dried, work from the floor to the ceiling to
prevent streaking. (Dirty water splashed on dry walls may be
absorbed and become almost impossible to remove.) Overlap sections,
cleaning the ceiling last.
FLOORS
Before the house has dried out, scrub floors and woodwork with a stiff
brush, plenty of water, a detergent and disinfectant. Carpeting soaked by
contaminated floodwater should be removed and discarded unless it can be
sanitized at a commercial facility for a cost substantially less than
replacement. Vinyl flooring and floor tile may need to be removed to
allow drying of subfloor.
Wooden floors should be dried gradually. Sudden drying could cause
cracking or splitting. Some restoration companies can accelerate drying
time by forcing air through the fluted underside of hardwood floorboards.
ONCE FLOORS HAVE DRIED
Assess whether your floors can be repaired, replaced or recovered.
Consider your time and budget as you make any decisions. If hardwood
floors are damaged beyond repair, you may want to forego the cost of
replacement and instead cover them with carpeting, vinyl or linoleum. Or
you might lay a new floor over the old, rather than replace it.
♦ Plywood subfloors may have delaminated (separated) from excessive
moisture, causing buckling. Sections may have to be replaced or have
new plywood nailed over them. Consult a contractor for this work.
♦ If buckling or warping has occurred, drive nails where the floor tends
to lift or bulge. This will prevent further damage. Badly warped
hardwood floors usually can't be repaired. Warped, wide pine board
flooring, however, will often flatten out after it has thoroughly dried.
♦ Plane or sand floors level. Do not refinish until thoroughly dry.
Information from: University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension, Pennsylvania State University Cooperative Extension Service, University of
Missouri Extension
University of Wisconsin-Extension • Cooperative ExtensionUniversity of Wisconsin-Extension • Cooperative Extension