Your first instinct when you awaken to a flood in your bathroom is to panic. Nobody wants to go into their bathroom to find water everywhere. Bathroom flooding can be very stressful and can cause serious damage to your floors and walls. Bathroom flooding can be caused by many things. It could be a blocked or broken pipe, or a backed up sewer drain. No matter the cause of your bathroom flooding, it is important to act quickly to minimize any damage. These are the steps to take if your bathroom floods.
What can cause a bathroom flood?
Although there are many things that can cause a bathroom to flood, some situations are more common than others. A clogged drain, pipe, malfunctioning toilet or burst pipe could cause a bathroom to flood. The toilet is likely to be the cause of a clogged drain. A clogged drain or pipe can be caused by flushing too much toilet paper down the drain or flushing items that aren’t supposed to be flushed. Your drains or pipes will be clogged by grease, animal fat, and baby wipes.
Bathroom floods can also be caused by malfunctioning toilets. Your toilet may be leaking if it makes a constant noise when it is being filled. A toilet flushes normally makes a noise when it is being filled. It then stops once it is full. If the toilet continues to make noises, it is likely that the tank is still full. You’ll probably have a flood in your bathroom.
Burst pipes can be a serious problem. A pipe can burst or crack in winter, when pipes freeze and then thaw frequently. Repeated heating and cooling of pipes can cause cracks to form. If this happens enough, pipes could burst. You should immediately call a Long Beach Plumber if you suspect that your pipe has burst.
How to fix a bathroom flood
Turn off your water supply
First, turn off the water supply to your bathroom if it is flooding. This will prevent more water from leaking from the source, and it will also stop further damage. You will instinctively want to grab towels or other things to absorb the water. However, if the water continues to flow, it will not be useful.
You will need to look in a few places to turn off the water. The knob is located behind your toilet where it meets the floor. It will shut off the water if the flood happens. It should turn the knob to the right and shut off the water. The knob located beneath the sink should turn off any flooding. If the knob doesn’t work, contact a plumber to turn off water.
Use towels to absorb water
Once you have called a plumber and shut off the water supply, you can lay down towels to absorb any water. This is the easiest and most effective way to absorb water. It also gives you something to stand on that has traction. Avoid standing in the water, as it could be contaminated by bacteria.
Make sure you have good grip shoes when you clean the water. Bathroom tiles can become slippery when they are wet. You don’t want to get hurt in the middle of a bathroom flood. You can minimize damage to your walls and floors by quickly soaking up any water. You can use a wet vacuum or vacuum that suckers up water to do the job better than towels. You should not use a regular vacuum for water removal. To speed up drying the water, plug in fans and point them towards the flood source.
Make Sure Water Does Not Reach Outlets
If the flood waters are high and there are outlets close to the floor in a bathroom, turn off the electricity. This is not usually a problem for bathrooms, but it could be. Although the water will not rise as high as it seems, it is better to be safe than sorry. If the power is not switched off, do not go to the bathroom. Call a Long Beach Plumber or an electrician first. Then, get ready for the flood.
Circulate the air
Bathroom floods could mean that the water is either clean or backed up from sewer water. You should open your windows to ensure that the air circulates, regardless of where it came from. Even if there is no smell, it is still a good idea to let fresh air in the home. This will allow for faster drying and reduce damage to the floors. You should make sure your windows are opened if you have hardwood floors. This will help to prevent any buckling.