Flash Flood and Mud Cleanup

Stay Safe While the Water Is Moving

Flash floods rise in minutes and move fast. The National Weather Service warns that 6 inches of moving water can knock an adult off their feet, and about 12 inches can carry away most cars. Turn around and find another route. Flooded roads can hide washed out pavement, open manholes and downed power lines.

Do not go back to a flooded property until local officials say the area is safe. Then check the outside first.

• Look for downed power lines. Stay well away and call the utility.
• Look for cracks in the foundation, a leaning chimney, or doors and windows that suddenly stick. These can mean the structure shifted.
• Smell for gas. If you smell it, leave and call the gas company from a safe distance.
• Watch for snakes, rodents and other animals pushed into buildings by the water.

Take photos and video of the water line, the mud and every damaged room before you start cleaning. Then call your insurer. Standard homeowners policies usually exclude flood damage, which is covered by a separate flood policy, so find out right away which policy applies.

Power, Gas and the Electrical Panel

Water and electricity are the deadliest combination in flood cleanup. Never touch the electrical panel, a breaker or a cord while you are standing in water or on a wet floor.

• If the panel is in a dry area and you can reach it standing on a dry surface, turn off the main breaker. Use one hand and wear dry rubber soled boots.
• If reaching the panel means walking through water, stop. Call the electric utility and ask them to disconnect power at the meter.
• Any outlet, switch, breaker, panel, furnace, water heater or appliance that was underwater needs to be checked, and often replaced, by a licensed electrician or technician before it is used again.
• Leave the gas off if gas appliances were flooded. Only the utility or a licensed plumber should restore it and relight pilots.

If you need power for pumps and fans, run a generator outdoors, far from doors, windows and vents, and use heavy duty outdoor extension cords plugged into it directly.

Why Flood Water Is Always Dirty Water

Water from a broken supply pipe starts clean. Floodwater never does. It picks up sewage from overflowing sewers and septic systems, fuel, oil, pesticides, fertilizers and whatever was on the streets it crossed. Restoration pros classify floodwater as Category 3, the most contaminated class of water.

Mud left behind carries the same contamination. That means three things for cleanup.

• Wear rubber gloves, rubber boots, eye protection and an N95. Wash your hands with soap and clean water before eating, drinking or touching your face.
• Keep children and pets out of the flooded area until it is cleaned and disinfected.
• Porous materials that were soaked, such as carpet, pad, mattresses, upholstered furniture, drywall and insulation, generally cannot be made safe and must be removed.

If you have a cut or scrape, keep it clean and covered. See a doctor if a wound becomes red, swollen or oozing, and ask whether you need a tetanus shot if your last one was more than 5 years ago. If you have a private well that flooded, do not drink the water until it has been disinfected and tested.

Getting the Mud Out

Mud is easiest to move while it is wet. As it dries it hardens, bonds to floors and walls, and turns into fine dust you breathe. Start shoveling the day you can safely get in.

1. Open doors and windows for air, as long as more rain is not coming in.
2. Shovel mud into a wheelbarrow or heavy bags. Work from the room farthest from the door toward the exit.
3. Pile mud and debris outside where the city or county says to, usually at the curb, and keep it off sidewalks and out of storm drains if you can.
4. Hose off the remaining film before it dries, starting at the top of walls and working down. Push the water out the door with a squeegee or stiff broom.
5. Use a wet/dry vacuum to pull out what is left in corners and low spots.

Do not run a gas powered pressure washer or pump indoors or in a garage, even with the door open. They produce carbon monoxide that can build to deadly levels quickly.

What to Keep and What to Throw Out

Photograph every item before it goes to the curb, and make a list for the claim.

Undamaged, commercially made cans can be kept if you remove the labels, wash the cans, dip them in a bleach solution and relabel them with a marker. Throw out any can that is dented, swollen or leaking.

Flood Cuts, Cleaning and Disinfecting

Wet drywall wicks water upward and hides mud and moisture inside the wall. Pros make a flood cut, which means cutting the drywall in a straight line above the water mark and removing everything below it.

• Cut at least 12 inches above the highest water line. Many pros cut at 2 or 4 feet so replacement uses standard sheet sizes.
• Pull out all wet insulation. It will not dry inside the wall.
• If the home was built before 1980, have drywall joint compound and any wall texture tested for asbestos before you cut.

Once the walls are open, scrub the studs, the bottom plate, floors and hard furniture with detergent and water to remove the film. Then disinfect. For hard, nonporous surfaces, a common mix is 1 cup of unscented household bleach in 5 gallons of water. Let it sit on the surface for several minutes, then rinse. Ventilate well. Never mix bleach with ammonia or other cleaners, which creates toxic gas.

Dry It Fast and Pump Basements Slowly

Mold can start growing on wet materials in 24 to 48 hours. Drying is a race.

• Run fans to move air across wet surfaces and a dehumidifier to pull the water out of the air. Keep windows closed while the dehumidifier runs if it is humid outside.
• Aim for indoor humidity below 50 percent.
• Use a moisture meter to check studs and subfloors. Wood framing is usually considered dry when it reads below about 15 to 16 percent. Do not close walls until it does.

If your basement is full of water, do not pump it all out at once. When the ground outside is still soaked, it pushes hard on the basement walls. The water inside pushes back. Pumping too fast can crack or collapse walls or float the floor. Emergency management guidance is to pump out about one third of the water per day, and to wait until floodwater outside has gone down.

Step by Step

1. Wait for the All Clear

   Go back only after officials say it is safe. Check outside for downed lines, gas smells and foundation damage before you enter.

2. Photograph Everything

   Film the water line, the mud and every room before you clean. Call your insurer and ask whether flood or homeowners coverage applies.

3. Shut Off Power Safely

   Turn off the main breaker only if you can reach it standing on a dry floor. Otherwise call the utility to disconnect at the meter.

4. Gear Up

   Put on rubber boots, heavy rubber gloves, eye protection and an N95. Keep children and pets away.

5. Shovel Wet Mud Out

   Shovel and bag mud while it is still wet, working from the far room toward the door. Pile debris where local officials direct.

6. Hose and Vacuum the Film

   Hose remaining mud off walls and floors from the top down before it dries, then wet vacuum corners and low spots.

7. Remove Soaked Porous Materials

   Pull out carpet, pad, mattresses, upholstered furniture and pressed wood furniture. Photograph and list them first.

8. Make Flood Cuts

   Cut drywall at least 12 inches above the water line and remove all wet insulation. Test pre-1980 walls for asbestos before cutting.

9. Clean Then Disinfect

   Scrub hard surfaces with detergent and water, then apply 1 cup bleach per 5 gallons of water, wait several minutes and rinse.

10. Dry to Target

    Run fans and a dehumidifier until wood framing reads below about 15 to 16 percent and indoor humidity stays under 50 percent.

11. Get Systems Inspected

    Have a licensed electrician, plumber and HVAC tech check anything that was underwater before it is used again.

Mistakes That Make It Worse

• Walking or driving through moving water. It takes far less depth than people expect to sweep them away.
• Letting mud dry before shoveling. Dry mud is harder to remove and turns into dust you breathe.
• Pumping a flooded basement dry in one day. Soaked soil outside can crack or collapse the walls.
• Running a gas pressure washer or pump in the garage. Carbon monoxide builds up quickly even with the door open.
• Closing up walls before the framing is dry. Trapped moisture grows mold inside the wall.
• Keeping soaked mattresses and upholstered furniture. Floodwater contamination does not come out of them.

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