Keep doing this until the area of the carpet is dry. You should still check underneath the carpet to make sure the carpet padding and the floor aren’t sopping wet, as well.
Vacuum the carpet with the wet vacuum cleaner until you get no more water. The wet vacuum cleaner removes water from the carpet itself, but it may not be able to remove it from the padding if the water has wicked through the carpet backing or soaked in under the edges. Keep an eye on the fill tank and make sure you dump it before hitting overflow. Depending on the amount of water in the carpet, you may have to dump the tank several times.
Keep them pointed towards the moisture until the water begins to dry up. Again, you’ll need to check underneath the carpet to make sure that the floor and carpet padding are not still sopping wet. Try to create a “vortex” around the wet area. For example, you might take 3 fans and arrange them in a triangle around the wet area, all blowing outside of center instead of directly across the wet area. You could also rent air movers and professional dehumidifiers from a big box store. [3] X Expert Source Andrew RohrCarpet Cleaning Specialist Expert Interview. 15 April 2021. If the weather is warm, open neighboring windows to allow the humidity to escape. [4] X Expert Source Andrew RohrCarpet Cleaning Specialist Expert Interview. 15 April 2021.
Leaving the furniture on the wet carpeting can damage both the furniture and the flooring.
Rent a vacuum capable of removing water. Do not use a regular house vacuum, because a regular house vacuum can’t handle vacuuming up water. Vacuum until you get no more water. Alternately you could rent a hot water extraction unit. [6] X Research source Check with a local carpet cleaning company to see if you can rent theirs. This helps suck the water from the carpet, although again you will have to check beneath the water.
Walk across the carpet. If there’s a sopping/squishing sound when you do, then there’s definitely still water beneath the carpet.
You can also lift the carpet up pulling it off of the installation strips at one of the corners. You can also do this on a carpet’s side or edge if you have a short side that is easy to access and work with. Fold the corner or side of the rug over so you can see the carpet pad.
A dehumidifier in a closed room will pull out water fast, and can be rented from rental companies. [7] X Research source Keep the corner or side of carpet that you have lifted raised and use a fan to blow air under the carpet unto the pad. Turn up the heat and open the windows to aid in the drying. Attach a vacuum hose (for vacuuming up wet things) to the exhaust of a vacuum then put the hose under the carpet, placing the carpet back over the hose. The hot air will cause the carpet to float over the pad and speed up the drying process.
Make sure the service is guaranteed and look for a company that promises to dry the carpet, the pad, and the floor if necessary. Check with your homeowners or renters insurance. Depending on the cause of the wet carpet, it is possible your policy may cover the cost of the carpet cleaning.
Leave the dehumidifier in the car until the water seems to be gone. Make sure that you also sop up water with rags on the non-carpeted areas of the car.
Avoid cutting the carpet as this will be incredibly difficult to fix later on.
Place towels over the carpeting and walk over them to get the water to soak up into the towels. Replace with fresh, dry towels as they get wet. Use a hairdryer and position it over the wet towels. Keep doing this until they are completely dry.
Discuss this with a professional before you do a complete overhaul of your car’s carpeting because this is a drastic measure. Still, it is important to consider.
