water damage

3 Ways that Water Damages Your Floors

As a busy business owner, the last thing you want to worry about is damage to your floors. Water damage can occur for a multitude of reasons, like a toilet overflow or burst pipe, and will cost your business big! In homes alone, it can cost up to $7,500 to repair water-damaged property depending on the severity. Yikes!

But what makes water so dangerous and damaging to floors? Here at Garden State Mat Rental, we’ve seen it all over the course of our nearly 50-year history.  

Here are three concerning things water does to your floors (and how we can help you prevent them):

1. Bacteria Growth

Water leads to toxic mold in your floors as bacteria thrives under humid conditions. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), mold typically takes 24-48 hours to grow after water exposure. Unfortunately, it will only continue to grow until the moisture is eliminated. So time is of the essence!

Some molds are known allergens and a few can be more harmful. However, as reported by FEMA, all molds in the right condition and in a high enough concentration are capable of negatively affecting human health. Not only does bacteria growth damage floors, but it poses safety risks to your staff and clientele.

2. Furniture Damage

Water can quickly infiltrate furniture and destroy it before you even realize that it’s happening. Within hours, furniture can delaminate and swell, certain finishes will begin to turn white, and dyes from certain fabrics will start to bleed, ruining your furniture for good.

Additionally, water damage on your floors has the potential to weaken the foundational structure of the building as a whole. This presents all sorts of danger to you and your employees. Wooden floors may start to warp and wallpaper can start to peel. Once this starts happening, it becomes more difficult to salvage your furniture and floor.

3. Foul Odors

A mixture of humidity and growing bacteria leads to bad smells that can fill up your entire business. The musty smell of mold growing from the floors up can negatively affect your business and immediately turn off customers.

Eliminating these odors takes time as you need to ventilate the area, eliminate the source of the smell, and take the steps to remove the odors trapped within your floors. Most likely, you’ll have to call in a professional which takes up both precious time and a lot of money.

Prevent Water Damage with Garden State Mat Rental

Water damage to your floors is extremely damaging. From toxic mold growth to ruined furniture and lingering odors, water damage has the potential to hurt your business in many ways. However, there are steps you can take to prevent this type of damage from occurring.

Utilizing a mat service like Garden State Mat Rental is a great way to control moisture. On a regular basis, a field representative will pick up your dirty, soiled mats and replace them with clean, fresh mats. This ensures that your floors will stay dry and your business will remain clean and safe for your customers.

Here at Garden State Mat Rental, we offer a wide variety of mats to fit all of your floor care needs. Call us today for a free quote at 800-486-1581.