I had a little flood in the basement (a post later on the lessons I learned the hard way when finishing a basement). The water (clean) came up about an inch on the wall and got the bottom of some of the drywall wet for about 12 hours. I removed the carpet and the walls are drying out. No baseboards cause I hadn’t put them in yet. The bottom plate of the stud wall is pressure treated wood.
Should I replace the drywall now? Cut away the part that got wet and cover it with the baseboard? Let it dry and forget about it?
Thanks.
Paul
Replies
Get it dry before you trim or you'll get mold beneath the base. Otherwise forget about it.
(a) How wet is wet? (did it soak through, surface only, are you able to tell?)
(b) Did you use green rock? (I always do in a basement for exactly this reason.)
(c) Are you sure this is a one time occurance?
If its soaked through, I`d replace it. Rip the bottom two inches or so.(Enough to be certain you`ve removed all that was affected, and only enough that can be covered by base moulding.) You can replace it with plywood rips of equal width.
If you`re certain its only the surface that was affected, I`d run a dehumidifier for 24 hrs. before proceeding.
J. D. Reynolds
Home Improvements
"DO IT RIGHT, DO IT ONCE"
If it's not wet above the bottom plate then just make sure it's totally dry (run a dehumidifier for maybe 2 weeks) before putting the trim on. You might also consider spraying an antifungal on the affected area.
If water got up above the bottom plate then you should open the area up to dry, especially if there's any insulation behind the rock. If water didn't get that high but the rock is damp up several inches then it's more of a judgement call.
Obviously, this is all contingent on the physical integrity of the rock as well. If it's gone mushy then it needs to be replaced, regardless.
As was said by others, you need to assess the reason for this flood and make sure it won't recur before you start putting things back together.
You might consider cutting it away and installing baseboard made of a plastic or composite material, in case flooding happens again. Seems like drywall is yummy food for mildew and mold.