I recently discovered a small leak from my dishwasher that lasted about three minutes before I managed to stop it. My flooring was just redone with vinyl, but there's no vinyl under the dishwasher. After cleaning up the spill, I noticed that two of the boards make a squishing sound when I step on them, which makes me think water has seeped under them. Will using a dehumidifier help dry it out, or do I need to tear up that section of flooring to really get it dry?
2 Answers
Definitely use a dehumidifier, but remember that just blowing air around isn't always enough. If it's concrete beneath the boards, it can hold onto moisture for a while. You might want to take off the affected planks to let everything dry out completely. It’s better to be safe than sorry, especially to prevent mold or further damage!
A dehumidifier can definitely help reduce the moisture in the air, which is great, but you might need more than that. If water has seeped beneath the flooring, it's likely not going to dry out completely just with a dehumidifier. You should consider using fans to increase airflow as well. In cases where water is trapped, sometimes you have to remove the flooring to really get it dry—kind of like how a sealed Tupperware won't let moisture escape. Just make sure to check what your subfloor is made of too, as that could affect the drying process.