What to Do in the First 24 Hours After a Flood (Adelaide)
If your Adelaide home or business has taken on water — whether from the current flooding, a burst pipe, an appliance failure or storm damage — the first 24 hours are critical. The decisions you make in that window have a direct impact on whether your carpets, rugs and flooring can be saved, or whether they'll need to be replaced entirely.
Here's what to do.
1. Stop the Source If You Can
Before anything else, identify where the water is coming from and stop it if possible. Turn off the water at the mains if it's a burst pipe or appliance. If it's stormwater or rising groundwater, focus on diverting it away from the property where you can.
2. Don't Wait — Call a Professional
This is the most important thing on this list. Water damage is time-sensitive in a way that most people underestimate. Within 24–48 hours, wet carpet underlay and subfloor materials become a breeding ground for mould. Once mould takes hold, the job becomes significantly harder, more expensive, and in some cases the materials can't be saved at all.
Professional water extraction equipment removes far more moisture than any household wet/dry vacuum. Industrial air movers and dehumidifiers then dry the structure from the inside out — something that open windows and fans simply can't achieve at the same rate.
Diamond Cleaning Services provides emergency water extraction and flood restoration across Adelaide and all metropolitan areas. Call us on 0418 855 000 for immediate assistance.
3. Remove Furniture From Wet Areas
Get furniture off wet carpet as quickly as possible. Timber and metal furniture legs can stain carpet permanently within hours — rust from metal, tannin from timber. If you can't move heavy items, place plastic wrap or aluminium foil under the legs as a temporary barrier.
4. Lift Rugs and Take Them Outside
Rugs sitting on wet carpet will slow the drying process significantly and are at high risk of dye transfer — colour bleeding from the rug onto your carpet underneath, or vice versa. Lift them, take them outside if conditions allow, and call us about our offsite rug drying and washing service.
5. Don't Walk on Wet Carpet More Than Necessary
Foot traffic on saturated carpet pushes water deeper into the underlay and subfloor, and can distort the pile. Keep movement across wet areas to a minimum until extraction is underway.
6. Document Everything for Insurance
Take photos and video of all affected areas before any cleanup begins. Record the extent of the water, the affected materials, and any visible damage. Most insurance claims require evidence of the original damage state, so document thoroughly before you move anything.
7. Don't Use Household Fans as Your Only Drying Method
Fans circulate air but they don't remove moisture from the air — which means the humidity in the room stays high and drying takes much longer. In cooler, more enclosed spaces this can actually encourage mould growth rather than prevent it. Professional dehumidifiers extract moisture from the air directly, which is why the drying timeline is so much faster with professional equipment.
What We Do
Diamond Cleaning Services provides professional water damage restoration across Adelaide, the Adelaide CBD and all metropolitan areas. Our services include:
High-volume water extraction from carpets and hard floors
Industrial air mover and dehumidifier deployment for rapid structural drying
Carpet and rug assessment — we'll tell you honestly what can be saved
Offsite rug drying, washing and deodourising
Deep carpet cleaning and sanitising after drying is complete
We're based in the Adelaide Hills and fully mobile across the metro area. For emergency call-outs, call 0418 855 000.
Diamond Cleaning Services has been providing professional carpet and water damage restoration across Adelaide since 1987. All work is performed to Australian and New Zealand Standards. Qualified Wool Care Technician since 1998. Formally qualified ACCI technician.