Restoring Water-Damaged Drywall

If your home recently went through a major flood or pipe leak, it’s likely that, aside from the damage to the floors, the walls have also been affected. Most of the time, a water-damaged wall can easily be identified. There are occasions, however, when the damage isn’t obvious to the naked eye and will remain unnoticed by the average homeowner until it’s too late.

If the flood or leak affected a room, the entire floor area will be covered with water and, depending on your wall material, can cause vertical wicking up your walls. The degree of wicking that your wall will exhibit depends on several factors including: how high the water level rose; the material of the wall and its construction; and how long the room remained flooded. 

Your problem can be compounded if your house has drywall. Drywall is inherently porous and highly absorbent because its core is made of gypsum and its sides are made from cardboard-like material. In the event of flooding or even a leak, the core of a wall constructed with drywall can continue to hold water no matter how much you dry it, because evaporation is almost impossible to achieve without air movement on the inside.

Simply put, you’re going to need the expertise of a water damage professional if you want to restore a drywall wall to its previous state.