Carpeting stores around the state are reporting an uptick in business related to recent heavy rains and flooding. Dan Ellis owns “The Floor Store” in Newton and he’s seeing twice as much business as in a “normal” year. Ellis says he gets calls every day from customers trying to figure out what to do with wet basement carpet.

“We were supposed to start putting carpet back in basements this week from ones that got wet 2 or 3 weeks ago and we probably had in the neighborhood of seven or eight jobs this week that cancelled or postponed because they got wet again,” Ellis says.

Ellis advises customers to tear out wet carpet and the pad underneath and hang them to dry. He says wet carpet sometimes can be salvaged if it’s allowed to dry within a couple days. Gloria Schwarz manages “Flooring Gallery” in Urbandale and she was “swamped” with phone calls Wednesday.

“They’re desperate and they need their pad and the carpet removed so everything can dry out,” she says. “…Of course, we’re measuring their homes, so if they decide they want to come in and purchase carpeting we are helping them with that. And also a measure will help them with their insurance.”

If carpeting is wet because of clean rainwater run-off or seepage from the basement floor, it may be possible to salvage the carpeting and pad by drying it out. But if the carpeting is swamped by muddy floodwater or water that contains sewage, it should be removed for health reasons.