The canister filter on (specifically, directly under) my 55 gallon sprung a leak, and in total has leaked 20+ gallons of nitrate-laden water onto the carpet around the stand. The canister is undergoing repairs ATM but the carpet is still soaked. Will I have to break down the aquarium and pull up the carpet, or can I keep mold from growing another way? Also, the canister was removed and will not be back up for at least a day, so how long can I keep my fish in there without an ammonia spike?
use a jet vac to get the carpet as dry as possible then put a fan on it
first of all search for the water line going into your water heater and close off the water and then call a plumber and performance them pop out they're going to guard something like checking for mildew and getting it treated considering that maximum plumbers have emergency amenities on p.c. dial. they're going to be waiting to restoration your complications immediately
Assuming the carpet does not have a separate foam underlayment, rent or buy a high end wet/dry shop vac and vacuum the carpet repeatedly to remove the maximum amount of water. Shampoo the carpet to remove / neutralize the nitrates, then vacuum thoroughly again. Use a fan-type electric heater to blow warm air over the surface of the carpet continuously. Keep the room well-ventilated. If you can, remove the baseboards and use the vacuum to suck out all the water you can then reverse the hose on the vacuum and blow warm air all along the baseboard. If you can get the carpet thoroughly dry within 48 hours, you're unlikely to develop a mold problem. If however, there is a separate foam underlayment, your only option is to lift the carpet and dry or replace the underlay.
