Do you want to know how the professionals deal with smoke damage? What happens for each step of the fire restoration process from inspection to completion? Whether or not you’ve experienced a few contained flames in the kitchen or a full-scale house fire – here are the things to Expect from the Fire Cleanup Process.
Regardless of the degree and intensity of the smoke damage and destruction, professionals perform most of the steps in the cleanup process to restoration. These are well-trained people to handle various pieces of equipment for performing most of the steps in the cleanup process.
How Does a Home Gets Restored After Fire Damage?
It may sound impossible, but the restoration of your home is still possible even after disastrous fire damage. The first thing that you have to do is to check the extent of the fire damage. It’s because some areas aren’t visible like behind the walls, electric wirings, and plumbing systems. Some walls or surfaces that are not in the same room when the fire happened may also get damaged.
On the other hand, surfaces with smoke damage and soot will require special cleaning agents. Never use standard household cleaning products because it may only cause additional damage. If there’s water damage from extinguishing the flames or if the sprinkler system went off, there’s a possible chance for mold growth. So, you also have to address it to the inspector in addition to the fire and smoke damage.
You have to call the experts in this field because the fire and the smoke it produces have a different impact on certain parts of a house. Therefore, knowledge of this job is a requirement because each area needs a different method of sanitizing, restoring, or rebuilding. Only a trained fire restoration professional will be able to assess the degree of the fire damage. He or she will then determine the areas and contents of a home that can be cleaned, restored, and even those that need replacements.
The Pieces of Equipment that are Commonly Used for Fire Cleanup Process
You must have knowledge of the Pieces of Equipment that the professionals will use to restore your burnt house so that you have an idea of what’s about to happen. Purification of contaminated air and neutralizing odors caused by smoke are significant parts of fire cleanups. In these cases, here are some pieces of equipment that most fire damage restoration services will use for cleaning and sanitizing the air.
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HEPA (High-Efficiency Particulate Air) vacuum
– This equipment is a high-powered vacuum with filters for trapping airborne particles like soot. Professional use HEPA on surfaces like ceilings, walls, and floors.
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Air scrubber
– This machine eliminates terrible smoke odors and cleans the air using a filtration system. It sucks the air in and filter, and clean it before releasing back into the house.
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Negative air fan
– This equipment removes contaminated air inside a home through ducts by creating negative air pressure like a vacuum effect.
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Ozone machine
– This machinery neutralizes odors. Professionals use it after cleaning the house, emptied of all contents, and vacated. The ozone machine is more effective when used for a couple of days in a well-ventilated home.
What Does a Fire Restoration Company Do?
Generally, these are the standard steps of most fire damage restoration services in restoring a home – inspection, prevention, removal, and containment. You must understand every stage of their process so that you can help in making the fire cleanup run more smoothly. This gesture will also avoid doing anything that will hinder progress. So, allow us to explain to you further the things that a Fire Restoration Company does to clean your burnt house.
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STEP 1 – Do Your Part
There are some things that you can do to your house before a fire damage restoration service arrives. You can set some coffee grounds out throughout the home to help with minimizing the smell. You can also turn off the HVAC systems before the inspection to avoid additional contamination to unaffected areas.
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STEP 2 – Inspection of Your House.
Everything starts with inspecting the cause of the fire, the extent of the smoke damage, and document everything through photos to provide to the homeowner’s insurance company. Professionals will test each room and space in your home for soot or smoke damage. Then, there would be test cleanings using a special dry cleaning chemical sponge to determine the most affected surface and the degree its loss. Finally, the fire restoration company representative must explain to you the cleaning process, the rebuilding phases, and deciding on the items that salvageable or may become more dangerous after their thorough inventory check.
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STEP 3 – Prevention of Any Further Damage.
The cleanup representative will remove all of your things that are no longer usable in your burned home to avoid further damage. It will be harder for the restoration company if the damaged items are still in the affected area.
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STEP 4 – Remove Damaged Items by Fire or Smoke.
Notify the fire restoration company of any essential or sentimental items that you don’t want to lose, especially if they are temporary housing. This way, they can plan and prioritize these items.
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STEP 5 – Containment, Repairs, and Completion.
Containment refers to restricting odors from contaminating the air in the house. Repairs mean rebuilding of the house and other salvageable items. In case the fire restoration company isn’t able to complete some of the basic construction, you can find a general contractor to do the work. Finally, completion is making the home clean and removal of the smell of smoke. If there’s a discrepancy, both parties may order an air sample test after the fire cleanup is completed and before beginning any construction.
Contact Zgreen Restoration Today
If you suspect mold growth in your home, don’t wait to contact us. We proudly service homes in Santa clara, San mateo and santa cruz counties. Our experts are available 24 hours a day, every day of the week. Rain or shine, we’ll remove any mold from your home and keep your home safe and dry.
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The information and advice contained in this article is intended as a general guide for informational purposes only. It does not take into account your personal situation. While we at Resolve have significant experience and history operating in the home restoration industry and working closely with construction contractors, we are not licensed as a general or specialty contractor. We encourage you to consider the information we’ve provided but urge you not to rely upon it in place of appropriate professional advice from a licensed, experienced construction contractor.
