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Immediate Fire Restoration
12/19/2018 (Permalink)
In this hallway of a Sacramento home, you can see the soot buildup from a fire on the sides of the walls. Everything in this home was cleaned.
When your home or business is affected by fire damage, the aftermath is overwhelming, but if the restoration is postponed, the destruction from smoke damage will worsen. Whenever a fire damage occurs, firefighting efforts may cause water damage on the site as well. The longer you wait to assess this damage, the more repairs you will need to fix – which may be reflected in your bill for damages when all is said and done. To avoid costly repairs and long-term issues, it is important to make fire damage restoration a priority in order to get your home back to normal as soon as possible.
Find a Quality Fire Damage Restoration Service
One of the most important steps to take when dealing with fire restoration is to find a quality fire restoration services that can help you assess the damage, give you an estimate on costs and start the clean up process. It is important to contact your home insurance company to make them aware of the fire and they may provide you with referrals for reliable restoration companies in your area. It is pivotal to enlist the help of a licensed and insured fire damage restoration company to prevent further damage to your home. Most restoration companies are trained extensively to handle this type of damage and many will perform some of the following steps to help you through the initial fire cleanup.
- Smoke and fire damage restoration services will try to save as many of your home and personal belongings (such as appliances, furniture and clothing) as they can.
- Document everything they remove from your home by taking pictures and/or keeping written records.
- Return any salvageable furniture and appliances back to your home, after the fire restoration is complete.
- Work quickly and carefully to get you back in your home as soon as possible, and stay in contact with you to make sure the repairs were done correctly and your home isn't experiencing any other problems.
Be sure to go through your home insurance company when hiring a fire damage restoration service, or do a thorough background check if you choose one on your own to make sure they are licensed and insured. Be wary of “fire chasing” contractors who target victims of house fires and pressure them into signing expensive repair contracts, perform extremely low-quality repair work and might not be licensed or insured.
Start Cleanup Now!
While it is so important to have a qualified restoration company to handle your smoke damage restoration, there are some things that you can do to minimize the initial damage before professionals arrive. If it is possible to enter your house, make sure you’re wearing work gloves, long sleeves/pants, and proper respiratory protection, such as a N95+ mask because exposure to soot can cause respiratory problems and other medical issues.
- Limit movement in the home to prevent soot particles from being embedded into upholstery and carpet.
- Keep hands clean. Soot on hands can further soil our home.
- Place dry towels or old linens on rugs, upholstery, and high traffic areas.
- If electricity is off, empty freezer and refrigerator completely and prop doors open to help prevent odors.
- Wipe soot from chrome on kitchen and bathroom faucets, trim and appliances, then protect these surfaces with a light coating of lubricant.
- Wash both sides of leaves on house plants.
- Change HVAC filter, but leave system off until a trained professional can check the system.
- Tape double layers of cheesecloth over air registers to stop particles of soot from getting in or out of HVAC system.