Experiencing a fire in your home can be scary and devastating. If you are in the home during the fire, you might also be experiencing trauma and shock from having to escape from the home. If your home has experienced damage, you will need to do fire and smoke damage restoration. This is the process of getting your home back to the way it was before the fire took place.
What is Fire Damage Restoration?
When your home is being restored after a fire, a specialized team will come in and begin repairing your home and taking out the damaged furniture and belongings. Fire damage restoration is different from water mitigation as it usually takes longer.
Fixing your home after a fire often takes weeks or even months. It might also mean your home needs to be boarded up and certain parts of the building demolished. All debris and soot also need to be removed.
The home will need to be completely removed so that hazardous materials like asbestos and lead are also removed from the home. Fire damage and water damage can happen at the same time since fires are doused with water when being put out.
In this case, you will need to have a team come in and also do water damage repairs. Pipes can also burst during fires causing more water damage.
Process of Fire Damage Restoration
If your home has been affected by a fire, you might be wondering how it will be repaired and what can be done to make it look new again. There are many steps to fire damage restoration. You will need to be patient during the process as it could extend a few months.
You will first need to find a fire damage restoration company. Make sure they are professional and reputable.
Assessing the Damage
Once the property has had the fire put out, it needs to be deemed safe to enter. The team can then enter the home and assesses the damage. They will look at all areas where the fire and smoke affected the home. They will also look for signs of water damage.
They will need to see how far the smoke and flames when into the internal structures of the home. They will also need to see what the cleanup process will be and how long it will take.
They will also look at the belongings inside the home and see if they can be restored or if they will need to be replaced. Once all these factors have been assessed, they can make a timeframe and a cost estimation.
Debris Removal
Once the assessment is over, the property needs to be secured. This is to ensure no one enters the property because they could be harmed. A fence will need to be erected and all debris near the fence line picked up first.
If the roof has damage, they will need to close the openings and put a tarp over it so that rain cannot get inside. If the entire home was not affected by the fire, the safe parts will need to be covered and protected.
All areas not affected need to be completely sealed off so that soot and debris do not get inside as they are being removed from the property.
Water Removal
Water is removed first so that mold does not have the chance to grow. All your belongings will be removed from the home before this process begins. The drywall and flooring will also need to be removed so the area can be dried.
Drying all the water out is extremely important because you want to make sure the carpet and flooring do not remain wet. Moisture and humidity levels also need to be checked to ensure all the water has been removed.
During this phase, certain parts of the home might also be demolished so they can be repaired with new structures.
Smoke Removal
This is what will take the longest time. The entire home will need to be cleaned from top to bottom. The interior and exterior also have to be completely cleaned as all areas will be covered in soot and smoke.
Once the areas have been cleaned, the company will also need to apply deodorizers. Smoke can stay in the air and on surfaces, so the smell has to be taken out of the home with special substances so there is no presence of smoke once you move back in.
If there is water damage, they also need to apply chemicals to prevent microbes and mold from growing where the home became wet. If belongings were removed that could be restored, they will be restored and then moved back into the home after this process has been completed.
Make sure the company also removes all soot and smoke from air ducts as they like to hide in these spots and then come back out when you start running the HVAC systems again.
Construction
Now that cleaning has been completed, the home can be restored back to the way it was before the fire. Some parts of the home might not be able to be restored and they will have to be completely replaced.
The roof often needs to be rebuilt, the drywall will need to be painted, interior counters need to be put in, and light fixtures also need to be replaced.
Contact Fire Damage Restoration Denver Today
If your home or property has been affected by a fire, you can reach out to us today. We are passionate about repairing and restoring homes that have smoke and fire damage. We are professional and reputable with all the right equipment and materials to repair your home to the way it was before the fire.
We can respond the same day the fire happened so that you can get help as soon as possible. We also stay in communication with you the entire time we are working so you always have progress updates.