When Should I Acquire Fire Damage Restoration Services?

6/14/2021 (Permalink)

Building becoming fire damaged by recent fire.

After a fire in a home, it is important to act quickly in contacting a fire damage restoration company. Any sort of moderate to severe fire damage can require extensive treatment in order to minimize replacement costs.

If too much time passes after a fire loss, more damage could occur. By acting quickly, damage can be kept to a minimum, which can help homeowners save thousands of dollars and save sentimental belongings inside the home. By knowing that a fire damage restoration company needs to be called as soon as possible after a fire loss, you can make an informed decision on restoring your home for the lowest cost possible.

Physical Damage Caused by Flames

The initial cause of damage during a fire is the actual flames. The longer these flames burn could lead to more devastating consequences. Repairing walls, roofs, flooring and furniture that are more damaged by flames can require more extensive treatment in order to restore the materials in order to avoid replacement.

Flames create smoke and soot. Smoke and soot can be more damaging because they last longer than flames, which means if they are not taken care of quickly, they can create more damage over a longer period of time. Water damage can happen while a fire department is trying to extinguish the flames.

Damage from a small fire can usually be remediated by the homeowner or a handyman, but for fires big enough to create large amounts of smoke and soot, professional fire damage restoration services may be needed.

What’s Involved in Fire Damage

Fire damage can have many components to it. While every fire damage situation is different, there are certain steps to the restoration process that fire damage professionals follow. These include inspecting and restoring structural damage, removing smells and dirt promptly, and dealing with smoke and soot concerns.

Structural Damage

Structural damage is always the first addressed concern after a fire damage. If the home’s structural integrity has been compromised during the fire, there may be no restoration that can be done. Areas that structural restoration addresses are the foundation, walls, roof, flooring and doors. Structural damage usually occurs during the fire, but also during the extinguishing process (creating water damage).

Assessment of the severity and extent of damage is the first step fire damage restoration professionals will take upon arrival to the home in order to start the restoration process. Once it is determined what needs to be repaired and restored, professionals will protect damaged areas, remove smoke and soot, and dry areas that have been damaged by water.

Smell and Dirt

Professional fire damage restoration help is always needed, no matter if there is structural damage to a home or not. Fire can stir up contaminants in the air including dust and dirt and create foul odors. During fire damage restoration, one of the goals is to remove any foul odors in the home, and to clean up any dirt that may have been stirred up. Professional carpet cleaning, scrubbing of walls, and other methods are used to get rid of dirt and sanitize the home.

Smoke and Soot

Smoke and soot are almost always present once flames start to spread within a home. Homeowners must address this once a fire is extinguished in order to prevent further damage to the home. Fire damage professionals can arrive quickly to a fire damage in order to start removing smoke and soot and prevent further damage. 

Without fire damage restoration and removal of smoke and soot, there can be further buildup of smoke and soot within a home. If damage continues to occur, items that may have been salvageable previously may start to be beyond repair, requiring replacement.

Hire a Professional Fire Damage Restoration Company

For more information about our fire damage restoration services, call SERVPRO of Highland Village. We offer 24/7 emergency service in order to restore your home as quickly and efficiently as possible.