Smoke Damage Restoration

A fire in your home can really wreak havoc – it can uproot your life and destroy your items. Even if you got lucky and the fire didn’t take over your entire home, the smoke damage can cause a lot of issues and be overwhelming to clean up. If you have recently experienced a fire in your home, continue reading to learn our recommendations for smoke damage restoration.

Clean Every Surface

It goes without saying that if you really want to get rid of that smoky smell, you need to clean every surface. Even if a room wasn’t touched by the fire, it can still smell like smoke, so you shouldn’t leave any room uncleaned. When there’s soot on tables or furniture, it’s going to look like dust. The soot is going to be oily, so try your best not to smear it around as you’re cleaning it. We recommend starting with a vacuum, followed by cleaners that can be used on a particular surface.

Rent a Dumpster for Smoke Damage Restoration

There are temporary dumpster rentals you can get. The dumpster rental company will place the dumpster in front of your home for a specific time. If there are items or clothing pieces that are impossible to get the smoky smell out, you’ll want to toss them in this dumpster. You can also toss any items that were damaged by the fire. The only thing you cannot put in these dumpsters is hazardous materials. The dumpster rentals are available in all types of sizes and can hold anywhere from 3 to 12 pickup loads of junk.

Ventilation for Smoke Damage Restoration

By all means, you will need to make sure your home has proper ventilation. After a fire has occurred in your home, it is important that you keep every window and door open for an entire day so that you can let some fresh air flow through the home. During this time, you should place fans facing out of the home (like a window fan in the window). This will help with the ventilation process.

Removing Soot and Smoke from Furniture and Walls

You will want to remove the soot and smoke from your furniture and walls. In order to do this, you need to use mild soap (a detergent would work just fine). You can mix 6 tbsp. tri-sodium phosphate with 1 cup of household cleaner to every gallon of warm water. During the cleaning process, don’t forget to wear your rubber gloves and rinse the surface with warm water and let it thoroughly dry. To remove soot and smoke from walls, furniture, and floors, use a mild soap or detergent or mix together 4 to 6 tbsp. tri-sodium phosphate and 1 cup household cleaner or chlorine bleach to every gallon of warm water. Wear rubber gloves. Be sure to rinse surfaces with clear warm water and dry them thoroughly.

Conclusion

Fires usually start in the kitchen, and this is where most of us store our food-rated items and cooking equipment. Most of those items can be cleaned, even after smoke damage, but for the items that you cannot clean, it would be best to just toss them in the dumpster. Soot that comes from the smoke can cause serious health problems and you wouldn’t want to risk this. Don’t put your health at risk and just get rid of anything that you cannot 100% disinfect. For those of you who are currently dealing with smoke damage in your home, we know how devastating this can be, and we wish you the best of luck. We hope that you can take the advice above and use it to better your home.      

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