What Is The Best Way To Remove Raleigh Fire Damage and Soot?

3/28/2023 (Permalink)

When your home is damaged by a fire, be sure to call our team of fire restoration experts.

SERVPRO Techs Have Certifications for Raleigh Fire Mitigation

After a fire disaster in a Raleigh property, the first action by a homeowner may be to start the housefire cleanup on their own. Everything flames contact during a fire either get consumed by fire or covered in soot or both. Because of the potential for permanent staining or damage from DIY smoke damage removal methods, outsourcing the fire mitigation service is the best option for property owners.

Raleigh fire damage restoration services should begin as soon as the fire department or other authority figure inspects the structural integrity of the residence and states the property is safe to enter. There are several challenges associated with smoke and fire damage cleanup, including:

• Removal of soot
• Air quality
• Security
• Water damage cleanup

Removal of Smoke Damage

Soot particles can be less than 1/4th the size of a grain of sand and may rest upon surfaces or be airborne. Due to this duality, it is difficult to remove the residues using a single method. SERVPRO technicians bring air quality improvement tools to capture and dispose of airborne particulates while removing soot from surfaces.

Handling Air Improvement

Post-fire, the air within the home has the pungent smell of smoke, and breathing the airborne particulates can irritate some people. SERVPRO techs set up containment when the worksite is limited to a single area within the residence. For large-scale house fire cleanup, they set up multiple air scrubbers or create negative air chambers to suction out the air within the home and exchange it with fresh air from outside at a more rapid pace.

Security Measures Can Affect Air Quality

During a fire damage mitigation service, it is not unusual for the technicians to put up security tape and use tactics such as boarding up windows or doors. These home areas frequently get broken while the firefighters put out the fire. However, when windows get boarded up, it diminishes the airflow and stops toxins, odors, and particulates from leaving through air exchange methods unless the negative air method is used.

Water Damage Often Comes With Fire Damage

The firefighters may use copious amounts of water to extinguish a house fire, and soot-laden water flows down and saturates carpets, seeps into the subflooring, and can wreck tiles. The techs use their moisture detection equipment to determine how widespread the migration of the water is and extract it quickly.

Special Concern During Fire Damage Cleanup: Electronics

Any electrical appliances or devices in the vicinity of the fire should be assumed to have smoke damage until cleaned and tested. Some homeowners mistake trying a machine and, seeing that it runs fine post-fire, believes all is well. However, the chemicals in soot are corrosive. Once they accumulate on circuit boards and other crucial areas within an appliance or device, they can act as conductors that disrupt the usual electrical impulses along the pathways and cause permanent damage so severely the article no longer functions. Delicate or expensive electronics can be farmed out for specialized cleaning and repair.

Professionally Cleaning Items

Removing soot from items before reuse is vital, particularly in plastic objects containing halogen. When exposed to high heat, halogen releases hydrochloric acid, a very caustic element. SERVPRO technicians have specific cleaning agents to render acidic substances left behind by smoke residues inert.

SERVPRO of Southeast Raleigh / Garner at (919) 615-1179 performs professional Raleigh fire damage restoration services for the local area. The trained and certified technicians are on-call for any size smoke and fire damage cleanup needed.