How Fast Can I Restore and Occupy My Kansas City House after Fire Damage?

6/29/2020 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Helps Find Ways to Complete Fire Restoration in Kansas City Properties Faster

When a fire occurs, you may be surprised how fast it consumes various parts of your Kansas City home. Although firefighting efforts and good fortune can help put out the fire before it brings down the structure, you are left with a considerable renovation challenge. SERVPRO has knowledgeable technicians in Kansas City who can help you estimate the time it might take to restore your property for safe occupancy.

 What actions are necessary during fire restoration in Affected Kansas City properties?

• Cleaning residues from surfaces
• Repairing or replacing charred materials
• Deodorization
• Refinishing surfaces

The combustion of different materials produces a wide range of products, including gases and residues, which settle in different parts of the house. You cannot occupy the house until you remove all the soils. Unlike regular soiling, fire soiling is indiscriminate, so you need to clean all contents and surfaces in the rooms affected by the fire. After major fire incidents, cleaning is necessary for the entire house.

Soiling also affects the exterior parts of the house, and especially the area around the eaves since smoke concentrates there as it billows from the burning structure. Cleaning after fire incidents is more challenging than spring-cleaning, which you can complete in a few days to a week - so it can take longer. Our SERVPRO technicians can help you cut down the time by availing more people, equipment, and expertise to expedite the processes.

 Which types of repairs are essential after fire damage?

Fires damage a wide range of materials in the house through soiling, heat, or exposure to flames. Damage is typical on:

• Drywall or other wall coverings
• Carpets or wooden floorboards
• Ceiling tiles
• Utilities such as power cables and air ducts

Depending on the intensity of the fire, the damage could be massive soot deposits, surface charring, or deep burning. In case of slight damages, it is possible to renovate the material through cleaning and resurfacing. However, deep charring and other severe damages necessitate the replacement of the affected materials. Although it is the less desirable option, it might be faster to tear down and replace the damaged materials compared to cleaning and refinishing, which involves several steps.

Our SERVPRO technicians help ease the restoration of soiled or slightly charred materials by availing the right resources. For instance, we have different tools for agitating the soiled surfaces depending on the cleaning power needed:

• Mild agitation

Brushes, feather dusters, vacuums, and compressed air systems

• Medium agitation

Dusting cloths, dry cleaning sponges, cleaning towels and crumbly cleaners

• Heavy agitation

Blast cleaners, abrasive powders, sandpaper, and Roto pads

 Can odor prevent me from occupying the house?

The nose detects odors when the inhaled air contains unique molecules. The volatile nature of odorous substances means they evaporate continuously until the source is depleted. Whether the odor is harmful depends on the source. For instance, if you experience odors because of aerosols and particulate matter suspended in the air, staying in the house exposes you to respiratory problems.  On the other hand, odors originating from deep within materials are only likely to cause discomfort.  

Our SERVPRO technicians help remove all odors to ensure a comfortable and safe stay in your house. We ventilate the interior of the house using axial air movers because they move large volumes of air, thus pushing out the air filled with particulate matter and aerosols. We also perform full deodorization to deal with stubborn odors.

 Which deodorization steps help remove all fire odors?

• Identifying hidden odor reservoirs
• Neutralization of odor molecules
• Sealing surfaces

Although odors are readily discernible, it is not always easy to identify the source. Failure to fix the source can limit the effectiveness of any deodorization steps taken. In many cases, stubborn odors emanate from porous materials such as unfinished wood since the molecules penetrate beyond the surface. Some areas, such as crawl spaces, wall cavities, and spaces above suspended ceilings, can act as odor pockets. Finally, the HVAC system can re-circulate odorous materials back into the house if it was on during the fire incident.

Our SERVPRO technicians take several steps to neutralize the odors. For the HVAC system, we place cheesecloth over the vents to detect whether it emits residues. If so, we clean the system. In the case of odors emanating from porous materials, we fog the area using ULV or thermal foggers, which deliver deodorizers that pair with the odor molecules, neutralizing them. In the case of charred structural supports, we apply a sealing agent to lock in any remaining after cleaning them.

Even a trivial fire incident can make your house uninhabitable for some time if not properly managed. Call SERVPRO of Kansas City Midtown at (816) 895-8890 to help with full restoration. We're Faster To Any Size Disaster.