In 2017, fires caused an estimated 23 billion dollars in property damage. This year, California wildfires are again adding to massive insurance claims expected to surpass the previous years.
While you cannot eliminate risk from a house fire, you can attempt to minimize the losses. Avoid expensive repair bills and future issues due to weakened structures and smoke damage. Then, after a fire, work quickly to avoid further losses due to smoke damage. The restoration process begins with knowing the extent of the damage, securing items that weren’t damaged, and beginning renovations. Trust TRAC Solutions in Eau Claire to help you through this crisis.
In order to prepare a proper response, the first thing you should do is to inspect the scope of damage. How deep did the fire penetrate the structure of the home? Smoke and soot might be coating your walls, furniture and fixtures. Can you see signs of heat damage?
Hiring a professional fire damage restoration company will allow a complete and comprehensive assessment of the damage. Everything should be recorded and documented for insurance purposes. All untouched furniture needs to be removed from the home as soon as possible as smoke lingers and embeds itself into fibers long after a fire. The sooner that you can air out these pieces, the better.
Do your research when hiring people to do fire damage cleanup and consult your home insurance company for recommendations. Always check into the history of any restoration company.
The first priority for the restoration process is to prevent any more damage from occurring. That means plugging up any holes or weakened structures. If the walls, floors, or roof got singed, they should receive an inspection for repairs or replacement. Remember, fire and water damage restoration go hand-in-hand.
The best fire restoration services will be proficient in both repairs and the prevention of water damage. This includes ensuring the home is properly protected by moisture and vapor barriers.
The smoke and soot that accompany a house fire can be impossible to clean out on your own. The staining that happens during a fire usually goes beyond the surface; only a deep scrub, sanding, and refinishing will get rid of the smoke.
If water was used to put out the fire, then the cleanup process will include pumping and airing out all the moisture. Special heaters and fans will then dry out all the contents before sanitizing everything. It’s important to take care of this as soon as possible to prevent pockets of mold potentially causing health problems.
For the priceless pieces, family heirlooms and furniture that are hard or impossible to replace, restoration is a careful process. When it comes to wood surfaces damaged by fire, soot, or smoke, finished wood has a much better success rate of repair than unfinished. Restoring wood affected by smoke and fire damage is a job for professional cleaners.
Fire damage restoration is more than just cleaning and repairing places that fire has touched. Making these tough decisions while under the stress from what just happened isn’t easy. Don’t make these decisions on your own. Find a company that provides you with all the tools and options that you need to get your home back. At TRAC Solutions, our fire damage restoration technicians will take care of the entire restoration process beyond the first shocking impression.
The team will protect your home from water damage as well as clean your heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system. We take care of the entire home environment, restoring the safety that your home provides.
Our fire damage restoration team offers residential restoration services for fire, water, and storm damage as well as mold remediation, cleaning services, and basement waterproofing. As a state-licensed contractor, our team provides customers with the most professional and complete answer for any type of structural damage.
After the property is secure, they thoroughly assess the damage and work with you to develop a plan for reconstruction. They work with your insurance company; you will only be held responsible for your deductible, not a penny more, as long as your insurance covers the affected areas. We are a locally-owned Chippewa Valley company with more than 25 years of experience in Western Wisconsin.
