If your business has experienced a fire, even a minor one, time is truly of the essence! Fire damage doesn’t end when the fire has been extinguished. The effects of smoke damage will linger and continue to cause problems until you contact a qualified Chicago restoration company to handle the cleanup.
In this guide, we’ll discuss why it’s so important to handle post-fire damage restoration as fast as possible, and how you can limit the amount of additional damage done following a fire.
Why You Must Deal with Smoke Damage ASAP After A Fire
One of the biggest misconceptions we encounter among property owners who’ve had a fire is the idea that smoke damage is temporary or is simply a bad smell that will go away once the fire is put out. This is entirely false! Smoke damage is much more serious than most people realize, and it will not simply go away on its own. Without dedicated cleanup, the property damage will continue well past the end of the fire.
The smoke smell itself is problematic, but the bigger problem comes from the soot. Soot is the carbon residue left over after something burns. Soot from commercial building fires is usually acidic, or otherwise caustic, and it’s also been spread around due to the water used in extinguishing the fire. So, this soot basically forms a damaging coating on everything near the fire.
It will continue doing damage almost indefinitely. The timeline looks something like this:
- Immediately after the fire: Soot is already spread around the entire area where the fire was. It will have settled on walls and objects, and anything porous – such as plastic or marble tiling – will pick up a yellow stain.
- 24 hours later: By this point, the acid within the soot will have started eating into even non-porous objects. Metal, plastics, grout, and other commonplace items may already be permanently stained.
- One week later: If the soot hasn’t been cleaned up, your walls and other permanent fixtures will be irretrievably stained. Flooring, cubicles, and anything made of cloth will have to be replaced. Metal objects will likely be corroded, even rusting.
- One month later: Should the soot be ignored this long the damage will be catastrophic. Even electronic devices will be stained, damaged, and unreliable. Worse, as the acidic soot eats into electronics, toxic gases and other harmful materials may be released. At this point, the building would be actively hazardous to enter and maybe condemned without top-to-bottom repairs.
Additionally, there’s another danger: mold and mildew. Without proper cleanup, the water used in extinguishing the fire will begin to become septic. Mold and mildew can begin to grow in as little as 24 hours, including varieties such as black mold which are actively dangerous to people. Unchecked mold growth will only add to the damage, and the likelihood of the building being condemned if not repaired.
In short, time is of the essence after a fire is extinguished within your building. It’s not exaggerating to say that the damage will continue to get worse with each passing minute. The faster you act, and the faster an experienced Chicagoland restoration company is called in, the less you’ll be paying in cleanup and repairs.
What You Should Do After A Fire at Your Business
Once the fire is extinguished, and all of your workers are accounted for, there are two phone calls you should make immediately afterward. The first should be to your insurance company, to file a damage claim. The second should be to a Chicago-area water and fire damage restoration company.
Don’t wait for the insurance adjuster! Again, each passing hour will only add to the damage and the potential expense of the cleanup. If you value the property within the building, you should have cleanup crews on-site at the earliest possible opportunity.
It’s also a good idea to get as much documentation of the damage as possible. If the fire crew or your cleanup crew say the building is safe to re-enter, send someone in with a camera to document the state of things. However, of course, safety is paramount. No one should be risked just to get a few photographs.
Important note: wear gloves if you go back into the building. The oils on your hands can react with soot and make the damage worse.
How Fire Damage Restoration Companies Rescue Your Property
When you call in a Chicago restoration company after a fire, they’ll help in several key ways.
- Water removal
The first step in fire cleanup is to remove as much water as possible that remains in the building. The method for doing this will vary depending on circumstances, but generally involves a combination of high-powered blowers as well as vacuum devices. This allows your damage restoration company to suck up any standing water, while evaporating water trapped in the carpets, walls, cubicles, etc.
This is usually done first, to reduce the chances of any mold growth. Once it starts, mold can be difficult to contain.
- Debris removal
Many objects in your building will simply be damaged beyond repair and must be removed. Anything directly consumed by the fire will be destroyed, and often materials such as carpeting and drywall will have to be ripped out as well. If it can’t be dried and cleaned, it will have to be removed and replaced.
- Soot cleanup
Once the debris has been removed, the fire damage restoration company can move on to soot cleanup, and general cleaning. Soot does not come off with standard soap-and-water and requires specialist chemicals and techniques to handle. They’ll do what they can to salvage as much of the interior as possible. However, again, objects which have already been stained or corroded by soot will have to be replaced.
- Smoke odor cleanup
Finally, there’s the matter of the smoke odor. In this case, airing out the office is usually once of the best methods, as long as the soot has already been removed. It’s also important to change out all the filters on your furnace, air conditioner, and other air-processing devices. They may also add additional filters over areas of air intake, to help capture any particulate smoke/soot still in the air.
Fire and smoke damage restoration is a difficult and time-consuming job, but it is necessary. Whatever you or your insurance company pay for the cleanup job will be far less expensive than the damage done if the water, smoke, and soot are ignored.
Get Restoration Services from Genesis Construction
If your property has experienced a fire, don’t delay in calling the professionals! Contact Genesis Construction, one of the top restoration companies in the Chicagoland area, to minimize the damage and speed up your return to regular operations.
