How Soot Damages Jamestown Structures and Belongings

3/30/2023 (Permalink)

Fire damage to your Jamestown home is terrifying regardless of the time of day or night. No matter the time, SERVPRO is always Here to Help.

SERVPRO Fire Restoration Services Remediate Jamestown Residential Fire Damage

National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) data indicates that US fire departments respond to an average of 346,800 home fires per year. Regardless of how big or small these disasters may be, Jamestown residents need fast-acting professionals to mitigate fire damage caused by soot, soils, debris, and fire suppression.

SERVPRO fire damage cleanup crews restore Jamestown homes around the clock with a comprehensive and structured process. Mitigation technicians are trained to render services per Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification (IICRC) protocols. 

The Far-reaching Effects of Smoke, Soot, and Fire Damage

Fire has a great deal of impact on structures and their contents:

• Fire temperatures and oxygen levels and what substances are burned affect what types of soot stains and debris are left behind. Smoke particles spread quickly and settle on surfaces, including hard-to-reach nooks and crannies.
• As materials like inks, finishes, and paints burn, they can emit unpleasant-smelling volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can also affect indoor air quality.
• Dry organic materials like wood and paper, are more likely to burn quickly in high-heat flames that leave behind a light, dry soot. Plastics, rubbers, oils, and other related materials typically burn slowly at low heat and can impart sticky soils that require more in-depth cleaning.
• Cooking-related incidents, which account for 51% of residential building fires between 2017 and 2019 based on Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) data, can leave behind hard-to-remove proteins from burnt meats and animal fats.

With these challenges in mind, homeowners may feel overwhelmed at the prospect of performing cleanup following a fire damaging event.. Fortunately, SERVPRO professionals are trained to treat these soils and remove debris. Even if HVAC systems were not visibly affected, technicians check ventilation systems for soot to ensure that smoke particles do not spread odors to other areas of an affected home.

SERVPRO Soot and Soil Mitigation Strategies for Residences

Restoration technicians can respond within hours of a homeowner’s call to inspect the affected property, formulate a mitigation strategy, and implement it, thereby mitigating the fire damage.  SERVPRO also performs rebuilding services and coordinates with insurance adjusters and property owners throughout mitigation. Homeowners typically do not have to wait for a claims adjuster to arrive before calling a restoration firm like SERVPRO for their fire mitigation needs.

• Technicians can partially seal ventilation ducts and implement negative air pressure with HEPA-filter air scrubbers to maximize soot collection during cleanup. Lowered air pressure prevents smoke particles from rising and spreading to new surfaces instead of falling on the floor.
• Technicians dry water damage from fire suppression, if present, before focusing on soot removal.
• The lightest, driest soils are remediated with HEPA-filter vacuums, dry cleaning sponges, dust cloths, and EPA-registered antimicrobials before technicians move on to heavier damages.
• Alkaline cleaners, ultrasonic cleaning, dry ice blasting, and hydroxyl or ozone generators may be deployed for heavy-duty cleanup needs for contents. This cleanup also mitigates odors in tandem with SERVPRO odor control.
• Protein residues from cooking fires can be remediated with the help of specialized enzyme digesters that convert these greasy, odorous materials to a water-soluble substance that is easy to clean and deodorize.

SERVPRO of Jamestown / Olean is reachable at (716) 38-4901. We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster and available when homeowners need it most.