Tips For Recovering From House Fires

Fires have become an all to common occurrence across the western half of America. Rising temperatures, careless smokers or campers, and ever more powerful storms have made fires a hot topic for homeowners across the country. Even a minor house fire can cause untold amounts of damage, and in the aftermath of such an event it can be hard to know just how to respond. If you are unfortunate enough to find yourself in this situation, there are several important things to remember to make the recovery process as painless as possible.

• Immediately after a fire has been extinguished, thoroughly check the area for signs of continued burn. If the fire was near a wall it may have spread surreptitiously into drywall, framing or insulation and could flare up again. Be mindful for any smoke or burning smells. This is especially important if you extinguished the fire yourself
• Replace any fire fighting equipment as quickly as possible including fire extinguishers or damaged smoke detectors.
• If your home is covered by insurance for fire damage, do not touch anything in the damaged area until a representative has been dispatched to examine the site. An adjuster will come to your home to take pictures and assess the level of damage and coverage they think you deserve, and even minor alterations to the site could affect their analysis, and in some cases could even result in a penalty if a damaged site was obviously tampered with.
• Dispose of any food that may have been exposed in any way to the fire, including smoke. The fire may have ignited chemicals in the material is was burning and deposited the potentially toxic byproduct on any exposed surface.
• Take any family members exposed to smoke or flame to the doctor’s office or local clinic to check for smoke or chemical inhalation. If left untreated, the effects of smoke inhalation can become life threatening.
• Do not attempt to clean smoke or fire damaged surfaces yourself without consulting expert advisers. Using inappropriate cleaning methods can actually worsen the damage to carpets or painted surfaces. These are best left to fire restoration experts.
• When shopping for a restoration service, you should make sure you know what you are getting. A good fire damage restoration service should be able to give you price and time estimates, as well as a thorough list of all the work that is required so you know you aren’t getting swindled. They should also be capable of repairing the damage caused by the extinguishing of the fire including water damage from sprinklers or hoses and any damage that may have been caused by emergency services attempting to reach victims or the source of the fire itself.