Fire Damage Restoration: How SERVPRO Helps You Rebuild After a Fire

6/10/2024 (Permalink)

Experiencing a fire in your home can be devastating. SERVPRO® is here to help you through the fire damage restoration process, ensuring your home is restored to its pre-fire condition.

1. Initial Assessment and Inspection

Upon arrival, SERVPRO conducts a detailed assessment of the fire damage. We inspect the extent of the damage to both the structure and contents of your home. This assessment helps us develop a comprehensive restoration plan tailored to your needs.

2. Board-Up and Tarping Services

To secure your property and prevent further damage, we provide board-up and tarping services. This step is crucial to protect your home from the elements and unauthorized entry.

3. Smoke and Soot Removal

Smoke and soot can cause significant damage and lingering odors. SERVPRO uses specialized equipment and techniques to remove smoke and soot from walls, ceilings, and other surfaces. Our goal is to clean all affected areas thoroughly.

4. Cleaning and Sanitizing

In addition to smoke and soot removal, we clean and sanitize your belongings. SERVPRO’s advanced cleaning methods and products help eliminate odors and restore your personal items.

5. Restoration and Reconstruction

The final step in the process is restoring and reconstructing your home. This may involve minor repairs, such as painting and installing new carpet, or major reconstruction of entire rooms. 

By following these steps, SERVPRO ensures a comprehensive and effective fire damage restoration process, helping you rebuild your life and home after a fire.

How fire smart are your children?

6/14/2023 (Permalink)

Working smoke alarms reduce the chances of dying in a fire by nearly 50 percent. They are a critical first step for staying safe, but in order to be effective, they have to be working properly. For the best protection, install smoke alarms on every level of your home and in every sleeping area.

Teaching children fire safety-

1. Teach kids never to play with matches and lighters. Make a habit of placing these items up and away from young children.
2. Create and practice a home fire escape plan with two ways out of every room in case of a fire. Get a stopwatch and time how fast your family can escape. The kids will love it. 
3. Children should know how to respond to the sound of a smoke alarm. Teach them to get low and get out when they hear it. A child who is coached properly ahead of time will have a better chance to be safe. 
4. Use common sense in the kitchen. Limit distractions when cooking and don’t leave a hot oven or stovetop unattended.
5. Blow out candles before you leave the room or before you go to sleep.

Making sure your children know the basics is important to getting them out of a fire quickly!

Suffer a Fire Loss? Here is a list of Dos and Don'ts

4/13/2022 (Permalink)

All of our fire technicians are certified to restore your property faster!

A backdraft of emotions often sweeps over homeowners after a fire ravages their home. Fear, uncertainty, stress and doubt about the future of the property can be overwhelming well after the flames have been extinguished. After the first wave of heroes have rescued the property, call SERVPRO of Wayne County to help you restore it. With the industry-approved, cutting-edge technology and open communication, we strive to not only restore your home, but your peace of mind as well. While you wait for our SERVPRO professionals to arrive, there are a few things you can do until help arrives: 

• Limit movement in the house to prevent soot particles from spreading  
• Place clean towels or old linens on rugs and high traffic areas and upholstery to help preserve it 
• Coat chrome faucets, trim and appliances in petroleum jelly or oil 
• Place aluminum foil or wood blocks between furniture legs and wet carpet  
• Do not wash any walls or painted surfaces 
• Do not clean any electrical equipment  
• Do not send clothing to a dry cleaner 

The first 48 hours after a fire damage can make a massive difference between restoring versus replacing your belongings. Luckily for you, SERVPRO of Wayne County offers a variety of services to help ensure your property, belongings, and memories are restored to their preloss condition.  

Why is cleaning smoke after a fire necessary?

4/7/2022 (Permalink)

Call us at 919-751-5353 to get started!

After a fire, there is a combination of damages, from fire to water to smoke. Smoke cleaning is one of the most challenging types of damage to remove from a property because it is so invasive. Smoke gets into electronics, snakes through HVAC systems, and seeps into porous fabrics and materials. If you want the best chance of recovering smoke-affected items, contact a fire remediation professional in Goldsboro, NC. 

The 4 Step Smoke Cleaning Process

One of the biggest complaints about fire damage is smoke odor. The odor permeates everything. It is incredibly challenging to remove and will likely require a tremendous amount of patience. Any professional service will follow a four-step approach to remove the odor of smoke residue.

1. Surface Debris Removal

The first stage of smoke damage cleanup is the surface cleaning of items in your home. There will probably be a thick coating of ash, sediment, and residue on almost every surface in the affected area. The remediation team will comb through the space using vacuums and other tools to pre-clean the space, allowing further steps to be more effective.

2. Sanitization

Smoke residue is toxic; it is not something you want to get on your hands and face or into your mouth and lungs. Whenever entering your property after the fire but before cleaning, you should wear appropriate protective gear, like gloves and a mask.

The remediation company will go through after the initial cleaning and sanitize the space using different cleaners and purification techniques. You will need to call in other professional services to clean and repair appliances or HVAC systems in some circumstances.

3. Washing and Scrubbing

The remediation service will go through at least two or three cleaning and scrubbing cycles to remove any remaining residue and odor. In some instances, you might not have a choice but to get rid of furniture and other porous items. Smoke odor tends to seep deep into fabrics, and sometimes deep cleaning is not enough to remove or eliminate persistent odors.

If you wish, you can contact specialty cleaners for items that hold particular sentimental value. These cleaners often have techniques and tools that are beyond the scope of a traditional remediation service.

4. Restoration and Deodorization

The service you hire will ensure that everything they can clean has been cleaned and scrubbed thoroughly before moving on to restoration stages. The final stages of cleaning will involve deodorization, which can utilize air purifiers.

The restoration of your property will include the replacement of damaged walls, ceilings, floors, etc. When the restoration company is done with your property, it should look like pre-disaster conditions, meaning your family can return to a place that looks and feels like home.

Smoke cleaning is a bit of a tedious process. However, when performed effectively, the process should eliminate the remaining odors and damage. The extent of the cleaning will depend on the severity of the fire, and the scope of the damage often dictates the efficacy of the restoration process. Unfortunately, after a fire, the only way to determine salvageability is to have your property assessed.

If you suffer a fire loss, call the professionals at 919-751-5353

Can Spring Cleaning Prevent Fires? It Sure CAN!

3/28/2022 (Permalink)

Follow these cleaning tips to help reduce the risk!

With the arrival of spring comes blue skies, blooming flowers and spring cleaning. This is the perfect time for a refresher on fire safety tips that should be followed year-round. Keeping fire safety in mind when doing things around the house will help prevent fires.

First and foremost, check your smoke alarms. It’s a task that can easily go forgotten for months, but how convenient that you should change your battery once a year and spring cleaning comes around once a year. Put it on your list of chores for the big clean to ensure that it happens every 12 months. According to the NFPA, a functioning smoke alarm in your home cuts your risk of dying in a house fire by 50 percent. 

The leading cause of dryer fires is the failure to clean them. Clean the lint filter before and after each load of laundry. Also, be sure to clean the lint that may have collected around the drum and the dryer vent. Keep the area around your dryer clear of things that can burn like boxes, cleaning supplies, and clothing.

Check your electrical cords to make sure that they are not running across doorways or under carpets. Extension cords are intended for temporary use.  If you are in need of extension cords, have a qualified electrician to install additional receptacle outlets.  

Clean your garage of stored newspapers or other rubbish that can fuel a fire.  Properly store household chemicals in an approved container and never mix cleaning agents. 

Check and clean filters above stove. Pull refrigerator out and vacuum or dust the coils. 

Add these to your spring cleaning list to help reduce the risk of fires in your home

Camping? Follow these campfire safety tips to stay safe!

8/2/2021 (Permalink)

Wildfires can spread quickly! Follow these tips to be sure your next camping trip is a safe one!

1. Know the rules

Before you strike a match, make sure you know the fire regulations of the campground or wilderness area in which you are planning to build a fire. Fire rules change, and a campground that allowed campfires the last time you visited may have a temporary ban on them if the risk of wildfires is high. Pay attention to posted signs and check the ranger’s station for current campfire regulations. 

2. Use the pit

Most campgrounds provide a fire pit or fire ring in which to build a campfire. If a pit is provided, this is the only place you should build a campfire. If you're in a remote area where campfires are allowed but a pit is not provided, dig a fire pit in an open area away from overhanging branches, power lines or other hazards that could catch on fire. Once the pit has been dug, circle the pit with rocks, ensuring there is a ten-foot area around the pit that is cleared of anything that could catch on fire. 

3. Build a safe campfire

Once your pit is in place, build a safe campfire. Start the fire with dried leaves or grass that will easily catch fire. Next, add kindling, small twigs and sticks that are less than an inch in diameter. As the fire builds, add the largest pieces of wood to the fire.  

4. Mind the match

Start your campfire with a match and then make sure it is completely extinguished before disposing of it. Pour water over the match or throw it directly into the fire to burn. Never use lighter fluid, gas, kerosene, or other flammable liquids to start a fire.

5. Use local firewood

Though it may not be apparent to the naked eye, tree-killing insects and diseases can live on firewood. If you’re going camping six hours down the road and decide to bring firewood from home you could, without knowing it, transport insects and diseases and inadvertently introduce them into the forests where they weren’t found before.  

6. Keep water handy

Don’t start a campfire without having a bucket of water and a shovel nearby. The water can be used to douse any runaway flames and the shovel can be used to throw sand or dirt on any flames that jump the perimeter of your fire ring.   

7. Pay attention to the wind

A strong breeze can spread your fire in an instant. To make sure a sudden gust of wind doesn’t turn your campfire into a wildfire, keep anything flammable, including unused firewood, upwind and at least 15 feet away from the fire. The 15-foot rule also goes for your tent and clothing hung to dry. 

8. Be careful with kids and pets

It’s not just the risk of forest fires that you need to be mindful of while camping. Campfires are the leading cause of children’s camping injuries in the United States. 

9. Never leave a campfire unattended 

A campfire should not be left alone, even for one minute. A small breeze can spread fire quickly, so there should be at least one set of eyes monitoring the fire at all times. 

10. Put the fire out properly—every time 

When you are done with your campfire make sure it is extinguished properly. Dump water on the fire, stir the ashes with a shovel, then dump more water on the fire. The campfire should be cold before you leave it unattended. If it is too hot to touch, then it is too hot to leave.  

Wildfires and what you need to know

9/2/2020 (Permalink)

1. A wildfire is an uncontrolled fire. Wildfires often occur in wild, unpopulated areas, but they can occur anywhere and harm homes, agriculture, humans, and animals in their path.
2. Firefighters also refer to these disasters as surface fires, dependent crown fires, spot fires, and ground fires. Want to make local firefighters happy -- and even better at their jobs? Bake cookies to say thanks! 
3. 90% of all wildfires are started by humans.
4. One of the largest fires in recent history was in 1825 when a fire tore through Maine and New Brunswick, Canada, burning 3 million acres of forest.
5. Weather conditions can directly contribute to the occurrence of wildfires through lightning strikes or indirectly by an extended dry spell or drought.
6. Wildfires can be caused by an accumulation of dead matter (leaves, twigs, and trees) that can create enough heat in some instances to spontaneously combust and ignite the surrounding area.
7. Lightning strikes the earth over 100,000 times a day. 10 to 20% of these lightning strikes can cause fire.
8. Manmade combustions from arson, human carelessness, or lack of fire safety cause wildfire disasters every year.
9. An average of 1.2 million acres of US woodland burn every year.
10. A large wildfire or conflagration is capable of modifying the local weather conditions (AKA producing its own weather).

Preparing for the unexpected

8/29/2020 (Permalink)

Obviously no one wants to have a fire start inside their home but it only takes a split second. Maybe you went to check on your child while the chicken cooked a little longer. Maybe your dog is rambunctious and bumped the table and your candle hit the floor or your electrical wiring is old in your home and something shorts out. No matter the situation you should be as prepared as possible.

Do you have smoke detectors in place? Are the batteries good? Have you tested them lately? Do you have a fire extinguisher? When's the last time it was inspected? Have you heard of a fire blanket? You can throw these over a fire to smoother it and contain the fire. These are just some simple tips to fire safety.

We hope you never have a fire in your home but if you do, SERVPRO of Wayne County will be there to help. Like always, our goal is to make it "Like it never even happened." We are on call 24/7 for your fire emergencies!

Anytime you need our help, call us at 919-751-5353

Content Restoration

8/19/2020 (Permalink)

After a disaster, precious belongings and critical documents may be damaged. Determining what is possible to salvage is a critical and delicate process.

Our production team determines if the affected contents are restorable or non restorable. Our immediate focus is to mitigate affected items from further damage and to create a detailed inventory of items that are deemed non restorable. Some items are extremely sentimental to clients and others are confidential, invaluable or replaceable. Careful consideration is given when our team works with your contents because we know just how important they are to you.

If conditions are hazardous and not suitable for onsite cleaning or security concerns exist, a pack-out may be necessary. Our staff takes great care of all valuables, carefully inventorying and packing contents and then transporting them to our own professional and secure facility. They are then unpacked, cleaned, deodorized and inspected with impressive attention to detail.

Specific processes may be necessary to dry or eliminate odor in contents. For odor holding contents, items are placed on mobile racks and set into a deodorization chamber where ozone is introduced, breaking down all organic particles often associated with odor.

If you have any questions about content restoration, we will be happy to help!

What you need to know about smoke and soot

7/19/2020 (Permalink)

Smoke and soot is very invasive and can penetrate various cavities within your home, causing hidden damage and odor. Our smoke damage expertise and experience allows us to inspect and accurately assess the extent of the damage to develop a comprehensive plan of action.  

Smoke and soot facts:

• Hot smoke migrates to cooler areas and upper levels of a structure.
• Smoke flows around plumbing systems, seeping through the holes used by pipes to go from floor to floor.
• The type of smoke may greatly affect the restoration process.

Different Types of Smoke

There are two different types of smoke–wet and dry. As a result, there are different types of soot residue after a fire. Before restoration begins, SERVPRO of Wayne County will test the soot to determine which type of smoke damage occurred. The cleaning procedures will then be based on the information identified during pretesting. Here is some additional information:

Wet Smoke – Plastic and Rubber

• Low heat, smoldering, pungent odor, sticky, smeary. Smoke webs are more difficult to clean.

Dry Smoke – Paper and Wood

• Fast burning, high temperatures, heat rises therefore smoke rises.

Protein Fire Residue – Produced by evaporation of material rather than from a fire

• Virtually invisible, discolors paints and varnishes, extreme pungent odor. 

Our Fire Damage Restoration Services

Since each smoke and fire damage situation is a little different, each one requires a unique solution tailored for the specific conditions.  We have the equipment, expertise, and experience to restore your fire and smoke damage.  We will also treat your family with empathy and respect and your property with care.

Have Questions about Fire, Smoke, or Soot Damage?
Call Us Today – (919)751-5353

Protect your pets!!

5/18/2019 (Permalink)

Picture this: You are not at home. A fire breaks out in your home. Your pets are there all alone. Just the thought of such a story horrifies me. Unfortunately, it is not an uncommon possibility. Recent data from the National Fire Protection Association indicates that 500,000 pets a year are affected by house fires. 

Annually, pets are responsible for starting 1,000 house fires. 

Prevention is a Priority

•  Extinguish open flames — Like moths drawn to light, pets tend to be curious about flames and will be attracted to candles, lanterns, stoves and open fires like the fireplace or BBQ. To avoid problems make sure all sources of fire are completely extinguished and do not pose a threat.

• Remove or protect stove knobs — Pets accidentally turning on stove knobs is the leading reason for pet started house fires, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Remove or protect stove knobs from activation while you are away.

• Flameless candles — Although not as aromatic as regular candles, the light bulbs in flameless candles are unlikely to start a fire if knocked over by your pet.

• Inspect and pet proof — Be alert to loose electrical wires, appliances, and other hazards within your pet’s reach.

Fire Prevention Week

10/9/2017 (Permalink)

October 8-14 is Fire Prevention Week. This year's theme is Every Second Counts-Plan Two Ways Out! 

In the event of a fire, you only have a matter of seconds to react. Having a plan with your family will make a difference. 

1. Have two escape routes planned and practice them regularly with your family. Remind your family in the event of heavy smoke to GET LOW AND GO!

2. Have a designated meeting place and be sure each family member knows where to go. 

3. Once you get out-STAY OUT! Remind your children's to NEVER go back in for anything. 

Our SERVPRO family wants you to stay safe and informed. For more safety tips and practices visit www.firepreventionweek.org