You can never be too careful when it comes to fire incidents. It is very difficult to predict what might cause a fire. In usual cases, it is a short circuit that leads to devastating fire damage. Moreover, if the fire starts to spread over the entire space, controlling it gets next to impossible.
There have been so many incidents around where even firemen saw a hard time putting the fire away. Additionally, once the fire has been put out, the damage that is left behind is horrible. You have witnessed your favourite spaces being completely shattered. Once a gorgeous bedroom can turn into an ugly crime scene in no time.
So, in case you happen to witness a situation or be a part of one, what steps can you take to make the fire damage restoration process quick? To help you out, below mentioned are some points that will get you covered in just a few minutes. Read below
Step 1: Remember to calm down
When you commit yourself to damage control, you should make sure to keep emotions in check. Yes, it will feel very overwhelming at first, but it is important to have a practical mindset. This will help you get done with more important things first.
A series of memories would gush in when you look at the spaces and start to collect the damaged goods. Just remind yourself that nothing is lost as you still have all these memories close to your heart.
Once you have calmed yourself down, you will start seeing the scene rationally. You will be able to figure out what things have to be tossed into the trash and what things can still be saved. As some burned objects could be releasing toxic fumes, it is important to keep your eyes and mind open at all times.
Step 2: Keep away from damaged structures
One of the most important things that you have to remember is the damaged structures. Fire does not only damage your stuff but can cause serious damage to even steel constructions. Some reinforcements could get weaken, and the building could get unreliable.
Therefore, to keep your family and yourself safe, do not enter the property without the experts’ permission. As they are way more experienced and well versed with the ill effects, they will suggest you correctly.
And if you get inside the property, keeping distance from faulty columns, beams, and even walls is highly recommended. Moreover, if you require some stuff from a risky area, try to ask for help from firemen already present on the site.
Step 3: Get a cleanup done
Even before you start to do any restoration work in-depth, it is important to get all the broken pieces away from the floor. As the situation could be very bad, it is recommended to take help from professionals.
In most cases, the firemen take away all the heavy objects which are burned completely. Another set of help can also take care of broken glasses or any sharp objects that could be lying around. A cleanup will also help you see what things are exactly kept where.
Without this, figuring out the damaged and undamaged personal stuff could be difficult.
Step 4: Boarding up windows and doors
Once the essential points mentioned above have been taken care of, you can jump to the actual work. The most important thing to take care of next is the windows and doors. In some areas, windows could have gotten completely shattered.
While the doors could be burned or damaged with no scope of restoration left, for such cases, start by taking them out. Watch for broken glass, and keep your steps very carefully even after a cleanup.
Now, start with the windows first. Start boarding those windows. You could even buy new glass as the chance of the frame being damaged are less. They could just be covered with a suit and could be cleaned easily.
The same goes for doors, you could start by changing just the shutters instead of the whole frame. These changes will not cost you much if you get them from a second-hand store. Going for very expensive material just after a fire will not be a wise choice.
Although, if the entrance door has been badly damaged, you could invest in a strong but less expensive door. You could even go for a steel or iron gate that does not even fall prey to a heavy fire.
Step 5: Deodorising
After the doors and windows, and in some cases even the ceiling is done, you could move to the next task. In this step, you should start scrubbing suit off the walls, kitchen backsplash, etc. If you have your stuff lying around, clean up would get difficult.
Therefore, what you can do is pack your items in small plastic bags or cardboard boxes and keep them in a completely separate space. Space choose to choose should be climate safe and is secure as well.
Now, you must be noticing how the sooty air still smells, even if it has been days after the fire. To do away with this, what you can do is use some air scrubbers, which will make breathing easier in the house.
To control the smell in the future, you could keep using some thermal fog machines which take away the sooty air in no time. Once done, the real task comes up. You have to clean up the smoke stuck to the walls and appliances.
For this, you cannot just use a simple soap solution. You need to have some stronger cleaning methods that don’t require you to scrub for hours. Just one or two wipes would be good to go.
You can find many products available in the market today that will let you clean not just the wall but the carpets, bedspreads, curtains, woodwork, etc. If you don’t want to go for market products, you can even make one at home.
Make a solution of hydrogen, rubbing alcohol, baking soda, vinegar, etc. They work great when it comes to cleaning up soot or smoke.
Step 6: Cleaning personal items
For this step, you could get some professional help if you want. However, it will again cost you money which you should save for the time being. Cleaning personal items is not at all difficult. Provided you have the right means to clean things easily, it will not take you much time.
To make the process quicker, you can divide all the items into categories. One category could be the ones that can be put into water. The other category is the one to be wiped. And the third could be the ones that require the soot to be dusted off of them.
Due to this categorisation, you will save time in moving from one place to another. The chance of you making mistakes would decrease. Moreover, you could use the cleaning solution mentioned above even for your items. Even this will increase your speed up to some extent.
Final Words
You could get stuck in some of the steps mentioned above, as this is a completely new situation for you. Although, if you can take help from professionals at any time, which will provide you with the right guidance at every point. However, make sure to choose help wisely, as dealing with your items carefully is very important.
Nevertheless, most of the pointers mentioned above can be taken care of by you without much struggle. If you have your family to help you, that will make the situation even easier and safer for you.
Summary
Nothing could be worse than watching an entire space burning to ashes, right in front of you. However, if you have happened to be a victim of the fire demon, it is time to stop self-sympathizing. As your stuff has gone through much damage already, you need to take matters into your own hands.
Start with taking care of your safety first. Keep at least one or two firemen with you every time you are taking a tour of your burnt house or office. Once space is declared safe, get all the broken and shattered pieces away.
As the entire scene would start to look clearer, you will understand your next steps. The next steps could be using the right cleaning products to wash all the soot and smoke away. Solutions with alcohol, vinegar, baking soda, etc., would work just fine.
Categorising your entire work can help you be done with it in just a few days. Don’t mind taking some external if you are willing to pay. You could also ask for help from your family and friends.
