Rule #1 after a fire: make sure everyone in the home is safe. Rule #2: make sure you have a reputable Pittsburgh-area restoration company on your side to walk you through the entire restoration process. We certainly hope you choose G.S. Jones! The better the company, the more smoothly the restoration process will go – from working with the insurance company to ensuring the job is done correctly from start to finish. Look for customer testimonials, ask family and friends, and go with your gut.
The fire damage restoration process can usually get started within 24 hours of the fire itself, depending on the situation. You can certainly start working with us and your insurance company to get the ball rolling before our technicians even enter your home. Our #1 goal is to get you back in your home and make a traumatic experience less so by providing top-notch customer care.
So… let’s walk through the process of properly getting rid of fire and smoke damage in your home.
- The restoration company gets the call and responds as quickly as possible. The longer you let the smoke and soot sit, the harder it will be to fix the damage that’s been done.
- An estimator will take a walk through your home and see the damage, and create a plan of action. This estimator will likely also be able to work with your insurance adjuster or insurance company during the loss.
- Crews will come in and box up any contents in your home that may have been damaged – from clothing and bedding to dishes, electronics, etc., that are salvageable. Believe it or not, many of the items in your home could be saved through special cleaning and restoration techniques in an experienced contents restoration division. If one of your children has a special stuffed animal, doll, blanket, or other sentimental item that could help them through this tough time, we are happy to clean that first and return it to you as soon as possible.
- Restoration begins. This could include removing carpet or other porous materials, scrubbing down walls with special solutions that will remove the soot and the odor, and wipe every single surface over and over until it’s clean. It could also mean doing things like removing cabinets from the wall to clean behind them, or removing charred beams saturated with smoke and soot.
- Address the smoke damage. If not properly removed, the smoke smell can reappear during a change in the weather, a presence of moisture, or other environmental changes. That’s why it’s important to have an experienced team making sure not only that your home is clean and the visible damage removed, but also that the smell is removed as well.
- Do any needed reconstruction work. This is pretty self-explanatory! Any rebuilding that needs to be done happens during this phase of the process. This is also when carpeting and other finishings are reinstalled.
- Items are returned to your home! When they were removed from your home, they were carefully packed up according to room and location. When they are returned to you, it will be the same scenario – except everything will look as it did before the fire.
