Fire Prevention Tips for Common Causes of Home Fire Damage

3/4/2022 (Permalink)

What to expect from our SERVPRO professional fire damage restoration process in Suffolk County

Every year, there are between 350,000 and 400,000 home fires in the U.S. (according to the National Fire Protection Association). Any building is at risk of catching fire for a variety of reasons, knowing the most common reasons for residential fire damage can be important to fire prevention. SERVPRO of Medford has been providing property disaster cleanup and restoration service to fire damage victims for nearly 30 years, our IICRC certified fire damage restoration specialists arrive ready to rescue and recover your home and property following a fire, “Like it never even happened.”

When beginning property restoration services after a fire, our professional containe the damaged areas to stop further spread of hazardous soot, smoke, and toxins. SERVPRO is a trusted leader in the restoration industry; our team is ready to respond to your emergency fire property damage, quickly and effectively with unparalleled training and equipment. Giving you peace of mind that your property is being cleaned and restored by caring and competent restoration professionals.

Often during a fire restoration, many recovery operations need to happen simultaneously, some of our crew will work on water extraction and demolition, while others will inventory and pack up items to move to another location to help prevent further property damage from exposure to contaminated areas. Smoke and soot particles are small and can get deep inside building materials, furniture, and other porous items. HEPA filters help our industrial strength air scrubbers and vacuums capture soot, purify the air, and neutralize odors. Our SERVPRO of Medford location is fortunate to offer restoration and rebuilding services following a property disaster from fire, water, or mold. Using our highly qualified construction team will help keep your recovery process moving steady and hassle free, often it can also minimize costs and completion time.

FIRST STEPS TO FIRE RESTORATION:

Isolate Fire Damaged Areas

SERVPRO professionals will start with containment to help restrict odors and debris from contaminating the air throughout the house and keep the damage contained at the source of the fire and affected areas of the home.

Water Damage Remediation

Fire suppression and rescue uses a lot of water, and it can be just as destructive to structural components and contents as the fire. Our SERVPRO professionals will take the steps needed to minimize the damage by prioritizing water extraction.

Pack-Out for Contents

Fire damage mitigation and restoration is more effective when furnishings and personal possessions are relocated to avoid continued exposure to contaminated air and debris. Our contents claim inventory service creates a digital listing of the affected property, very helpful when corresponding with your insurance company. Specialized contents technicians evaluate the pack-out items’ conditions and recommend and implement efficient strategies to clean, dry, deodorize, and disinfect them.

Customized Soot Removal

Smoke and soot damages are especially invasive attacking every space of your residential property, including areas far from the actual fire. The residue from the fire travels with the air coating surfaces SERVPRO 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. Quick action is crucial to minimize damages; soot must be removed before it begins etching, distorting, discoloring, and disintegrating wood, carpeting, fabric, drywall, plastic, metal, and glass.

Common causes of residential fire property damage disasters:

Cooking: Most house fires are caused by cooking-related incidents, specifically, a person leaving a hot oven or stove unattended.

Prevention tips: Always keep an eye on cooking equipment while it’s in use. Use a timer to remind you cooking is in progress. Make sure to remove flammable objects and materials around cooking areas and surfaces.

Heating: Portable and stationary space heaters accounted for 32% of these fires, but most resulted from the homeowner’s failure to clean heating equipment or chimneys. 

Prevention tips: Have heating equipment cleaned and inspected every year to ensure it’s working properly. When using space heaters, situate them away from combustible objects such as clothing, furniture and bedding and turn them off when you leave home.

Electrical systems: Lighting sources are responsible for most electrical fires. Fires started through electrical systems represent more than $1 billion in property losses each year. 

Prevention tips: Use qualified electricians to handle your electrical projects, many fires are the result of improper installation by homeowners. When using electrical appliances, replace frayed or damaged cords, refrain from overloading outlets with plugs and use bulbs of the proper wattage for lamps.

Candles: Candles are responsible for 5 percent of home fire deaths, and on average, 35 home fires caused by candles are reported each day in the United States. 

Prevention tips: Don’t leave burning candles unattended and put them out before going to bed.

Fires cause massive amounts of damage to a residential property; the flames, soot and smoke can destroy structural materials, interior and exterior items, and personal processions. The aftermath of a fire brings a massive amount of water damage, toxic chemicals, harmful soot pollution and unhealthy smoke levels. First responders often extinguish the flames quickly, but soot and smoke move even more rapidly, spreading damage throughout the entire property. Even a minor fire can bring significant smoke and soot damage throughout your home. We can provide property damage restoration service near you, SERVPRO is here to help with highly trained IICRC certified fire damage restoration experts and advanced technology and equipment to restore your home and possessions and provide knowledge and experience when you need it most.