Tips on Cleaning up After a House Fire

After a fire strikes your home, you have to start picking up the pieces and figuring out what may be salvageable. If the fire was quickly contained, it's definitely possible to save items within the home, but there are some items that should always be thrown away.

Remember, before you begin cleaning anything, make sure to document all damage with lots of photos so that your insurance company can have an accurate picture of what happened.

Learn some tips on cleaning after a house fire in central Florida areas such as Plant City, Lakeland, Winter Haven, and nearby cities.

How to Safely Clean Your Home Once It's Safe to Go Back

Cleaning the outside of your home may require extensive ash cleanup, which can cause respiratory issues if masks aren't worn. Try not to stir the ash up into the air and do not dispose of it into a water drain. Ash should be put into garbage bags and thrown away. Make sure your gutters are not full of ash, as that could cause rainwater to back up and drain into your roof or walls.

Once you get the all-clear from the fire marshal and it's safe to go back inside your home, you want to make sure you are safe while cleaning. Always wear closed-toe shoes, pants, long-sleeved shirts, gloves, safety goggles, face mask, and a hard hat. These items will protect you from any fire-related hazards. Take a good look around, making sure to avoid any areas that are too damaged to enter. If you have sentimental items that can be salvaged, remove them from the home so they can be cleaned of soot stains or smoke smell.

If the interior damage is too extensive to handle on your own, the best course of action is to call a fire restoration company such as True Builders that can come in, assess the damage, and plan out a process to get you back into your home.

Items That Should Always Be Thrown out After a Fire

You've heard the phrase "When in doubt, throw it out" a million times, but it definitely applies in a house fire situation. If you're not sure if something is still OK or have worries it could affect your health, get rid of it. Items that should be thrown away if they were exposed to fire, heat, or firefighting chemicals include:

• Nonperishable food: When food containers, even cans, have too much heat around them, harmful chemicals can be released or the food can spoil. It's best to throw these away.
• Perishable food: If your electricity has been turned off for more than a few hours, then perishable food needs to be thrown away. If frozen food is still hard and has ice on it, it may be possible to still use, but again exercise caution here.
• Makeup and medicine: Heat can damage medicine and makeup. Don't take the chance on using these items after they've been exposed to a fire.
• Burned clothing: Burned clothing should be gotten rid of, as it can be harmful especially to young children. It is possible to remove smoke odor from clothes, using recommended treatments suggested by the American Red Cross.
• Electronics: If any electronic item was damaged in a fire, throw it away. You don't want to risk using faulty equipment and take a chance on starting another fire.

If your house is damaged in a fire, make a phone call to the pros at True Builders.

Our fire restoration company has lots of experience working with fire-damaged properties. Contact us today at (863) 647-1800 if your house was damaged by fire to learn how the pros at True Builders can help you get back into your home quickly after a house fire!