Recovering from Water Damage After a Fire

A fire’s aftereffects can be disastrous. Even if you were fortunate enough to escape the fire without having your entire house destroyed, the cleanup is laborious. Toxins from soot and smoke damage shouldn’t persist, and comprehensive cleanup is necessary to make sure your house is safe to live in.

With all of these elements at play, it is simple to overlook water damage, one of the most important components of the fire cleanup procedure. Restoration after fire damage and water damage go hand in hand. Whether you were fortunate enough to merely need your less harmful home sprinkler system to put out the fire or high-pressure fire hoses were required, the fire has undoubtedly caused significant water damage to your property.

What Does Water Damage From a Fire Impact?

Depending on where water was required to extinguish the fire, the degree and nature of water damage caused by a fire will vary. While the entire house should be checked for fire and water damage, the impacts will be most noticeable in the sections that have had the most fire damage.

Drywall

In the case of drywall, cleaning up after a fire or flood may not be enough since if the damage is severe enough, the drywall will need to be removed and replaced. You should have your fire and water damage repair specialists decide what portions, if any, of your drywall can be dried and salvaged and what needs to be removed and rebuilt because drywall absorbs water and can be a breeding ground for mold.

Flooring

If water is not removed quickly, it severely damages floors, including carpet and wood. The sooner you can fix the issue, the better, as wood floors absorb water quickly and can distort. Most likely, the soot, smoke, and water combination will cause too much damage to your carpets and rugs, necessitating removal and replacement.

Additionally, floorboards should be examined for water damage and replaced as necessary.

Ceilings

Because of potential effects on your home’s structural integrity, ceilings are a particular worry when it comes to water damage from a fire. Your ceiling may have water trapped above, which might cause it to collapse if you notice any sagging or huge bubbles beginning to form. Due to the fire damage, it will be tougher to see the indicators of ceiling water damage, such as wet spots. Your ceilings should be carefully inspected by your fire and water damage recovery crew to make sure they are dry and structurally sound.

Permeable Belongings

When it comes to your things that might have suffered water damage, the list is virtually endless. Many of them will have soot and smoke damage and be the same. A material can sustain more damage the more porous it is. A hardwood table, for instance, will be able to absorb more than a metal one ever could. The same is true with books and fabrics.

The Hidden Danger of Water

Naturally, you don’t want your house or possessions to have water damage in the first place, but mold is a hidden threat associated with water. Both to your home and, more importantly, to your health, mold may be very devastating. Mold can lead to chronic issues and has been connected to a number of human health concerns.

Mold can start to grow as soon as 24 hours after exposure. Given the commotion that immediately follows a fire, it’s conceivable that your home won’t have had complete water damage restoration by then. You must hire a fire and water damage restoration expert who also specializes in mold restoration because they will be able to see any mold that has already started to grow and will be able to disinfect the area to prevent future growth.

The Cleanup Process

It can take some time to clean up water. Starting to air out and dry the damp areas is the first step. Sump pumps, wet/dry vacuums, industrial air movers, and other gear can all be used by a professional fire and water damage repair service to hasten this procedure. Additionally, as the structure of your home dries, they will remove any things from your house that cannot be saved or that need to be handled separately. More information than we can discuss in this article can be found in our playlist on fire damage.

It’s excellent news that you don’t have to deal with fire and water damage separately. Even though cleaning up after a fire or a flood is a labour-intensive procedure, a business with expertise in both may handle both at once. As you might anticipate, very few, if any, parts of your house will sustain damage just from water without simultaneously suffering from fire, smoke, or soot. Because of this, your fire and water damage cleanup personnel will carefully handle both fire and water damage when they are encountered, following set processes to guarantee both problems are taken care of.

Belfast Restoration can assist if you have experienced a fire and need assistance with the damage that follows. Contact us any time of day or night to start the process of restoring your home to its pre-loss condition. To make sure you receive the greatest coverage available, we can act as a middleman and deal directly with insurance carriers

Contact us right away for a free consultation.