My home was recently damaged by a small fire that somehow started at the ground next to the one-story house. It then burned up the siding eventually causing a window to break and catching the soffit on fire before it was put out by a neighbor with my garden hose. Looks like an errant firework to me but oh well. While the fire did not burn inside the house, the window did brake and enough smoke got into the bathroom & walk-in closet so that room definitely smells of smoke. Does anyone have any recommendation on solving this problem? I was hoping to just clean it real well, but I have heard I might have to Kilz it and repaint to get rid of the small even though there is no visible damage.
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On the exterior, I plan to replace the entire window with a new one and replace the damaged masonite siding and ply soffit. Thanks goodness it did not make it onto the roof surface which is cedar shake! Some of the exterior studs on that wall are a bit scorched, but otherwise undamaged. Does anyone know if that stuff has to be completely removed or can I just replace the insulation and cover it with new siding? I am wondering if the odor of even a small amount of scorched wood inside the wall might still be able to be noticed inside the house. I’d rather not replace the studs if possible. Perhaps a coating of kilz on the scorched studs would help? The inside surface of that wall is ceramic tile.
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I appreciate any help anyone can provide.
Replies
Talk to your insurance agent. Even if the damage is too small to be covered, he'll have contacts for people who fix this sort of thing.
But being a cheapskate with a $1000 deductable policy, I am hoping to do at least some of it myself. Bad idea?
The original kilz will cover the smell. For the studs, if they are just a little charred, scrub them with a wire brush down to good wood, vacuum up all the soot, paint them with kilz. Not the latex version."Put your creed in your deed." Emerson
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
Sounds reasonable, thanks
Get an estimate for the damage. You can get a check for that (whatever's over $1000) and then do some of the work yourself, in theory.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
Yes, an esimator came out today. So once they determine the damages, the insurance company said they would just cut me a check, less the deductable. So perhaps I can afford to hire someone to do the inside cleaning, which I really don't want to do myself anyway.
There is an art to getting the smell out.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin FranklinThe
I have friends who have owned a Service Master franchise for many years. Damage cleanup was a significant part of their business and training. He said they use shellac to cover charred wood to seal in the smell. You have to do that for wood inside the wall, too.
I believe some of the products mentioned by previous posters are shellac based.
File the claim. Sounds like a five thousand dollar job, at least. Then you can hire yourself to be the contractor if you want.
All framing lumber carred deeper than 1/4" needs to be replaced. Less than that scrape the carringoff and seal the smell with Kilz. Where you scrape off a quarte inch, that changes size of stud. So sometimes that means shims or sister alongside to make things straight again.
reason - charring changes the chemical ccomposition of the wood.Charcoaled wood will combust at lower temperature than normal framing lumber. This means that any compromised situation can more readily combust again in the furture from whatever reason.
Wood charred deeper than 1/4" must be replaced because it has lost too much of its structural integrity.
To sister and repace, use structural screws instead of nails to avoid damaging the interior surfaces and tile
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Many many years ago I use to clean up fires for servicemaster and yes the shellac will work if you get most of the char off by either scraping or the best, light sandblasting.
However I think your main problem will be the incipient smoke smell, which has gone everywhere air can go. It will be behind the toilet, under screwed down fixtures, etc. etc. So I would suggest taking everything apart.
Good luck!
Wow. I never even considered removing fixtures. I am meeting with a cleaning company today, so I will defintiely ask about the details of their cleanup plan. Thanks for the suggestion.
Kilz will probably dissapoint you when it comes to hiding the smell. You need to use shellac. It won't matter if you use the pigmented stuff (Zinser's BIN) or just any orange shellac.
But use multiple coats. And be sure to use proper ventilation, and good fire-safety techniques. Shellac is alcohol-based, and a pilot light in the area could kill.
Politics is the antithesis of problem solving.
Thanks for the good advice.
The stuff that shows is the easy part. Scrape or grind the char, if it's over a 1/4" replace or sister. spray with a shellac based product, we prefer Bin.It's all the hidden places that smoke and odor go that can haunt you. The insulation on the back of a light fixture, the foam gasket in a can light, where the air chased it up to the insulation in the attic or the other end of a joist bay. That's where spraying some Bin won't get you far, it's a small part of the whole picture.We employ odor neutralizers before Bin, removing & replacing materials that smoke and odor can bite into. Then we get into Thermal fogging and ozone zappers when the need arises.In our area Service Master handles pre-cleaning such as scrubbing walls and ceilings with smoke sponges and the post cleaning. Someone like our company works in conjunction with them to handle the Bin, restoration and odor neutralizing. It may be different where you live
Barry E-Remodeler
There is no charring on th einterior, just the smell of smoke. But that is some real good information. Thanks a lot.
Would you recommend I use shellac to coat the entire interior surface of the room? if so, will normal latex semi-gloss adhere to it?
Would you recommend I use shellac to coat the entire interior surface of the room? if so, will normal latex semi-gloss adhere to it?
Yes, and Yes.
Shellac is an excellent sealer, and its an almost universal "under caot" -- it will stick to just about anything, and just about anything will stick to it.
But note -- it takes multiple coats to get a really good sealing job. And don't forget what I said about safety.
Politics is the antithesis of problem solving.
I always thought the original Kilz was nothing but pigmented shellac - sure smells like it. Alcohol clean up for brushes, etc. ( I know there is a latex based Kilz on the market now.)
Maybe it's Bin I am thinking of - I hate to paint.
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
Edit: You are right - from their web sites - BIN is pigmented shellac, Kilz original is some oil based product "developed to replace pigmented shellac".
Edited 7/13/2007 12:52 pm ET by JTC1
I always thought the original Kilz was nothing but pigmented shellac.....
Not that I know of. The only shellac based primer that is readily available (that I know of anyway) is Zinser's BIN.
To my knowledge, the original Kilz was oil based.
Politics is the antithesis of problem solving.
I was the one who first recommended original Kilz, so I went to the web site and checked the product descriptions. Sure enough, original Kilz is oil based promer. But, they do recommend it to cover smoke damage."Put your creed in your deed." Emerson
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
See edit ...62.18, 12:52pm.
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
Folks, thanks for all your excellent suggestions. After reexamining the damage again today and reviewing all your comments, I have decided this job might be a bit to daunting for my amateur abilities, so I plan to hire a pro. My insurance company recommended several companies, so I plan to invite a couple of them in to get estimates. At least I will better equipped now to understand some of the remedies that are necessary to do a thorough job. Thanks again to all contributors.