My in-laws had a house fire that started in their basement (cause determined to be unknown) it consumed the first floor joists in one section of the house about the size of a small bedroom, but thanks to the fire department it never reached past the first floor flooring and up into the walls. They were not home at the time it started, so yes they are safe, but they did come home to find the house on fire and had a neighbor called 911.
My questions are to those of you who do fire restoration, what will be the sequence of events that will be required to repair or replace the damage? I understand the burned out sections will need to be replaced but what is typically done to the rest of the home, or for the smoke damage? I’m asking this to make sure we can keep an eye on the process, make sure nothing gets forgotten and/or asked the right questions of the insurance company and the contractor hired. What should we make sure happens?
This is one of those times you never what to learn about, but are forced to learn quickly.
Thanks for your help.
Andy
Replies
Call Servicemaster for smoke treatment. Generally, all fabrics in the vicinity of the fire have to go. All charred drywall has to go. All charred wood has to be replaced, or sandblasted first to remove charring, and then inspected by an engineer. Everything has to be renovated with like kind and quality: plaster walls if the orig. walls are plaster, wood moldings where there were wood moldings, etc.
I’m sorry to hear about the fire, house fires can sometimes to more damage to the owners moral and than to the house. I hope your in-laws get thru this OK.
There was an article last month or the month before on fire restorations in the Journal of Light Construction. It was written by a guy who specializes in fire restorations. It’s a well written article and will probably answer all your questions.
Good Luck
I had a fairly small tenant fire in a duplex in 1998. Minor turned into a $30,000 insurance claim. They removed plaster and lath ceilings and walls in about 80% of the house. The hardwood floor was charred in about a 20 square foot area, I made the decision to demo the flooring and "upgrade" to wall to wall carpet. This home was 50 years old and the floors were really shot.
I got a great remodel, new kitchen cabs and countertop, they demo'd the old tile bath and put in more modern fixtures.
The plaster that they left in the back two bedrooms retained some of the smoke smell. We just learned to live with it.
Greg