Why You Should Leave the Fire and Soot Cleanup to the Professionals

   A fire in your home or business can be stressful and traumatic. Your world is turned upside down in a matter of seconds and trying to figure out where to begin is the first in several difficult decisions you will have to make. The best advice I can give is to call a reputable fire restoration company immediately. Many people assume that the aftermath of a small fire or smoke mishap can be handled by themselves but unfortunately, this does not hold up. Fire smoke and soot damage are three of many things I can think of that should be evaluated and remediated by a professional. And if your not totally convinced that these damages can not be handled by an experienced do-it-yourselfer, then please continue reading.
   My client lived in a beautiful home in Scarsdale, NY. He has a love of cooking for his family every night. One of these lovely evenings turned into a small nightmare. The pilot light on the stove/oven malfunctioned and set a dishtowel that was a little too close to the appliance on fire. Luckily, the smoke detectors were in working order and they alerted my client and his family of the fire. My client was able to extinguish the fire and gratefully the family was safe. My client said that he noticed the fire damage had seemed like it was limited to the kitchen and he thought he might get a head start on the impending cleanup. He got out some rags, some cleaners, a mop and a bucket of water. But as he began to "clean-up", he noticed that there was a lot more soot than he thought and it seemed to be getting even worse as he wiped and scrubbed. Thankfully, his gut instinct to stop cleaning was right because he actually made the matter worse. He picked up the phone, contacted me and I was there to evaluate the situation an hour later. 
   The damage did look like it was limited to the kitchen but looks can be deceiving. The smell of the fire was throughout the first and second level of the home. And the soot damage had traveled beyond the kitchen as well. That's why I recommend to home and business owners not to try to cleanup after a fire. Soot especially, can travel through vents and into other rooms. It sticks well to fabric, walls, ceilings, floors and all of the other little items that are in your home. If you happen to sit on a sofa that has a thin layer of soot that isn't really visible, it makes the damage harder to clean. Walls can be particularly tricky. They can look fine but again, soot can be really difficult to see if your not trained to look for it and lighting can play a huge role in that deception. My client was lucky that he stopped what he was doing because he ended up causing more harm than good. Soot cant be cleaned off walls with water or cleaning sprays.
   So if you have had a fire, smoke or soot damage in your home or business, call a professional restoration and remediation company. Keep your family, home and business safe by installing smoke detectors and by changing the batteries on a very regular basis. Make a simple exit plan for you and your family in the event that a fire does occur. Leave the cleanup to the professionals and just worry about being safe.

A Fire Story in Yonkers, NY

   Currently, I am working on a fire job in Yonkers, NY. Unlike the other smoke, soot and fire restoration we usually see, this job is one that I will never forget. A child in the home had been playing with matches and a fire broke out. Thankfully everyone in the home was safe and as far as I knew, this was just another fire restoration job, but when my technicians and I arrived at the home, it was very clear that this was unlike anything I have ever experienced.

   The home had a typical amount of damage related to the size and cause of the fire but what I saw next was so truly shocking that my jaw hit the floor. The home was so cluttered with items, furniture, garbage, boxes, newspapers and the like that I couldn't possibly grasp how an entire family made it out of the home in one piece. The firemen had the hardest time out of everyone involved. Not only were their lives at risk due to the fire, but the condition of the home made their jobs nearly impossible. The clutter and debris covered the steps, blocked several entrances and exits, and the piles of stuff reached the ceiling in many rooms. There were only narrow passageways that broke through the homes contents, but they were dangerous and impassible at times. You can imagine how difficult it would be to close your eyes and maneuver through your home on its messiest day in the dark. Now, try to imagine moving through a house filled with piles of debris while smoke and flames burned your eyes and throat without a shred of light anywhere. This home was doomed even before the fire. It was the kind of house that you may have seen on those hoarding shows. A sad, unspeakably unsafe place to raise a family. Even though the fire had burned through quite a bit of the structure, the smell of the fire couldn't cover up the odor of mold and rotting materials.

   This was no ordinary fire restoration job. It became a clean out, mold remediation, water damage, demolition and reconstruction job. Because of the hoarded materials, the home had overdue repair and maintenance work that had never been addressed. There was water damage that was concealed by the clutter which turned to a severe case of mold infestation. After the home was cleared of all the debris, we discovered that the floors and walls were so soft that you could pierce them with the slightest pressure from one finger. As I looked around at the work that was ahead of us, for the first time in my professional career, I truly didn't know where to begin. I was assured that the family would receive the help that they so desperately needed. The home was a rental and I could only empathize with the landlord/homeowner. I assured him that I wouldn't walk away from this job. Thank goodness for insurance.

   The restoration process has only begun but I do have hope that there will be a finish line in the future. You can see that the obvious moral of the story is fire safety. We have to teach our children about the dangers of playing with matches. But just as important is that we recognize that illness can come in many forms. The illness that plagued these particular adults was hoarding. Their hoarding almost cost them their lives and the lives of their children. Keep your family safe by creating an escape plan in case of an emergency or fire. Be sure that your windows and doors are accessible to emergency personnel and of course to your family. Lastly, if you suspect that your family, friends or neighbors are in need of help, reach out to them in any way possible. The family in this situation were lucky but the story could have unfolded in a very different way.

 

Restoring Damaged Rugs

When it comes to a disaster, there is a list of to-do's that can be a mile long. One of the things that we specialize in, is restoring damaged rugs, such as Orientals, antiques, and heirloom rugs. When your home gets flooded, has a sewage leak, fire, or soot damage and your cherished rug gets caught in the mix, many times we can salvage, if not restore your rug. In certain cases, such as a fire, if a rug becomes so badly damaged that it costs more to fix than the actual value of the rug, than I would typically reccomend not bothering. But let's say there is only a small part of the rug that was damaged, then of course I would tell the client to do the repair. Many times, when a basement gets flooded, and it has wall-to-wall carpeting, we can remove the excess water and dry out the space so that we can eventually clean the carpets. But if you have a flood and the water has sat for over 72 hours, it is no longer considered "salvageable" by most industry standards. Usually we would reccomend removing both the carpet and padding underneath it to prevent any chances of mold growth. There are so many things that can damage rugs and carpeting; holes, ripped fringe, insect damage, flooding, burns, soot, and wear and tear in general. When you need an honest opinion and an honest estimate, give us a call. We have been proudly servicing all areas of Westchester County including, Scarsdale, Larchmont, Rye, Bedford, Chappaqua, New Rochelle, as well as NYC and Connecticut for generations.

MICHAEL BOWERMAN - PRESIDENT
BOWERMAN RESTORATION LLC & MICHAEL BOWERMAN CARPET CLEANING, INC.
17 JEAN LANE, HARTSDALE, NY 10530

WEB:   http://www.bowermanrestoration.com/
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E-MAIL:   michael@bowermanrestoration.com
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