Smoke and Fire Damage Cleanup Tips from ServiceMaster of Prescott

Smoke damage from a fire can wreak havoc in your home. Kitchen fires, closed fireplace flues, and electrical fires can send smoke throughout your house, discoloring the walls, covering your furniture, carpet, and everything else! The smoky smell really stinks up the place.

The longer you let smoke and odors linger, the more they soak into walls and the items around your home. Calling the professionals at ServiceMaster of Prescott to get an estimate should be your first step. We will come out and assess the fire and smoke damage and let you know how we can help!

Until we arrive, here are some things you can do to reduce the smoke damage:

• Once the fire’s out (or the fireplace flue is open), ventilate the house as quickly as possible to reduce the smoke damage. Open all the doors and windows.
• Turn off HVAC systems to avoid further spreading smoke.
• Turn on any portable fans and point them out the window. This will help suck/blow smoky air from the home.
• ServiceMaster of Prescott will assess the damage and help you to restore your items before the smoke ruins everything!

Smoke and fire remediation is serious business. We will clean walls, appliances, furniture, carpets, and more... There is no reason to throw out your precious items. We will restore them too and remove the smoke damage. We have special machines that will clean the items.

For hard to reach places inside your home, we use ozone treatments or thermal fogging to eliminate smells. There treatments will the remove the smoky odors from your house helping you to breathe more easily!

Before attempting to clean up the mess yourself, get an estimate from a professional fire damage clean up company first. You might be surprised at the amount of work it will take. Let us clean up the mess... We are here to help! Contact ServiceMaster of Prescott today. Call us at (928) 445-9205 or (928) 634-5402 or visit http://www.servicemasterofprescott.com

More Information:

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Why Does My Fireplace Smoke Into My Home Occasionally?

It has been a cold winter here in Northern Arizona this year. During the colder evenings, lighting a fire sounds like such a great idea!

You get everything ready and light the fire however, you were expecting that the smoke to go up the chimney and not come pouring into the family room. Ugh. Suddenly you’re wondering if this back puffing is caused by a serious problem...

ServiceMaster of Prescott has some possible answers to your back puffing problem. However, we must say that every situation is different and the safest way to diagnose the problem is to call a Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) certified chimney sweep to do a full inspection! A certified professional will provide you the most cost-effective and most efficient solutions to the problem.

My Fireplace Smokes When I Try to Light It.

If your fireplace smokes when it is first lit, it could be because the flue is cold. Before you light your fire in a cold fireplace, try warming up the chimney’s flue. Simply roll up a piece of newspaper and light it like a torch and reach it up into your fireplace as far as your arm will go, take your arm away and light the fire. This will draw the smoke to the pre-warmed flue rather than into your home. It’s a simple inexpensive solution and hopefully that solves your problem.

Lighting My Fireplace on a Windy Day Seems to Cause Smoke to Come into the House.

Most likely this is a downdraft problem, meaning the outdoor high winds are causing a draft down your chimney due to an oversized flue, a too-short chimney or lack of chimney cap. The good news is that there are solutions that a certified chimney sweep can put into place for this problem. Your chimney sweep might recommend replacing your chimney cap, adding a flue stretcher or an exhaust fan.

Sometimes My Fireplace Just Starts Smoking With No Rhyme or Reason.

Newer houses are more energy efficient and therefore sealed tighter than older ones. Sometimes changes in air pressure in your home can cause a negative pressure that will change the fireplace airflow. This could be caused by kitchen exhaust fans, opening or closing of doors and windows or simply placement of the home on a hill. Your chimney sweep might recommend a makeup air kit to equalize the air pressure in your home.

No Matter What I Try, I Always Get a Smoke in the House When I Light the Fireplace.

In an effort to be safe, stop lighting fires until you bring in a professional chimney sweep to assess and inspect your chimney. We don’t want your home and your family to be in danger and if the fireplace is constantly sending smoke into your home, you could be causing more harm than you think.

In addition to the reasons listed above, there are a number of reasons that your fireplace might be sending smoke into your home:

• Tight Home Construction
• Leaky, Broken or Poorly Constructed Chimney
• Crooked Pipe Layout
• Blocked Passage
• Air pressure
• Overdry firewood
• Seasonal Changes

The good news is that this is all fixable! Back puffing happens often and can be remedied.

Now what about the smoke left in your home?

What a mess! ServiceMaster of Prescott can help. We can come in and clean up the smoke damage in Prescott, Cottonwood and Sedona. We are experts in smoke damage restoration and get things cleaned up fast.

Contact ServiceMaster of Prescott to help with your fireplace puffback smoke damage cleanup today! Call us at (928) 445-9205 or (928) 634-5402 or visit http://www.servicemasterofprescott.com

More Information:

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5 Ways to Make a Water Damage Insurance Claim Less Stressful

Who needs a little more stress in their life? ServiceMaster of Prescott brings you these tips when dealing with water damage clean up and claim.

We have discussed in previous articles about insurance after water damage… and as mentioned before, if you have not done so, take time now to create a home inventory!

Additionally, taking a moment now to select a water damage restoration company, or knowing who is covered by your insurance company will save you even more headache later.

Taking a few moments before disaster strikes - knowing what your policy covers and taking protective action to make sure your home doesn’t suffer significant damage will your claim more successful and problem free.

Water damage and flooding are different things, so understand the terminology and the correct terms beforehand.

Insurance companies will only cover certain things. A pipe bursting in your basement is not the same as the Mississippi overflowing its banks and submerging your whole house. Most standard homeowner insurance policies do not cover floods. So knowing the difference will protect you from challenging your insurance company which might take months, leaving you to take care of bills you should have already been reimbursed for!

Be careful what you clean up: If there’s clear evidence that your damage was caused by an accident, storm damage, etc., leave it in place if possible, don’t create a situation where what caused the damage is your word against the adjuster’s.

Take lots of photos: In the smart phone age, this one is easier than ever. Document the damage carefully, as well as your efforts to reduce the loss. If in doubt, shoot a picture.

Fully document any involvement by others: If your water damage was caused by the actions or negligence of another person (ie Repairman) document what happened and their vital information. You’ll want their name, contact information, insurance company name and policy number, contractor license number, etc.

Know what your “loss of use” compensation is: If you know what sort of temporary living expenses your insurance company covers, this will help in the event you have to evacuate during the repair and restoration process.

Following these tips might make that claim check from the friendly folks at your insurance company bigger, and it will certainly make getting it anxiety-free.

Do you have questions or comments? Please contact ServiceMaster of Prescott for more information on water damage restoration. Call 928-445-9205 or visit http://www.servicemasterofprescott.com/

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Suggestions on how to deal with water damage from ServiceMaster of Prescott

The days are colder, the nights are down right freezing, and here in Prescott we have seen several days where the temperature is not much over 40 degrees!

Water damage is a real issue. We get many calls this time of the year for cleaning up water from burst pipes that froze during the night.

Of all the disasters that can happen in your home this one is the worse and more difficult to deal with! A burst pipe typically happens when you are away on a winter vacation and the furnace decides to stop working. After the initial panic wears off, the first thing you should do is fix the water damage the frozen pipe has caused.

Frozen pipe water damage can turn into a big mold problem if it is not taken care of immediately and correctly. Repairing the furnace is critically important; however, how fast you fix the water damage is critical to your health and future structure stability of your home.

The water damage the frozen pipe caused can lead to is a silent enemy that can quickly lead to micro organism that can grow in as little as 24-hours. Bacteria and mold spores multiply very fast and penetrate cracks and crevices where they thrive causing respiratory ailments, sneezing, headaches and vomiting.

Water damage that seeps into flooring and drywall causes moisture pockets that will rot the wood between walls and floors. Not only will black mold grow but the fibers of the wood material will decay very slowly causing huge problems that aren’t apparent to the eye. Eventually, they will need expensive replacement down the road.

Thorough drying of the water damaged areas, as well as quickly cleaning porous materials like carpeting, drywall, and subflooring, will minimize and possibly prevent a mold or mildew problem. If the frozen burst pipe causes a backed up sewer or septic system, an antiseptic solutions may need to be applied to fix water damage areas.

The best solution for frozen pipe burst clean up is to call an experienced and trusted water damage company like ServiceMaster of Prescott. Our technicians know how to restore area of water damage from wet carpet, wet hardwood floors, walls, flooded basement water damage, crawl space and flood damage.

Need emergency water restoration services in Prescott, Cottonwood, or Sedona? Contact us 24-hours a day! Call 928-445-9205 or visit http://www.servicemasterofprescott.com

More information:

Types of water damage

Mold FAQ

Water Damage Restoration in Prescott