Residential fire and smoke damage: Frequently asked questions

Posted by Kiran on July 16, 2019

Fire damaged house in west palm beach

As per the statistics from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), the public fire departments in the US have responded to 1,319,500 fires in 2017.

The fire departments in various counties responded to 149,893 residential fire cases and 22,308 business/mercantile fire cases during the period 2013 – 2017.

During the same period (2013-2017) an overall property loss worth $2,938,616,923 has been reported from a total of 620,002 reported fires across residential, commercial and unclassified properties.

Fire damage to a home or office property can be a big headache. While the former disrupts the concept of the best place to dwell, the latter can bring businesses to a standstill.

What can you do to prevent fire in your workplace or house? What are the precautions that you can take against fire damage? This post features some of the frequently asked questions related to fire damage to residential and commercial properties.

What are the main causes of a house or office fire?

Cooking, smoking and electrical negligence are considered to be the most common causes of home and office fires.
Electrical negligence: faulty wiring or failing to service or using faulty equipments without proper care can be the main triggers for fire. Do not overload the electrical sockets and ensure that none of your electrical equipments get overheated.

Cooking: getting distracted from cooking and leaving the situation unattended is surprisingly common in both house and workspace. It is ideal to have an automatic fire detection system for both office and residential cooking areas.

Smoking: smoking at home or office and not putting out a fire properly can easily trigger a fire. This is where a fire detector can come in handy.

How can you prevent fire accidents?

Follow these tips to prevent fire in office or residential properties:

Take extra care while cooking using hotplates and do not leave cooking unattended

Instal approved or certified smoke detectors throughout the property

Design a fire evacuation plan for office spaces and plan your escape route in case of residential fire

Considering electrical safety, do not flex wires together and get your wiring installation inspected by a certified specialist at least once every five years

How do you eliminate smoke odor in a house or commercial property?

Recovering from a residential or commercial property fire can be a slow and painful task. Of all the things, eliminating the smoke odor after a property fire can be the most challenging.

Smoke order is resilient and can easily tag itself to almost anything in your house or office space. Be it carpet, drapes, furniture or even walls.

This is where you need to consider these 5 proven tips for eliminating smoke odor.

What should I do if I had to use an excessive amount of water to extinguish a fire?

Even when you have requested the assistance from a professional fire damage restoration service, you start doing some damage control of your own, while waiting for their arrival.

If you ended up using excessive water, consider the following:

If the carpets seem to be completely soaked and beyond recovery, consider removing it

Resort to high powered fans; you can rent one from a nearby hardware store

Lubricate the metal items or furniture frames with petroleum jelly to prevent rusting

Foresee the possibility of mold formation and use commercial grade dehumidifiers

What should you not do during a fire?

Do not attempt the following in case of a property fire

Do not try to kill a chip pan fire using water: water doesn’t mix with oil and it can cause an explosive reaction and spread the fire further

Do not use lift to evacuate the building

Do not take shelter in the cupboard or under the bed

Do not try and jump out the upstairs windows

Fighting a fire can be a difficult task and recovery can be equally painful. It is smart to foresee these aspects and make the wise move to prevent a property fire at any cause.

5 proven ways to deal with smoke odor

Posted by Kiran on July 1, 2019

Smoke in a house picture

Fire damage is the worst case scenario for any residential or commercial property. Recovery from fire damage can be painfully slow.

Even when you have digested the reality of what has been lost; you are always in for a difficult road ahead in terms of restoring your property back to its original condition.

In addition to the damage to the structural materials and other household items, the supplementary hazards from fire damage like smoke odor and soot pollution can disrupt the harmony of the inhabitants.

The fact that something like smoke odor can continue affecting your wellbeing long after the fire has been extinguished is alarming.

So what are the some of the proven ways to deal with smoke odor from fire damage? This post features some peerless tips to deal with smoke odor quickly and efficiently.

Clean the air duct and the HVAC system

Most of the house owners and to our surprise, even some fire restoration services overlook the possibility of smoke odor contamination via the air duct and HVAC systems. Any ductwork within your house is a potential spot for the smoke to linger.

Smoke infested ductworks can degrade the air quality and pose a health risk to the inhabitants. We recommend replacing the air-conditioning filter after the along with other fire damage restoration processes. Also, get your HVAC system inspected for any possible damages pertinent to the fire incident.

Wash the solid surface

Prepare a solution with one gallon of water, a quarter cup of white vinegar and two or three teaspoons of shampoo to clean the hard surfaces.

The advantage of this solution is that it can be used on multiple surfaces including doors, wooden floors, cabinets, furniture, windows and door frames.

You can spray the solution on surfaces like window sills, cabinets and wipe it with a clean rag. Rinse the rag after each run using clean warm water for best results.

Carpets & upholstery

Carpets and upholstery are the main household items that are easily affected by smoke odor. The fiber-oriented structure entraps the smoke particles easily, which can be difficult to remove.
Baking soda is a proven solution to remove smoke odor from carpets and upholsteries. Sprinkle the baking soda in affected areas and let it sit and absorb the smoke odor for a minimum of three hours.
Vacuum the areas to remove the smoke odor effectively. We recommend using a HEPA filter vacuum as they are known to have a fine mesh that can capture the smallest harmful particles including pollen, dust mites, and even tobacco smoke.

Thermal fogging machines

Thermal fogging is another smart and proven way to alleviate the concerns of smoke odor from fire damage. A properly executed thermal fogging is one of the most effective means to control or remove smoke odor.
Thermal fogging can neutralize even the fines smoke particles which are deposited deep inside fine cracks or pores on any household surface.

The process of thermal fogging involves several tasks that should be carried out under the supervision of experienced technicians for the best results. This is why we recommend hiring experienced smoke odor removal technicians to carry out the task.

Painted surfaces

Using a glycol or ammonia solution is the best means to remove smoke odor from fire damaged painted walls. Wipe the walls thoroughly and let it dry, repeat the process till the odor seems to be under control.
Do not hesitate to consider repainting the walls if the damage seems to be beyond cleanup. If you decide to repaint walls, we recommend using latex paint and primer customized to suppress any odor.

Prolonged exposure to smoke odor from fire damage can have an adverse effect on your well being. The recovery period after fire damage is a crucial time where you have to foresee all the health hazards and act wisely. If you believe in the phrase “A small act of prevention can bring you long-term protection” and you don’t have time to invest in all these DIY smoke order removal tips, we recommend hiring a fire damage restoration specialist.

Burned interiors after fire in industrial or office building. Walls and staircase in black soot

Restoring Delray Beach Businesses After Commercial Fire Damage

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on April 30, 2019

For Delray Beach business owners, say the disaster and a hurricane comes to mind. Much of the interior damage commercial properties suffer though is due to a fire from faulty wiring or an inattentive employee. Even lightning strikes still occasionally start fires in our area.

When these actions cause commercial fire damage in Delray Beach, owners need a professional service to help rebuild and then reopen their doors as quickly as possible. As a licensed contractor, Titan Restoration Construction can rebuild any area business, regardless if it is the corner market or a warehouse operation that houses and ships products across the Southeast.

We do not remove debris or clean property, but our teams can begin work immediately after the facility is cleared out. For markets or warehouses, one of our first acts is to replace damaged walls from the fire.

Our teams start with the exterior walls to protect the facility from the weather and other types of secondary damage. The masons and bricklayers on our staff can repair holes created by the fire or knocked in by firefighters trying to put it out, regardless of the level of damage. With more than a decade of working with area suppliers, Titan Restoration Construction can source any brick or concrete block to match the unaffected parts of the walls and provide a seamless look to the facility.

Now, we rebuild the interior. Putting up wall framing is not a difficult task, and some business owners use the opportunity to change the size or location of offices and other work areas. Since we have licensed plumbers and electricians on staff as well, redesigning the floor plan is not a problem for us as long as it does not affect the structural integrity of the building.

At Titan Restoration Construction, we understand that every day closed can mean a major loss of income. Our goal is to help every owner get back to work to support their customers and employees with the same service as before the fire. Call us at 561-345-3751 today to learn more about what we can do for you.

Click here for more information about the city of Delray Beach.

small electrical fire due to short circuit

Fire Damage Repair for Jupiter Homes

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on July 14, 2018

Most Jupiter homes that need fire damage repair have to bring in a professional restoration company. Even a small fire can run into thousands of dollars in repair and replacement costs when it comes to just the structure of the home.

Titan Restoration Construction has served Jupiter homeowners with fire damage repair for more than 10 years. When the worst happens to an area home, we come in and rebuild everything to return it to the original condition or change it to meet the owner’s request as long as it does not compromise the structural integrity or violate Florida building codes.

Getting past the ‘red tape’ of state requirements is one of the things we do to help homeowners. Without a professional, general contractor, even the smartest homeowner can get caught between offices or find themselves without a building permit and no way to finish reconstruction.

Some crews do not clean up soot residues, or haul out trash; they concentrate on putting homes back together. With permit in hand, Our experienced Titan team can restore or construct everything from new interior wall framing to brickwork to putting on a new roof.

We can also complete the interior work as well. Our crews can replace wall insulation, then hang new drywall panels to close it all up. Technicians can also replace the floor of the attic and then lay in new insulation. Then they separate the new attic by replacing the ceiling frame and installing new tiles or panels.

With the major work completed, our crews finish the home with new paint and plumbing. Each crew has experienced painters and can apply any color the homeowner requests. The only restrictions usually are the HOA requirements for the exterior. We also have licensed and bonded plumbers to replace damaged water lines, sinks, and toilets to complete returning the structure into a home again.

In addition to fire damage repair, Titan Restoration Construction can also help homeowners navigate with their insurance companies. We have extensive experience with all major carriers in the state of Florida and can accomplish our work with the requirements of each policy. If you need us to repair fire or water damage to commercial or residential buildings in Jupiter, call our office today at 561-345-3751 to get started.

Click here for more information on Jupiter.

Fire fighters trying to control fire boca raton home

Choose Titan Restoration for Repairs and Remodeling to Your Fire Damaged Boca Raton Home

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on June 1, 2018

When a fire affects your Boca Raton home, you might not always know what the next steps to choose are. While most assuredly reach out to their insurance companies to bring in the appropriate restoration team to take care of the pressing concerns, there are often repairs and reconstruction efforts that have to get accomplished before a homeowner can move on from this traumatic occurrence. Fortunately, Titan Restoration Construction is here to help.

From the moment that our team arrives at your fire damaged Boca Raton residence, we get to work in inspecting the damage and assessing the work that needs to be completed. We keep an open line of communication with you the homeowner to address the most pressing of concerns that threaten your ability to remain in your home after the fire.

Often fires leave materials and structural components within your home severely damaged. To bring your home back to its original conditions, these materials have to be removed and ultimately replaced. This process begins with controlled demolition in the affected areas where the damage was too severe to get salvaged or restored. This concentrated effort ensures that only the affected areas get removed, which makes replacement more efficient and helps to keep claims and out of pocket expenses to a minimum.

Replacement and reconstruction are at the heart of what our local Titan Restoration Construction team does. Once the demolition gets completed, we prepare the area for the reconstruction or repairs, which involve cleaning up the area thoroughly, preparing edges for a seamless finish, or preparing materials for more efficient and natural repair.

While no homeowner wants to have to contend with fire damages and their often severe effects to the structural integrity of their homes, you always have the professionals at Titan Restoration to help make the process go more smoothly. Our experienced Fire Damage team members have helped residents and business owners in Boca Raton, Deerfield Beach and your neighborhood. Give us a call at 561-345-3751 for fast and professional service.

Click here for more information on the city of Boca Raton.

Storm damage in Mold damaged ceiling Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte, Naples, and Your Southwest Florida Neighborhood

Titan Provides Storm Recovery Services in Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte, Naples, and Your Southwest Florida Neighborhood

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on March 28, 2018

Repairing the damage from storms and natural disasters is often no easy feat. Renovations, remodeling, and repairs in southwest Florida should be entrusted to Titan Restoration, a certified and insured construction team with a decade of satisfied clients under our belts. Not only does this ensure that your home or business is repaired quickly, but you have the peace of mind working with our experienced team members.

Many troubling situations can affect your home, such as storm damages, mold damage, fire damage and water damages. Each of these presents their own unique set of challenges regarding both restoration and reconstruction when the effects warrant new materials to get installed.

Storm damage recovery throughout Southwest Florida is a large part of our business, as this region is often at ground zero for severe weather systems that hammer the coast and inland properties. Often rebuilding and remodeling is necessary for many homes following instances like hurricanes and significant tropical storms, as these systems can quickly upset trees, damage siding, and roofs, or even collapse portions of your home.

Fire damage restoration is another service that our Titan specialists offer, as many structure fires leave behind significant damage that requires demolition and reconstruction. Our team can assess the structural integrity of all affected areas, deciding which components need to get replaced and rebuilt and what can get mended with repairs.

Water damage does not always necessitate reconstruction and remodeling, but when your home or business falls victim to a significant water emergency, structural components can get weakened or irreparably damaged. We can remove portions of walls, flooring, ceilings, and more and reconstruct these areas with stronger new materials. These projects range from simple drywall replacement to more complex stucco work, block and bricklaying, replacement flooring solutions, and more.

Mold damage can affect many houses, especially in the humid conditions common to areas like Port Charlotte, Cape Coral, and Punta Gorda. Mold remediation is the recommended course of action, as mold exposure can cause health effects. Our Titan team can help you to overcome the damage that mold has caused to areas of your home by removing structural components where colonies grew (such as drywall and wood framing) and replacing them.

You can trust in the Titan Restoration Construction professionals to help you through any reconstruction, remodel or renovation that follows a damaging disaster to your residence or business. Our customers in Charlotte (Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda areas), Lee (Fort Myers and Cape Coral areas) and Collier (Marco Island and Naples) counties can count on our dedicated and professional services to be available when you need it in your neighborhood. Give us a call today at (239) 963-7574.

Click here for more information about the city of Southwest Florida.

water damaged house palm beach gardens and jupiter

Titan Restoration Emergency Water and Fire Damage Services in Palm Beach Gardens and Jupiter

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on March 25, 2018

After a fire or flood, it is necessary to remove all damaged material as quickly as possible. At Titan Restoration, our team has a history of completing high quality water and fire repairs, small and large remodeling projects as well as new construction. After we have a safe work environment, we begin the process of rebuilding your Palm Beach Gardens home or Jupiter business immediately.

Regardless if the water came from a broken pipe, split washer line, or a busted toilet, we have the expertise and training to restore and rebuild afterward. Titan uses experienced team members with extensive experience helping residential and commercial customers recover from water damage emergencies in North Palm Beach County neighborhoods.

Water from an outside source like a hurricane or other storm can cause severe leaks and so much more. Hard, fast moving rain, and wind can peel off the siding or tear the roof right off of a commercial facility or private home. Once it has access inside, the same storm can destroy the interior just as easily.

Fires are as destructive as a storm and can tear through a home just as quickly. Since this type of disaster can cause more harm to structural supports, our crews are trained to identify any damage quickly, install additional, temporary support using jacks and lifts, remove the damaged pieces, and replace them. We do this to prevent structural collapse, so there is no secondary damage.

Once we have made the structure safe again, our crews follow the existing floorplans to install new, interior wall frames. Once completed, they can hang new drywall panels so that the home or business quickly begins to resemble its original appearance before the disaster.

With the interior walls going up, other crew members handle the major structural damage. As a licensed general contractor, we can replace main supports like load-bearing walls and roof trusses. Once we have the frame rebuilt in your home or business, roofing crews can quickly install a new cover to protect your new interior.

Titan Restoration Construction has a long history of helping local residents in Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Juno Beach and your neighborhood recover from water and fire damage emergencies. We are here to help you, no matter if it is a two-bedroom home, a multi-story office building, or a light industry factory. To restore and rebuild after a flood or a fire, contact us today at 561-345-3751.

Click here for more information regarding the city of Palm Beach Gardens.

Fire Damage Reconstruction in West Palm Beach Homes

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on January 22, 2018

While most fire damage is primarily from smoke or soot residue, there are a few homes which suffer major damage that requires a complete interior rebuild. Titan Restoration is a licensed contractor that can rebuild just about any West Palm Beach home beginning at the foundation.

In a major fire, the interior wall framing often burns down to the concrete. Our construction teams install new framing and usually within a week or two, we can begin to hang new drywall. We can rebuild the house to the exact floorplan, but this is also an opportunity for owners to alter their home.

Depending on where they are in life, we have helped customers expand their kitchen to accommodate a growing family. If there was a change in employment, others have had us add a home office by shrinking the size of the bedrooms or the living room to create a new space. As long as these changes do not increase the cost of the project, most insurance companies sign off on them quickly.

Major structural replacement is a different issue. In order to remove compromised supports, our teams install inflatable lifts, screw jacks, and other devices to support the roof. We can replace everything with the same type of material, brick for example unless new construction laws require that we upgrade load-bearing walls or other support structures with improved building materials.

Construction is our specialty, but we can also work closely with you and your insurance company. Titan has many former firefighters on our payroll, so we know what is needed to help you navigate the rules and requirements of your agency when it comes to paying for restoring your home. It is why we create and update a complete inventory of everything that we replace.

Rebuilding after a fire requires a professional service. Replacing damaged supports and other structural property is a lengthy process that must have a licensed contractor to ensure your home is rebuilt safely with the correct materials and to current regulations. If you need to rebuild after major fire damage or another disaster, call Titan Restoration Construction at 561-345-3751 today.

For more information regarding West Palm Beach, click here.

Fire Damage Repairs to West Palm Beach Homes

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on November 11, 2017

When the fire damage to your West Palm Beach home is severe, it is necessary to accomplish repairs quickly. Once structural components are compromised, the situation does not stay static. Wood continues to degrade and rot; when it collapses, the secondary damage can be just as costly as the original.

Titan Restoration specializes in fire damage reconstruction in West Palm Beach. We are fully licensed with Florida to rebuild a home from the ground up. Almost any business advertising itself under construction can tear out and replace sheetrock or ceiling tiles. Very few of them can repair a foundation, replace the load-bearing walls and put a new roof on top of everything.

When a fire burns hot enough; even concrete splits and breaks. Our work crews start by grinding down the house and garage floors until we reach a point where there are none of these indications. Next, we smooth and clean out the interior of the cracks, so the new concrete fills them. Once we smooth out the new surface, most homeowners are not able to see where the new concrete blends into the old floor.

To replace walls, first, we installed temporary supports. Our equipment inventory includes a wide range of wall jacks, inflatable lifts, and other support devices. With these devices in place, our technicians build new structures using wood, steel, and aluminum to replace the burned out beams and framing. When the replacement is at this level, we can increase and reduce the size of certain rooms as long as the floor plan, and the insurance company supports the changes.

Installing a new roof is often the simplest effort. Most roof supports are pre-made according to state regulations, so we do not have to build them on-site. Our crews and drivers lift and set them in place with our heavy equipment. Installing them requires several days and then laying a new roof over the structure takes up to another week depending on how many square feet we have to cover.

There is more to restoration after fire damage, but these are three of the major tasks we undertake to put our neighbors back into their homes. To schedule an appointment or if you have questions about our work, contact Titan Restoration at 561-345-3751 today.

For more information regarding West Palm Beach, click here

Fire Damage Can Cause Devastating Problems for Property Owners

Posted by Travis Bumgarner on January 3, 2017

A fire occurrence can prove devastating for people in a home or workplace. Smoke from the fire can cause severe problems and damage to property. Florida is home to storms, and when lightning strikes, it can cause fire in a home. Homes can suffer damage from electric fires or when an appliance is not shut off. There are numerous reasons for a fire starting in a home and causing damage to property and harm to the members in the home.

It is necessary to put off a fire immediately. The first priority is to get the family members out of the home before trying to extinguish the fire. When there is a large fire, there may be a great deal of smoke and if this happens, make sure to evacuate the premises without delay. Call the fire damage West Palm Beach Company to help you deal with the fire. You will receive many calls from the municipal and city authorities. You will need to get in touch with the most reliable Public Adjusters to handle the damage caused by the fire.

Make sure to find a fire damage West Palm Beach service provider who can help you with the insurance company. Contact your Public Adjuster or attorney as they are the only two entities who will represent you with claims. Policy holders that hire public adjusters for claims that were non-catastrophic were able to receive 574% more money than those who did not hire these public adjusters. This is according to the Florida Legislature’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability – OPPAGA.

Here are a few valid reasons why you should hire the best public adjuster:

They get paid only when you get the money that is over the cost of deductibles in your favor.
Though the insurance company will out an adjuster to get the claim adjusted, they will not work on your behalf like the public adjuster you hire.
You will get only a fraction of the true value of claims.
Please note that your insurance contract is not negotiable and generally one-side.
Insurance companies will try to protect their own interests rather than yours.

The first step when there is fire damage is to try and restore and clean up the property to salvage the same from permanent damage. You should identify the best restoration company to take care of the repairs. The fire damage West Palm Beach Restoration Company should:

Take care of soot as well as smoke damage.
Should provide relief from contamination that is airborne.
They should clean and sanitize the area and deodorize the same.
Any water found on the premises should be extracted, and the place should be dried.
They should ensure that the area is clean and all ruined items removed.

The job description of a reputable service provider is to:

Find out the cause of the fire and adopt the best cleaning and mitigation method.
Try to salvage items and identify those that require replacement.
Make an inventory of the contents.
They will put out the fire and then close up the entry points to prevent unauthorized entry and further weather damage.
If there are any metal materials, they should be treated to prevent acid soot causing permanent damage.
The HVAC should be cleaned and charred items removed from the area.
They should clear the entire structure outside as well as inside from soot and smoke.

Every step should be handled carefully to ensure that there are no permanent damages faced by fire damage on the property. Call TITAN RESTORATION CONSTRUCTION at (561) 345-3751, if you have fire damage.

Category: Fire Damage Repairs