Did your Texas home recently face a fire? If you want to sell your property, you may first undergo fire damage repair processes to get the best price for your residence. Your restoration project will need
The devastation of a house fire can completely upend your life, but you can pursue a home sale with the help of a quality restoration company. Fire and smoke damage accounts for over $25 billion in home repair costs annually.
Here, you will learn about fire damage restoration services and what you must do to bring your property back to its former condition. You will find out about it all in detail below, whether it’s soot removal, drywall repair, or structural repairs. Ready to get going? Let’s get started!
Fire Damage Repair
Immediately after a fire, you must call your property insurance company to file your claim. Depending on the extent of the damage, the fire damage restoration process can take anywhere from several weeks to multiple months.
Further, depending on the number of water hoses used by the fire department, you may need to spend time repairing any water damage. You may even need to complete mold remediation if the water damage gets extensive.
You’ll likely need to hire restoration professionals. The typical fire damage repair tasks will include:
- Soot residue removal
- Removing and replacing damaged furniture and upholstery
- Fixing structural damage
- Adding deodorization systems to remove smoke odor
- Water damage restoration
Fire-damaged properties may also need to repair leaks and flooding, as pipes may burst or melt amid a fire and lead to water damage, smoke, and soot.
Other types of fire damage repair include rooms getting boarded up, demolition, and reconstruction projects. The basic steps necessary to repair your home after a fire include:
- Analyzing the damage
- Securing the property
- Removing debris and soot damage on-site
- Demolition and drying out flooded areas
- Thorough cleaning of soot damage and removing smoke residue
- Final construction and restoration steps
A property owner will need to have a fire damage contractor assess the damage to see what needs to be thrown out and what can be salvaged.
After a home fire, you will need to add fencing and board up affected areas to secure the property and remove debris from the land outside the house. You’ll also want to seal off the areas that haven’t been damaged.
Damaged floors, drywall, and more will need removal or demolition. Then, clean-up will end up being a more difficult process. You’ll need to remove smoke odors using deodorizing agents and possibly a new HVAC system.
Lastly, your smoke damage restoration steps will likely include hiring a general contractor for the final reconstruction.
Dehumidifying and Drying the Fire Damage
One of the first steps includes removing wet materials from the home, such as wet drywall, rugs, furniture, and soaked insulation. You need to get rid of as many wet items as possible to reduce the risk of mold and mildew growth.
You may still have a chance to salvage your wet rugs and furniture if you get a professional carpet service to repair any water damage.
Does your basement have any flooding? You can get a sump pump to remove the water from the flooring and move it outdoors. You’ll need fans and dehumidifiers as well as more extensive equipment. Fans will move the air around and potentially dry out the house.
Large fans will also play a big role in clearing out your residence’s smoke and smoky odors. The best way to remove those odors is to clean every damaged part of the house. Check your HVAC system. If it’s still working properly, replace all air filters and turn the heating system on to dry out the moist areas of your home.
You may need specialists to help you dehumidify and dry out the flooding after fire damage in your house. In addition, you may need industrial-grade equipment to dry out the flooded areas. A standard humidifier won’t do nearly enough, so you’ll need experts and quality equipment to make a real change for drying out your fire-damaged home.
There are numerous systems the top experts will bring to dry out your home, including:
- Tools to check for moisture
- Thermal drying trailers
- Dehumidifiers
- Large fans
- Air scrubbing devices
- Viking drying systems
- Sub-floor drying systems
Replacing the Damaged Structure
To determine whether certain structures need to be replaced, you’ll need a fire restoration contractor to assess the damage, strength, and quality of fire-damaged structures.
A fire can spread in only 30 seconds to the point of damaging your home, its structure, and any of your belongings. Essentially, you may face tens of thousands of dollars in damage. You may need to replace and reconstruct any damaged portions of your home, especially if you’re looking to sell your Texas property.
Before you replace or reconstruct anything, you’ll need to assess the damage. Your insurance company will likely send an insurance adjuster to check on the damage once you file your report. Check the outside of the home as well. Check for broken power lines, cracks in your foundation, and broken support beams.
You’ll need a general contractor to check whether the home is safe or has serious issues that need repair. Any sagging floors or ceilings are major issues to consider.
Further, you’ll likely need to hire electricians and plumbers to handle the systems in your home. Any broken fixtures, electrical problems, or plumbing-related damage must be replaced and fixed. The first step, however, will often include shutting off the main water valve and the fuse box. Afterward, the experts can make all repairs.
To reconstruct major portions of your home, you may need to hire a structural engineer to assess the fire damage and determine what can be restored. The right experts will look at the foundation and building’s frame to assess how to properly fix the damage.
Once you’ve covered the damaged areas by boarding them up, you can get a contractor to come in and potentially restore portions of your home. However, one of the biggest things to remember is documenting all fire damage repairs.
Such documentation is essential when selling a home, as house sellers need to provide all relevant information to buyers based on their state laws.
Documenting Fire Damage Repairs
Your property insurance company and real estate lawyer will need you to include documentation for any fire damage repairs you complete on the house. It’s vital for selling your home and disclosing all relevant information to new home buyers.
You’ll have first to document the damage itself, and make sure your insurance adjusters and contractors provide you with copies of all relevant damage. That means starting small, and start in each corner of the room and move out to check on what’s damaged and can be repaired.
A fire damage reconstruction professional can also detail what type of structural damage occurred and the needed repairs. An essential part of all this includes taking photographs of the damage and all repair work. Generally, you’ll want to get before-construction photos and after-repair photos.
Take photographs of the outside as well. Ensure that your photos include a background on the home’s foundation, any cracks in the ceilings, and roofing damage. Don’t forget to take pictures of the entryways and doorways in each room. If any areas aren’t safe to go into, take photos from farther away and use that zoom-in button.
Make a spreadsheet of all repairs to give to your insurance company. They’ll need to get estimated costs of repairs before giving you the necessary financing to complete the reconstruction projects. If your policy also covers some of your belongings, keep track of what was lost and damaged.
Keeping track of all fire-damaged areas and the ensuing repairs is essential to working with insurers and real estate attorneys or realtors. It’s also important to take photos and document everything thoroughly.
This will help ensure that you receive fair compensation for the damages and can assist with any legal issues that may arise during rebuilding. Remember to keep copies of all correspondence with your insurance company and other parties involved.
Conclusion
Fire damage repair is necessary if you have time and want the best price for your property. With the help of restoration experts, you’ll need to assess the damage, remove debris, repair water and fire damage, clean out the damaged areas, and complete reconstruction.
However, not everyone has the funds necessary to complete major repairs and your insurance claim may not provide enough.
When selling a house by owner and looking for a quick sale, you should seek out cash buyers instead. In such a case, you may want to consider selling a house as is.
House flippers and cash home buyers in Texas can quickly buy up your property for a fair cash deal in its damaged state. So, if you’re looking to sell a house fast in Kirby as-is, real estate investors and cash buyers are a good bet.
We buy houses San Antonio residents love, so give us a call today!