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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration

Archived Fire Damage Blog Posts

Fire Damage

12/19/2022 (Permalink)

Common Sources of Home Fire:

  • Cooking equipment malfunctions, food items left unattended while being prepared and other human errors in handling, installing or operating devices in the kitchen
  • Heaters, boilers and furnaces that aren’t properly maintained, are overstressed, incorrectly installed, not kept up to code or not regularly serviced (space heaters are a particular cause for concern if not used correctly
  • Improper disposal of cigarettes or other smoking paraphernalia
  • Candles burning unattended
  • Electrical wiring that is incorrectly installed or malfunctioning
  • Lithium batteries sparking, overheating or combusting
  • Faulty, degraded or overstressed extension cords.
  • Inadequately stored chemicals, natural gas cannisters or accelerant-soaked rags

Fire Restoration:

The goal of fire restoration is to remove any trace that there was a fire in the first place. Fire restoration work involves making sure that the building is structurally sound and utilities are restored to working order. Anything that was affected by the fire is repaired, cleaned, or replaced with the objective of removing any toxins, traces of odors and/or discoloration. 

Beyond the fire damage restoration service, smoke and soot can be toxic, creating a hazardous situation. Even if a fire is contained in one area, smoke and soot can travel throughout a structure. Our professionals are highly-trained, with the experience, tools, and knowledge to clean up fire damage and remove the smell of smoke. In keeping with our goal to restore your home and cherished possessions to their pre-fire condition, we use appropriate personal protective measures to safely clean, deodorize and restore your property.

Just Call (909)-514-1900

SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE 

READY TO HELP 24/7

WildFires

9/3/2022 (Permalink)

 Wildfires

Wildfires have gotten bigger and more frequent in recent years and damage homes, businesses, and other stuctures, leaving business owners and commercial property owners with catastrophic and expensive losses. There is no reason that the property owners or businesses have to pay for repairs or deal with unreasonable insurance companies who try to underestimate the losses.

Fire and smoke may have caused partial damage to the property and water damage may be other damage the property. Evacuation orders or road closures may have affected business income. Inventory affected by smoke which means damaged inventory as well as lost income. Depending on type of business or property there may be losses and there are coverages. There may have been water drop by helicopter or water used as one of the methods to fight the wildfires and fire on the property. If your business or property completely or partially burned there may be details in your insurance policy as to what will be covered and what will excluded on your policy. Details such as maximum payment per tree, other structures and what is considered other stucture, maximum payment for loss of business income and many more.

SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE will:

  • Evaluate existing insurance policies in order to determine what coverage may be applicable to a claim.
  • Business Income and Extra Expense Coverage to pay for the actual loss of income due to a covered loss. Extra expense for additional expenses the business may incur during the period of restoration.
  • Research, detail, and substantiate damage to buildings and contents. Detailed inventory of furniture, fixtures, tenant improvements.
  • Photograph and document all damages.
  • Give notice to your insurance carrier about the loss by Letter of Representation.
  • Determine values for settling covered damages. Prepare scope and content valuation.
  • Prepare complete inventories of business property, detailed unit cost recronstruction estimates of property damages, lost business income projections and extra expense.
  • Prepare, document, and support the claim on behalf of the insured.
  • Attend all meetings and inspections with your insurance company or its representatives.
  • Negotiate maximum settlement with the insurance company on behalf of an insured with your consent.

Wildfires don't have to be a hassle to deal with. With the help of our professionals that are ready to help 24/7 you will not beat our work 

Just call (909) 514-1900

Highly Trained Fire and Water Restoration Specialists

Our fire damage restoration professionals have the expertise and equipment needed to get the job done to your satisfaction as quickly as possible.

SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE will help you navigate the insurance claims process and coordinate the necessary paperwork for a quicker, easier experience.

Heat Wave/Wild Fire Damage

6/15/2022 (Permalink)

Heat Waves Can Cause Infrastructural Damage

As heat causes metals to expand, heat waves can lead to major infrastructural defects. Power transformers can detonate causing fires. Water lines can burst to cause the loss of water and water shortage. Heat waves can also induce the kinking or buckling of railroads. Highways can melt or develop cracks in extreme heat. For example, two traffic lanes in Oklahoma City, US, had to be closed during the 2006 North American heat wave after they buckled under the heat. Blackouts resulted during this event due to damaged power transformers.

Climate change, caused by society’s activities, is undoubtedly the factor that has aggravated heat waves and forest fires. Higher ambient temperatures cause melting to start earlier, leading to drier and more flammable biomass in forests. Recent studies clearly indicate that these increases in the frequency of heat waves and forest fires.

Heat wave fire/forest fire damage to home:

Flames and smoke from wildfires can affect the following areas of the home or business property, including:

  • Fabrics (carpets, rugs, clothes, upholstery) may become discolored
  • Furniture can be damaged, depending on the material used
  • Walls may become damaged by heat transfers
  • Windows can become discolored or warp
  • Plants and soil may become harmed or contaminated by smoke
  • Concrete can crack because of dehydration or prolonged heat-exposure
  • Roofs may become damaged by burning embers drifting from nearby flames

Taking the Right Precautions

If you find yourself in an area which may become affected by a wildfire and / or its smoke, it may be tempting to stay in your property to combat damage. However, it’s vital to remember that your safety, and those of your loved ones and pets, has to come first.

Take any essentials you may need and leave the property together, taking the safest route possible. Depending on the wildfire’s path, your home or business may well avoid the worst of it, enabling you to move back in in only a few days.

However, regardless of the amount of damage you believe your home or business site may suffer, you can take certain steps to reduce the effects. Some of them may be more obvious than others, but they can all contribute:

  • Move any combustible objects or materials away from the outside of the property; anything which may ignite or be flammable only adds to the danger posed.
  • Keep every window and door shut, to combat smoke and soot penetrating the property as much as you can.
  • Be sure that any external furniture is either covered or moved inside, to try to stop them becoming damaged; outdoor furniture can contribute to the overall cost of replacing goods.
  • Avoid throwing damaged items away, as some may be able to be repaired or cleaned.
  • Switch off your air conditioning systems.

SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE

IS READY TO HELP 24/7 JUST CALL (909)514-1900

After the fire trucks leave, your home likely suffers from fire and smoke damage and extensive water damage from firefighting efforts. SERVPRO has the specialized fire restoration training needed to restore your home to pre-fire condition.

Highly Trained Fire and Water Restoration Specialists

Our professionals have the expertise and equipment needed to get the job done to your satisfaction as quickly as possible.

Fire Damage

5/3/2022 (Permalink)

 How Fires Can Damage Your Business or Commercial Property in Unexpected Ways

Fires are scary and sudden; they can damage your property in many ways you would expect. Things like personal belongings, paperwork, and furniture can all be burned beyond repair. Although, some of the most detrimental effects of fires are the damages they cause that you don’t expect. Below are three unexpected ways a fire can damage your business. 

  • Fire Damage Risk One: Business interruption

  • Fire Damage Risk Two: Loss of employees and customers due to aesthetic damage

  • Fire Damage Risk Three: Damage to essential documents and technologies

Things get burned. Your property is damaged because it is the actual fuel for the fire.  That is the primary threat. That fuel includes walls, floors, ceilings, carpet, framing, roofs, furniture, and all other personal property in the home.

Rarely can items that are burned be salvaged. As fuel, they are consumed by the fire or structurally altered. Altered by melting and/or warping, or they break when whatever they are attached to or sitting on collapses.

SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE have an Emergency Ready Plan Advantage

When disaster strikes your business, having a plan in place ahead of time for what you will do can make all the difference in whether your business survives the event. The majority of businesses that come out stronger on the other side of an emergency are the ones that pre-planned for one. 

24/7 JUST CALL 909-514-1900 

With our Emergency Ready Plan, your business will be able to minimize interruption because you’ll know what to do and what to expect if any-sized disaster strikes. This is important to timely mitigation and can help minimize how water and fire damage can affect your business. 

SERVPRO will help you navigate the insurance claims process and coordinate the necessary paperwork for a quicker, easier experience. SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE ALLWAYS READY TO HELP 

Fire Damage

3/10/2022 (Permalink)

House fires are traumatic. And home fire damage can be extensive. Whether you escape the fire and watch your home burn, return to your home to find it ablaze, or contain it before anyone had to evacuate, it is scary and devastating.

The loss can be beyond emotional. There are professionals who help with that kind of loss. With SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE, we help you through the trauma by cleaning up after a house fire as well as the restoration of those physical losses.

Fire recovery can be broken down into several categories or functions:

  • Removal of chard structural elements of the house
  • Soda blast your burned property of soot
  • Smoke cleanup of the structure (studs, concrete, cabinets, etc.)
  • Structural Rebuild
  • Contents of your home or business
    • Removal of the personal property from the home
    • Cataloging the personal belongings
    • Disposal and logging of destroyed property
    • Cleaning soot and smoke off of the salvageable items
    • Storage of belongings until the home restoration is completed
    • Return of belongings to the home after cleaning
  • SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/ GRAND TERRACE, main goal is to restore your home or business after fire damage to its pre-fire condition. As a leading fire damage restoration company, we specialize in fire and water damage restoration, removal of smoke odors, and deep-cleaning soot from walls, carpets and upholstery.

    24/7 Emergency Service

    A fire can break out at any time, and our Customer Care Center is ready to take your call, day or night. Contact us today for immediate assistance.

    JUST CALL 909-514-1900

    Heat Wave/Wild Fire Damage

    7/1/2021 (Permalink)

    Residents in several states have been ordered to evacuate due to wildfires as blistering, record breaking heat wave and extreme drought presist in the western United States.

    At least 28 large fires are burning over more than 640 square miles in eight western states, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. 

    For many heat waves, there are also important feedbacks that come into play that amplify drought and heat and set the stage for wildfires. There is a direct local contribution to the drying and high temperatures in the absence of evaporative cooling. While heat waves with high humidity are oppressive and give no relief at night, heat waves often form in association with drought.

    There are methods for homeowners to prepare their homes to withstand ember attacks and minimize the likelihood of flames or surface fire touching the home or any attachments. Experiments, models and post-fire studies have shown homes ignite due to the condition of the home and everything around it, up to 200’ from the foundation.

    Fires can be especially devastating to your home or business. After the fire trucks leave, your property will likely suffer from not only fire and smoke damage, but also widespread water damage and flooding from firefighting efforts. SERVPRO Franchise Professionals have specialized fire and water damage restoration training and experience to quickly clean up and restore your home to pre-fire condition. They also can remove the pervasive smoke odor and deep-clean soot from upholstery and carpet. 

    Please refer to our Fire Damage Tips - Until Help Arrives Guide and follow these tips to protect yourself and your property.

    SERVPRO Franchise Professionals

    SERVPRO OF COLTON/LOMA LINDA/GRAND TERRACE is always ready to help 24/7 just call (909)514-1900

    Fire Damage

    3/18/2021 (Permalink)

    Common Causes of Fire Damage-

    • Small Kitchen Fires 
    • Candles
    • Smoking
    • Oil/Grease fires
    • Electrical Fires 
    • Lighting Strikes 
    • Smokey Oven Fires
    • Heaters
    • Fire place 
    • Fireworks 
    • Christmas Trees 

    What is a Fire Damage Restoration?

    Fire Damage Restoration removes acidic smoke and soot damage from your property, leaving it exactly as before.

     After an event so devastating and damaging, you should hire professionals to help you with fire damage remediation.

    Things to consider include a complete inventory of your home, smoke odor issues, structural problems, and potential water damage. A professional restoration service has many years of experience and knowledge to make this process go by as painlessly as possible, all while protecting your home from further damage.

    A house fire can drastically change both the form and function of your home, and due to the complexity of restoring your home while minimizing costs at the same time, you should consult a fire damage remediation company, Such as SERVPRO of Colton/Loma Linda/ Grand Terrace a 24/7 Emergency Service.

    SERVPRO Franchise Professionals know just how devastating a fire can be. Fire and water damage can leave your house unsafe and unlivable. They’re trained to clean and restore your home with as little disruption as possible.

    SERVPRO Franchise Professionals

    Don’t Fall For Any Fire Damage Remediation Scams in Loma Linda

    7/23/2019 (Permalink)

    Fire damage can then trigger a cascade of other issues to deal with. Call the professionals at SERVPRO today for remediation assistance.

    Tips to Help Restoration Work in Fire-Damaged Loma Linda Homes

    Combating the effects of a fire loss incident in your Loma Linda home might not always be as straightforward as many property owners might believe. Even with the concession that recovery efforts are ideally completed by our qualified restoration specialists, there are still steps that you can take to help expedite this process and ensure that these mitigation and cleaning efforts are as efficient and effective as they can be. 

    Considering the widespread levels of fire damage that Loma Linda homes can experience, you often need a team with substantial training and preparedness for all potential hazards and effects that could exist. Our SERVPRO professionals have extensive training through the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) in every available niche of fire recovery, including: 

    • Fire & Smoke Restoration (FSRT)
    • Odor Control (OCT)
    • Carpet Cleaning (CCT)
    • Upholstery & Fabric Cleaning (UFT)
    • Water Restoration (WRT)

    There are ways that you can help our professionals work in your home to be more efficient and effective, and these include: 

    • Removing at-risk contents from the affected areas of your home when feasible to a safe and clean location
    • Shutting off the HVAC system in your house and sealing over vents to prevent airborne effects gaining unabated access to the entire property
    • Stay out of the way of working SERVPRO technicians as much as possible to ensure that work can get completed on schedule and to its fullest extent

    These are a few quick tips that you can employ to both better protect your property and its belongings, and to help mitigation and restoration efforts to be successful. Our trained professionals can arrive quickly, so do what must occur in your home quickly before the recovery team arrives to return your house to preloss condition. 

    Many times, fire loss incidents require the skills and experience of our SERVPRO of Colton / Loma Linda / Grand Terrace specialists. We have the deep inventory of tools and products that can help to make all facets of fire damage “Like it never even happened.” Give us a call anytime that disaster strikes at (909) 514-1900.

    Click here to see more about Loma Linda. 

    We Put The Flames Of Worry Out In Colton After A Fire Damage Disaster

    6/4/2019 (Permalink)

    We were able to restore the belongings of this home to pre-damage condition using our state-of-the-art equipment and advanced cleaning techniques.

    Cleaning Up Fire Damage in Colton Goes Beyond Debris Removal

    Restoring fire damage involves significant levels of clean up to remove debris such as fully or partially burned materials. Cleaning also helps remove soot, and other smoke residues from walls and other surfaces. Although these activities may form the bulk of the cleanup exercise, other equally essential steps can help restore your home to its preloss state. We offer these services as part of our professional fire damage restoration services in Colton.

    Most incidents of fire damage in Colton are controlled while still contained within a small section of the property such as the kitchen. This, however, does not mean that damages only remain in the affected sections. Smoke quickly filters into different rooms even where doors are shut leaving contents caked with residues. Our SEVRPRO crews take every step to clean up your contents. We even use specialized techniques such as ultrasonic cleaning to clean contents affected by fire damage.

    Fires deposit residues on surfaces. However, in some cases, the residues penetrate beyond the surface of the affected material requiring specialized cleaning efforts and not just wiping or scrubbing the surface. Residue penetration depends on the type of affected material, its age and the temperatures involved in the fire because scorching temperatures open up pores in materials. Our SERVPRO technicians combine dry cleaning approaches such as vacuuming, and wet cleaning to dissolve residues embedded on surfaces.

    Most residues left by fires have a pungent odor, which might remain even after removing the residue. Deodorizing properties affected by fires is, therefore, part of the cleanup process. Deodorization can help mask the odor or neutralize the odor particles. Neutralization is the best solution for lingering odor because masking it would only provide temporary relief. Our SERVPRO technicians rely on approaches like fogging which replicate the conditions that created the odor in the first place because they ensure that the deodorizing agent can penetrate as far as the odor particles eliminating the odor "Like it never even happened."

    For proper clean up of your fire damage property in Loma Linda, Grand Terrace or Reche Canyon, call SERVPRO of Colton / Loma Linda / Grand Terrace. You can reach us at (909) 514-1900 any time.

    Click here for more information on the Santa Ana River Trail which will run 110 miles from the San Bernardino County National Forest to the Pacific Ocean in Huntington Beach.

    Our Certified Professionals Have The Expertise To Handle Fire Damage In Colton

    4/18/2019 (Permalink)

    When you have a fire in your home you can be confident in SERVPRO to handle your restoration needs. We are available 24/7 so don't hesitate and call.

    Why Professional Fire Damage Remediation is Crucial in Colton

    The aftermath of a fire in Colton leaves your home in a chaotic condition, perhaps making you feel as though you and your family cannot live there again. Our fire remediation experts have training, experience, and equipment that is up to the challenge of bringing your devastated home back to preloss condition. We work with your insurance company to make sure the work we do for your property is covered under your policy, both for contents and structural components.

    Water remediation is one part of the fire damage recovery process for your Colton home that might surprise you. Firefighters do not stint on the use of water and chemical extinguishing agents as they work to save your dwelling. Water damage can be extensive. Our crew members are undaunted as this phase of the remediation is expected, and our employees hold multiple certifications in disaster restoration from the IICRC.

    SERVPRO work crews arrive in fully-stocked vehicles, commercial strength pumps and water extractors ready for water removal. We also have air movers, heaters, and dehumidifiers, drying equipment that prevents moisture from causing more harm and inhibits potential mold growth.

    As the water remediation proceeds, SERVPRO crew leads are planning for soot and smoke cleanup. Residues from a fire are incredibly toxic and corrosive, and the methods we use to remove them vary depending on the types of materials combusted as the fire moved through your home. Paper and wood leave a light, ashy debris we dry sponge and vacuum. Electrical and fabric fires smolder, depositing thick, sticky soot requiring agitation or abrasive action along with cleaners that contain wetting agents and surfactants that loosen the soot.

    Protein-based soot from kitchen and grease fires leave a thin, highly odiferous coating that clings like lacquer or varnish. Specialized cleaning solvents safely used by our experts remove these residues. SERVPRO also attends to the strong smells associated with fire damage, working through a protocol that starts with discarding charred objects and deep cleaning, working through other strategies including advanced technological equipment like thermal foggers, ozone machines, and hydroxyl generators.

    Your first call after the firefighters leave should be SERVPRO of Colton / Loma Linda / Grand Terrace. We have the skills, equipment, and proven methods to make your fire-damaged home “Like it never even happened.” Contact us at (909) 514-1900 for round the clock assistance.

    Looking for employment opportunities in Colton, click here for more information about openings in your area.