Fire Damage vs. Smoke Damage: What's the Difference?

9/16/2019 (Permalink)

There's fire damage. There's smoke damage. And while smoke damage is often the result of a fire, a property doesn't necessarily need to experience fire damage in order to endure smoke damage.

Make sense? In case it doesn't or in case you just want to learn more about the main differentiators between smoke and fire damage, you've come to the right place. Here at SERVPRO of San Mateo, we specialize in restoring fire and smoke damaged properties to preloss conditions in California's Bay Area. We work closely with property owners to correctly assess each job we're on, so we can come up with the best restoration plan. And while we specialize in mold remediation and water damage restoration as well, fire and smoke damage restoration jobs are among the jobs we take the most pride in. Why? Because they're the jobs that we truly have the opportunity to impact lives the most. 

Fire Damage 101

It's estimated that there's a fire every 24 seconds in the United States. This shouldn't be a surprise when you consider the wide variety of factors that can cause a fire. There are household issues, such as faulty electrical wiring, to human error, such as cooking mistakes or failure to turn an iron off or blow a candle out. Then there are fire-causing factors that are less controllable, such as wildfires, downed electrical wires during inclement weather and even lightning strikes. 

Regardless of the cause of the fire, the steps we take to restore property remain the same. We'll respond quickly and work with local fire authorities to determine when the property has been secured and when it's safe for us to enter and properly assess things. Following our assessment, this is the process that we take at SERVPRO of San Mateo, which abides by industry standards on every job:

• Remove damaged components: Some components are damaged beyond repair and/or restoration and may need to be discarded. Other contents can be packed out and sent for cleaning and restoration if applicable. 
• Remove damaged building materials: We'll likely have to remove all damaged building materials that were affected or else risk the property's structural integrity. This means that any floorboards, studs, paneling, etc. that were impacted will have to go. Evaluation of the property's structure is always one of the most important parts of any evaluation.
• Treat: If any of the property's structure that was impacted can be saved, we'll take the right steps to deodorize and decontaminate it.
• Rebuild: Following our assessment and material removal, we'll then work to rebuild the property to preloss condition. Depending on the severity of the fire, fire restoration jobs can take anywhere from weeks to months.

Smoke Damage 101

Like we said in the introduction, you don't necessarily have to have fire damage in order to have smoke damage. Grease fire or small, easily extinguished fire might not result in any structural fire damage, yet it could leave certain rooms of a home or building engulfed in a smokey mess. Smoke damage can result in more than just smell — it can lead to discoloration of building materials and contamination too.

From there, intensive deep cleaning and deodorizing begin. Fabrics and window dressings that are removable can usually be washed and salvaged, as can most other hard goods and contents in an affected area. In-place building materials, such as flooring and drywall, are often more difficult to properly clean. Non-porous surfaces such as hardwood and tile can simply be hand cleaned. Carpets can be professionally deep cleaned in most circumstances. Even drywall can be salvaged from smoke damage about 80 percent of the time. Drywall typically only requires removal if the smoke has gotten behind it. Following deep cleaning, an odor counteractant is deployed to the affected area and the HVAC system is cleaned so that there's no recontamination of the area (or cross-contamination to other areas of the building). 

As we said, fire and smoke damage has the potential to be among the most intense jobs that we're likely to take, but they're also among the most rewarding. For more information on our smoke and fire damage restoration services, call the Bay Area restoration experts, SERVPRO of San Mateo, today.