Finally, everything looks cleaned up after a fire. Yet, there is something lingering in the air telling you there's still more to do. It's smoke odor. It seems to be everywhere. Even though you can't see it, you can smell it. It permeates everything and you just wish you could get away. Since that's not usually an option, there are some things you can do about smoke odors.
First, talk with your insurance agent. They've seen these kinds of problems before. They may pay to have clothing, drapes and furniture professionally cleaned and deodorized or even replaced. They can also recommend one or more reliable professionals help with the clean up.
As you evaluate the extent of the smoke odors, you still need to take steps to protect yourself. Wear household cleaning gloves, long sleeves and pants. A dust mask is also a must. If you can smell smoke, there may still be contaminants present. Continue to ventilate the area. If possible, take smoke damaged items outside to air out.
Even after the charred remains of your possessions have been removed and the soot has been cleaned up, there will still be that lingering smell of smoke. It smells nice when you're sitting around a campfire, but not so great when you're trying to read the paper, have dinner or get a good night's sleep. So why is it that even after everything looks like it's clean and ready to go, the odor of smoke lingers on, and on, and on?
During a fire, even a smaller confined fire, a lot of heat is released into a building and its contents. As the pores in materials and the structure of your home or business are heated, they expand, allowing smoke to infiltrate just about everything. When the fire is out and things cool down, those pores close back up and trap the smoke odors.
No comments:
Post a Comment