The fire is out. The damage is not over. Our crews handle firefighting water, soot, and smoke odor in the right order, so one disaster does not become three.
Published: October 13, 2026 | Last updated: October 13, 2026
Fire & water damage restoration covers two losses at once. Flames char one area while thousands of gallons of suppression water soak the rest. Our fire and water restoration teams treat both in a single coordinated plan, because the wrong order makes everything worse.
A kitchen fire takes ten minutes to put out. Firefighters may pump thousands of gallons into your home to do it. Water runs through ceilings, walls, and floors far beyond the burn zone. Suppression water often damages more square footage than the flames.
Then comes the second wave. Soot is acidic. It starts corroding metal, glass, and finishes within hours. Smoke odor soaks into every porous surface and the HVAC system. You face two disasters at once, and they interact. That interaction decides the whole plan.
Sequence is everything in combined losses. We extract and dry before we touch soot. Three reasons drive this order.
First, wet soot smears. Cleaning soot on damp surfaces grinds acidic residue deeper into the material. Dry surfaces release soot far more cleanly. Second, moisture breeds mold within 48 hours. A fire loss that sits wet becomes a mold loss on top of everything else. Third, drying stabilizes the structure. Technicians need firm, dry surfaces for safe, effective soot cleaning.
Companies that rush soot cleaning on a wet building waste your money. Our structural drying phase always leads. Soot work follows on dry ground.
Every fire and water job follows this order. Each step protects the next one.
We board windows and doors, tarp the roof, and fence open areas. Insurers expect this. Skipping it can jeopardize your claim.
Pumps and truck-mounted extractors remove suppression water. Air movers and dehumidifiers dry the structure to verified readings.
We clear charred materials, ruined contents, and demolition debris. This exposes every surface.
We match the cleaning method to the soot type. Dry sponging, HEPA vacuuming, wet agents, or abrasion, surface by surface.
Hydroxyl generators, thermal fogging, and duct cleaning neutralize smoke odor at the molecular level.
Framing, drywall, flooring, cabinetry, and paint return the property to pre-loss condition. One contractor, one timeline.
Fire exposes homes to the elements fast. Our storm and flood damage restoration crew handles the same board-up and dry-in work when weather strikes mid-recovery.
Not all soot behaves the same. What burned decides how we clean it. Wrong method, wrong result.
| Soot type | Source | Cleaning method |
|---|---|---|
| Dry smoke | Fast-burning wood and paper | Dry chemical sponges and HEPA vacuuming |
| Wet smoke | Slow smoldering plastics and synthetics | Wet cleaning agents, careful wiping |
| Protein smoke | Kitchen grease fires | Degreasers, invisible residue with strong odor |
| Fuel oil soot | Furnace puff-back | Specialized solvents, often needs sealing |
Protein smoke deserves a warning. You may see almost nothing after a kitchen fire, yet the odor hits hard. The residue is nearly invisible and extremely pungent. It needs degreasers, not dry sponges. The IICRC fire and smoke standards guide our method selection on every job.
Fire damages contents far beyond the burn room. Smoke and soot travel through the whole house. A pack-out moves your salvageable belongings to our facility while we repair the structure.
At our facility, ultrasonic tanks clean hard goods and dishware. Ozone chambers deodorize fabrics. Climate-controlled storage holds everything during the rebuild. We return your belongings when the home is ready. Our content and furniture restoration team runs this entire operation.
Smoke odor lives inside porous materials and the HVAC system. Smoke particles measure smaller than a micron. They lodge in drywall pores, wood grain, fabrics, and carpet backing.
Real deodorization neutralizes odor at the molecular level. Hydroxyl generators run safely while people are present and break odor molecules apart. Ozone treatment is stronger but requires the space to stay unoccupied. Thermal fogging sends a fine deodorizing fog into the same microscopic pores that smoke penetrated. Sealants lock in residue on surfaces that cannot be fully cleaned. Duct cleaning comes before deodorization, or the HVAC system re-contaminates every room on the first cycle. Guidance on post-fire indoor air safety is available from FEMA.
One fire claim covers both perils: flame damage and suppression water damage. Your policy treats them as a single event.
Most policies also cover Additional Living Expenses while your home is uninhabitable. Hotel stays, meals, and temporary housing add up fast, and ALE reimburses them. We bill your carrier directly and supply the documentation adjusters require: scope, photos, moisture logs, and invoices. See national price benchmarks in our water damage restoration cost guide.
A small fire can take thousands of gallons to extinguish. That water runs through ceilings, walls, and floors far beyond the burn zone. Suppression water often damages more square footage than the flames.
Water first. We extract and dry before touching soot. Wet soot smears and etches worse than dry soot, and moisture breeds mold within 48 hours. Soot cleaning follows on dry, stable surfaces.
In most cases, yes. Hydroxyl treatment, thermal fogging, and duct cleaning neutralize odor at the molecular level. Severely saturated porous materials may need sealing or replacement, and we tell you honestly which ones.
A pack-out moves your salvageable belongings to our facility for cleaning and storage during repairs. We inventory every item with photos, clean contents with specialized methods, and return them after rebuild.
Yes. One fire claim covers both perils: flame damage and suppression water damage. Most policies also cover temporary living expenses while your home is uninhabitable. We document everything for your adjuster.
Water, soot, and odor get worse every day. One crew handles all of it. Call now.
Call (800) 555-0199
Water Cleanup