The first thing that you should do before performing any fire damage restoration is ensure the safety of the area. Check also if all the fire-damaged materials have cooled down. Sort items and separate those that can be restored and those that are beyond repair. Those that have been severely damaged should be properly disposed of.



If you do not know how to do fire damage restoration, it is recommended that you contact a fire damage restoration professional. Attempting to clean and restore things without the proper tools and skills can cause further damage as these items tend to be very fragile.

If you have only sustained minimal damage or can handle some minor repair on your own, the following fire damage restoration reminders might be of help to you:

1. Before doing any fire damage restoration, make sure that you wear protective clothing.

2. Family members with respiratory problems should not be allowed near fire- damaged parts of the house. Fire tends to release hazardous gases which could cause poisoning and even death to humans.

3. Just like in other types of damage, make sure that your home has enough ventilation to ward away smoke as well as the burnt odor. It is also helpful in preventing the growth of mold.

4. Electrical items that have been exposed to fire should not be turned on immediately as this could lead to a short circuit.

5. Remove dust and soot particles from your belongings by dusting them off with a brush or blowing them off with a vacuum cleaner.

6. Sweep off all broken glasses or objects as well as burnt wood from the floor and dispose them properly.

7. Damp cheesecloth maybe placed over air vents to catch dust and soot particles.

8. Fire-damaged brass and copper items could be cleaned using a cleaning solution. This should be done within twenty four hours as the stains maybe hard to remove beyond the said time period.

9. Throw away food that has been exposed to the fire. Do not even think of consuming it.

10. Wipe down porcelain tiles as well as porcelain utensils to prevent formation of permanent stains. Do not, however, wipe down walls. They could be structurally weak and any contact with them might increase damage.

11. Glass objects may be washed with warm water and towel dried. Windows could be cleaned using rubbing alcohol and glass cleaner.

12. Carpets and the likes should be sent to a professional cleaner. Do not try to wash it on your own as burn odors might not be removed properly.

13. Baking soda, as well as activated charcoal, can be used to remove odor from your house.

Fire damage restoration almost always calls for water damage restoration also especially if water was used to put out the fire. It is therefore recommended, that you also seek the help of a water damage restoration professional. Since time is of the essence, some simple restoration can be done on water-damaged items.