3 Things You Should Never Do After a Fire

A house fire is an overwhelming experience. No homeowner should ever have to endure a fire of any size in the comfort of their own home, though it happens. There are thousands of house fires every single day across the country, causing immense fire and smoke damage. Unfortunately, few homeowners know what to do in the aftermath of a house fire. We are here to help. We hope to educate the community on how to react to a fire of any size or kind.

Do Not Re-Enter the Property After Fire Damage

You’ve worked hard to build your house into a home. Now, a fire threatens to take everything away. It’s your homeowner’s instinct to rush back into the damaged building to assess the situation and salvage possessions. It seems like a job only you are qualified to handle, right? You obviously know what is worth saving and what isn’t. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. You should never re-enter the property after any amount of fire damage.

Following a house fire, there are numerous safety hazards, including compromised structural integrity, falling debris, electrical safety concerns, smoke odor contamination, and other hazards. A damage restoration expert should assess the property first, then give the “all-clear” before you go back inside your home.

Do Not Eat or Drink Anything from Your Home

After the stress of a house fire, you’re likely tired, hungry, and exhausted. However, you need to be cautious when it comes to eating or drinking items that were present during a fire. Any food or drink left in your home is likely contaminated by smoke or soot, and may contain potentially harmful contaminants that you could ingest, causing extreme illness.

If you have any doubts about food or drink items from within the home, toss them immediately. It’s better to be safe than sorry. Also, do not keep any plastic food containers affected by the fire. We will include canned goods in this, considering the number of chemicals in cans and the food inside.

Do Not Clean

Again, we know your homeowner’s instinct will wish to begin cleanup immediately. And again, we urge against doing so. Do not try to wash any clothing, wipe down the floors, or remove debris. In doing so, you may ultimately make the damage worse or cause irreversible damage to the property.Instead, be patient. We know how difficult that is. Once you call for restoration services, a team will be sent immediately. From there, the fire damage restoration process can begin in earnest by trained, experienced technicians with the right equipment. The job will get done correctly, without any further damage or injury.

Contact Us

Schedule expert fire damage restoration with Restoration 1 of Winston-Salem. We are the number one provider of property restoration in the area, including water damage, fire damage, and mold remediation services. Give us a call now at (336) 477-2498.