How To Choose A Quality Contractor

Choose a Restoration Company You Can Trust

Water or fire damage is not a palatable event. It occurs at a time when the homeowner least expected. It is still an event that every homeowner should plan for even after observing all safety precautions.

Following a home or office fire or water damage, there are some important issues to be addressed in order to ensure that your property is returned to you in the same, or better, state as it was the day before the fire. Many building firms offer water and fire damage restoration services. However, once you understand the scope of work required in order to have your house returned to you crack free, odor free and carried out with environmental sensitivity, in conjunction with your insurance company, you'll realize the specialist nature of the works. In this article, we shall discuss the knowledge you'll need to select the right contractor.

1. Site inspection/survey:

On contacting a home restoration contractor, you should expect a fast and complete site inspection. Whenever there is a fire or water damage, the key to restoring your home is to commence immediately the damage occurs. No doubt, your house walls, floors, and other properties are soaked after the fire brigade left and drying the building at the correct rate for the construction may be important for the long-term stability of the structure. In addition, you need to take a decisive action in order to neutralize the soot, which is an acid. If the contractor tells you he'll meet in a few weeks or can only get started next month, possibly these points have been overlooked.

2. Integrated with your insurance company:

Apart from finding a rental property, restocking your wardrobe and deciding how you would like your house to look after the works amongst other things, spending hours on the phone with an insurance company can add to the trauma. Ensure the contractor providing you with a fire or water restoration service include can deal directly with your insurance company. They will understand what is and is not allowed under the terms of your policy and work with you to ensure you get the best outcome from your insurance investment.

3. Drying your building out:

As mentioned, drying your house out effectively and promptly after the fire brigade has left may be critical depending on the type of structure of your property and the level of damage caused by the fire and fire brigade soaking. Likewise, for water damage, the buildings are naturally soaked with water. If the main infrastructure is largely intact but the inside is gutted, efficient dehumidification may be important. A specialist contractor will advise the correct procedure to ensure the stability of the building.

4. Neutralizing the soot:

There are many different types of fires depending on the cause of the fire, what burns and the temperatures reached. Due to this, a specialist fire restoration service is required to quickly identify the resulting residue, decide on the necessary action thereby reducing or eliminating the threat of secondary damage. For instance, if after a fire, soot is left on a UPVC window and not removed or neutralized as soon as possible, the soot would stain and pit the frames beyond economical repair. Also, after a water damage, molds can develop on damp and cool areas if you fail to repair the damage on time.

5. Environmentally Responsible Service:

With all that is going on in your is likely not to be a factor on your list of priorities. However, choosing a contractor that takes this seriously infers so much about their work ethic. Preference should be given to a contractor who is ISO:9001 compliant and has Environmental Agency accreditation.

6. High-pressure cleaning:

Once debris has been removed, cleaning begins. A very efficient method is high-pressure cleaning with specialized cleaning agents. This can be used on various surfaces (bricks, blocks, beams etc) to remove soot residue effectively. By using this method and not liquids, there is no further ingress and contamination of the materials affected. Ask the contractor visiting you as to how they plan to remove the surface level soot.

7. Removing the odor:

Once the decontamination works discussed above have been undertaken, the property will need ozone treatment. Simply put, this involves machines that re-adjust the molecular structure of the air-borne particles. This involves removing all the remaining soot residues in the air, walls, and floor. Thus, there will be no more odor lingering in the property. For clear reasons, you don't want that burnt smell in the back of your nostrils for years to come.

8. Reconstruction:

Your property is now ready for reconstruction and/or decoration. This end of the chain is fewer specialists and your choice of contractor is greater. Often, fire restoration contractors offer a complete service including reconstruction and decoration and depending on how your insurance company deals with these situations. In order to reduce delay in the renovation, it's often sensible to go with the same contractor.

Bottom line

Picking a professional and reliable fire restoration services contractor allows you to focus on all important personal issues in the aftermath of a fire or water damage. More so, it enables you to continue with your life with the least amount of stress and interruption. Taking this first step seriously will allow you to quickly see a silver lining to a dark cloud as you return your building to an even more beautiful home or effective office space.