Why Smoke Is So Difficult to Remove In Fire Damaged Chicago Properties?

5/14/2020 (Permalink)

Smoke may seem like a relatively benign effect of fire damage, but in reality, it is one of the most challenging and troublesome factors.

SERVPRO Gives Smoke Removal Tips for Chicago Homeowners

Smoke may seem like a relatively benign effect of fire damage, but in reality, it is one of the most challenging and troublesome factors. Smoke is virtually impossible to remove with conventional means, necessitating the kind of specialty equipment carried by SERVPRO or other restoration companies. However, why is smoke so difficult to remove? Why won't a simple cleaning and air freshening job solve the problem? Here's a bit of insight into the science behind it.

Almost all cases of Chicago fire damage produces smoke, since smoke is one of fire's natural products, along with ash and certain gasses that can vary in composition depending on the nature of the fire. Smoke similarly varies in composition, being heavily affected in form and nature by what was burning, how long it burned, and what its moisture content was during the fire. Some types of smoke may be very easy to clean and require virtually no deodorization, but this is rare. More commonly, your home may encounter darker, wetter types of smoke that are much harder to remove.

These types of smoke produce enormous quantities of tiny smoke and soot particles that can sink into materials and embed themselves well beyond the reach of common cleaning products. Even high-powered washers and scrubbers used by SERVPRO technicians usually can't touch smoke that has seeped into a home's structure. However, our powerful deodorizing foggers accomplish the task well, saturating an area with a fog similar in composition to the targeted smoke particles. Depending on the type of smoke, particles in this fog should nullify or replace smoke throughout the area, removing any smell or sign of damage permanently.

SERVPRO of Marquette Park / West Lawn / Ford City is a local franchise of a national company with the training and equipment to handle smoke and fire restorations of any size. Call us 24/7 at (773) 337-3993.

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