Why Do I Need Professional Cleaning After a Minor Fire in My Lower East Side Apartment Kitchen?

9/8/2020 (Permalink)

Turn to SERVPRO of Lower East Side Manhattan for effective and efficient cleanup of fire damage, even if it seems minor -- you will be glad you did.

Smoke and Soot Residues Are Unlike Ordinary Household Soiling -- Let the Experts from SERVPRO Do a Proper Cleanup of Fire Damage on the Lower East Side to Prevent Lingering Coating, Staining, and Odors

The residues from an apartment fire are not like everyday dirt and grime. Instead of being tracked in from the outside, the result of spills, or settled dust that floats, fire residues result from the combustion of building materials and contents inside your Lower East Side apartment. One prevalent source of fire damage in a home is the protein-based coating from food and grease fires. The nearly transparent residue from a kitchen fire tenaciously adheres to surfaces, almost like a varnish. It represents the dehydrated remains of food and oils and is incredibly malodorous and hard to remove.

If I Cannot See the Fire Damage Residue, Do I Need to Clean It?
Fire damage in a Lower East Side Apartment is the disaster that just keeps giving -- giving trouble, that is. We all relate to the sensation of walking past neighbors’ doorways and noticing a cooking smell that does not dissipate. Even without an actual fire, food odors work their way into porous materials if not vented or managed. When you add the increased temperatures of a fire burning on a stovetop with oils and proteins heating above their smoking point, your space fills with the rancid compounds into which these ingredients break down. The transparency of the residues is irrelevant, and you need professional help to remove them.

How Are Protein-Based Residues Removed?
SERVPRO crews discern the types of soot and their cleaning solutions based on the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) training they master. Protein-based soots respond to:

    •    Oil-based solvents
    •    Skillful use of agitation
    •    Use of abrasives, with both agitation and abrasive use and intensity increased carefully by certified technicians to ensure the affected surface can endure the cleaning
    •    The choice of thermal fogging or hydroxyl generation for malodor elimination the odor-bearing molecules require a chemical modification to lose the stench

Turn to SERVPRO of Lower East Side Manhattan for effective and efficient cleanup of fire damage, even if it seems minor -- you will be glad you did. Call (917) 423-6364 to schedule an evaluation.