How To Remove Smoke Smell After a Fire

As a homeowner, fire is one of the worst accidents that you can ever experience.  It might not only leave your home completely gutted but there could be complementary hazards as well. It is possible that the fire was contained before getting out of hand but there will be byproducts that could continue causing damage if left unchecked.

Smoke odor is one of the most common problems that property owners will have to deal with after a fire. Depending on the severity of the fire damage, the smell could linger in the home for months and sometimes years. It is therefore imperative that you’re taking the necessary steps to ensure that your home is free of the smoke odor.

Tips For Getting Rid of Smoke Odor

Getting rid of the smoke smell is going to be a challenging endeavor. This is because smoke particles have a tendency of sticking to nearly every household surface. As long as the surface is porous, you can expect smoke particles to stick. Furniture, ceilings, carpeting, painting, and even books will all be susceptible to the smoke particles.

The Fire Damage Restoration will require concerted effort and specialized equipment for the cleaning job. That’s why it is usually recommended to let professionals handle the restoration so that there are no potential issues down the road. There are some practices that have proven effective for removing smoke in any particular area. The effectiveness of the restoration process will depend on a couple of factors and some of them include:

Size of Fire: Larger fires will obviously result in a lot of smoke. The odor is likely to be more intense.

Material That Was Burned: There will be different types of smells depending on the material that is being burned. There will be materials with mild odor while others will be extremely difficult to get rid of.

Exposure Period: The length of exposure will also play a role in how deep the smoke odor will be embedded on the surface.

You can attempt DIY solutions to find out if they’ll be effective. In case you’re still experiencing the odor after numerous attempts, it will be time to hire a professional for the fire damage restoration.

Air the Home

The first step you should be taking is to air out your home. All windows and doors should be open to letting in fresh air for proper ventilation. You can also position fans at strategic places in your home to aid with airing out. It should be noted that the opening of the doors and windows won’t be effective if the smell is pervasive. This could necessitate using high pressure to blow the home. Airing out of the house can help in reducing the smoke odor but the most effective solution would be to thoroughly clean the affected surfaces.

Deep Cleaning the House

Every nook and cranny will need to be deep-cleaned if the smoke smell is to be completely eradicated. To get started, you will need to remove the carpet, furniture covers, fabric materials, blankets, area rugs, decorative cushions for them to be washed and dry cleaned. You also need to wash all the clothes and linens when doing the deep clean of the home.

Washing the Windows

The reason for washing the window panes is so as to restore their transparency which might have been interfered with by the smoke. The window frames and grills also need to be washed as smoke residue will stick to them. You can use a mixture of white vinegar and warm water to help with the cleaning.

Washing of Solid Surfaces

The cabinets, walls, ceilings, doors, door frames, furniture, and shelves need to be wiped as there is a high likelihood that the smoke particles will have settled on such areas. The same cleaning should be used to mop uncarpeted areas in the home. To achieve the desired results, there could be a need to use specialized cleaning products to completely remove the odor from the furniture.

Cleaning the HVAC System

The HVAC unit also needs to be cleaned as it is responsible for maintaining the air quality in a home. Smoke can easily penetrate the ductwork and spread to the ventilation system. The first thing you should do is to change the air filters to improve the air quality in the home. You might want to get in touch with an HVAC technician to make sure that the unit wasn’t damaged in the fire accident.