If your home has recently been affected by fire damage, it is crucial that you act immediately. Chances are, you should call a home restoration company (such as Simple Restoration) who can start work immediately. However, what can or should you do yourself in the meantime? It is an extraordinarily confusing and stressful situation, and you want to make sure that you handle everything from insurance issues to personal health and safety with the utmost care. Simple Restoration, the top fire damage restoration company in Riverside, CA, wants to give you answers to the questions that you have in this stressful time. This article will provide you with all of the information you need about the home restoration process, from start to finish. We know that fire damage can be devastating, so we want to help however we can. Whether it be deciding if you should even return to the home, or choosing a home restoration company, we hope to answer all of your possible questions and to put your mind at ease.
1. Is Your Home Safe to Return to?
If the fire was so bad that you needed to evacuate your home, the first thing you need to do is to figure out if your home is safe enough to return to. If you think there might be structural damage, you should not re enter your home until the damage has been accessed by a professional. If your home is deemed safe for you to return to, you should still be extraordinarily careful up your initial reentry. Take extra care to avoid putting excessive weight on walls and floors that you think may have been excessively damaged. Similarly, be careful that you are not spreading soot and ash as you walk. Limit your movement as much as you can to avoid embedding these into your floors, walls, and furniture. Lining your floors with clean towels and such can be extraordinarily helpful with this. You should also be sure that you don’t spread soot with your hands. Do your best to clean them whenever you can. In more severe cases, it may not be safe for you to reenter your home until it has been restored. Most importantly, never enter your house after an official or a professional has told you that it is unsafe! Doing so may result in serious injury and thus further the devastation of the fire damage which you are already dealing with.
2. Take Pictures of the Fire Damage
It is important that you immediately make a record of what damaged occurred during the incident, so that you may accurately report it to your insurance company. Take pictures and maybe even write notes about the fire damage… too much detail can’t hurt in this situation. It’s crucial for you to be very thorough with this process, so as to not leave any damage unreported. Whatever you don’t report to your insurance company won’t be covered in your repair compensation so, once again, make sure you don’t leave anything out.
3. Secure Your Home
No matter how little or extensive the damage to your home is, you must make sure that your home security is not compromised. Even if the fire damage seems to be minimal, you should double check that your home is safe. Check that windows and doors are still functional and that there aren’t any parts of your home that are newly exposed. On the other hand, if fire damage is so excessive that there is an opening in your home, you should do everything you can to patch it right away. Most restoration companies can temporarily secure your home, while the restoration process is being completed. The bottom line here is: don’t leave your home vulnerable.
4. Call the Insurance Company
This often the most stressful step of dealing with fire damage, but it doesn’t have to be. As long as you have accurately recorded all of the damage and report it honestly to your insurance company, you shouldn’t experience any major problems getting it covered. It helps to have a general knowledge of your insurance policy, as well as your list of recorded damages when you make the initial call. They can help you figure out what options you have in terms of finding a restoration company and getting your home repaired as quickly as possible. The sooner you work out your situation with your insurance company, the sooner your home can be back to normal.
5. Find a Home Restoration Company
This step of the process can also be potentially stressful for someone who is dealing with the effects of fire damage. It’s not always easy finding a restoration company who charges reasonable rates, does quality work, and acts in a timely manner. Generally speaking, you might be lucky if you find a company that meets even two of these standards. However, at Simple Restoration, we pride ourselves on providing services that exceeds these three expectations. Firstly, we understand the importance of acting quickly. Home restoration isn’t a luxury, but rather a necessity. If your home is damaged, we know that you want it repaired and back to normal as quickly as possible. We also offer the most competitive rates and best-quality fire damage repair service in Riverside, California. Simple Restoration is dedicated to restoring your home, so that you can return your focus to your life. Visit our website, SimpleRestoration.com to schedule your free estimate today!
