While it may be possible to clean some small areas of smoke damage on your own, any significant damage is likely to require professional help. Smoke residue contains toxic chemicals, and can cause permanent discoloration to porous materials such as textiles, wood, and fabric. Smoke damage can also corrode metal surfaces, and result in a strong, unpleasant odor that is difficult to get rid of.
To prevent further damage to your home, you should follow a few important steps before beginning to clean smoke damage. First, remove all the loose ash and soot from surfaces. Be careful not to push it further into the walls, however, since scrubbing can actually make stains worse. Next, you should ventilate the house. Opening doors and windows will allow the polluted air to escape and speed up the cleanup process. It’s also a good idea to open up any fans you have, as this will help to deodorize the house and speed up the cleaning process.
Finally, it’s a good idea to photograph all areas of the property affected by smoke damage. This will help you to identify any areas of damage, and can be a useful tool when filing an insurance claim for fire damage restoration. Once the photographic records are complete, you should begin the actual clean up process. Begin by removing any items that have been soaked in smoke, such as light bulbs. Wash or dry clean any curtains, and wash any upholstered furniture that has been affected. smoke damage clean up