Structures
are built using a wide range of materials. Depending on their location and
purpose, they can be made of steel, iron, wood, or plastic just to name a few.
Seldom are entire structures made up of just one kind of material—these
materials are used differently for different parts of the building.
Almost
all kinds of materials are susceptible to fire damage. With the right intensity
of fire, things can burst in flame, and eventually melt. Our very homes are
made with these flammable materials, and although it seems improbable, no one
is completely safe from fire damages.
Fire
brings about destruction. It corrodes and eats up property and structures at an
alarming rate, and makes things around it considerably weaker. Sometimes, fire
becomes so intense that it brings whole buildings down to ground level. Entire
structures and everything inside them crumble and are reduced to ashes.
Aside
from the immediate damage and destruction that fires bring, there is the
element of smoke that comes with the fire. This is an overlooked damage that
fire brings. In fact, most deaths from fires are caused by suffocation from
smoke exposure. However, it is important to note that smoke stays even after
the fire has been subdued. Walls are stained, and certain parts of the property
are contaminated with it. Determining the kind of smoke will help determine the
kind of fire that took place, and ultimately save you lots of resources for
cleaning and restoration of you property.
Different
causes of fires
There
are many causes of fire damage. The most common in homes and office buildings
is faulty wiring. Exposed wires trigger sparks and surges that in turn ignite
fires, causing huge damages to the structures involved. Fire can also spark from
electrical surges that come from overloaded appliances, causing the initial
appliance to burn until the flames eventually spread across the area. This
happens in loaded sockets without voltage regulators. When this is the case, so
much electricity is being drawn from the singular socket, to the point that it
overloads the appliances and exploded itself, or somewhere along its wires.
Natural
caucuses of fire are also possible. Although very uncommon, this causes the
most destruction because it destroys animal habitat. During summer heat waves,
dry forest leaves start to burn up because of the scorching heat from the sun.
These can evolve and turn into forest fires, affecting huge areas at a time.
However,
the most common cause of fire damage is human error. A huge percentage of
fire-related accidents and damages are results of human carelessness. Electric
appliances are left on, flammable furniture was placed beside open flames, and
candles and fireplaces are left burning overnight without proper containers.
Kinds
of smoke and smoke damages
As
said earlier, there are different types of smoke that come with fires. There is
wet smoke, which comes with low, slow burning heat. It is very pungent and its
stains are hard to clean up. Dry smoke comes with high temperature, fast
burning heat. If this type of fire had occurred, few of the structures are left
sturdy as the fires burn away most of them. Protein smoke is hard to spot, but
is extreme
ly pungent. It damages paint finishes and varnishes in and around the
area affected. Fuel oil soot is easy to spot, and is generally from furnace
fires. These are the most common types of smoke that can be found in
fire-related accidents around living spaces.
Determining
smoke damage is important in finding out what type of fire occurred to be able
to ensure the safety of those who will go into the burned down structure. Also,
this can ultimately determine specific courses of action to be taken to restore
or completely renovate the place, and concretely take the correct measures to
guard it from such accidents happening again.
After
gathering all the need-to-know information about the fire and the structures of
the property, before the actual clean-up and restoration, one must first look
at the actual extent of the damages.
Assessing
the extent of damages
When
assessing fire damage, it is important to look past the damaged furniture and
see how the fire has affected the support structure of the house/building
itself. Can the building still stand by itself? Can the frame of the structure
hold up new walls and linings? Along with professionals, it is most important
to determine whether the structure can still hold, or if a total renovation is
needed for you to be able to continue the use of that space.
Burnt
objects are brittle and weak, making supports very easy to break and or give
way under or over people. Seeking the help of a professional should help in
preventing such a thing from happening.
A
professional should be hired when tackling fire damages because rarely do fires
do their damage on just the surface. For an appliance, structure, or material
to ignite, there have to be huge changes in the temperature and make-up of an
object, therefore needing expert advice, assessment, and action.
When
a structure is declared safe for re-entering, all easily moveable burned
objects must be properly disposed of. After that, depending on the plans of the
professional, the restoration process can begin.
To
alleviate costs after a fire, it is best to get fire insurance to cover your
home. This will only help with financial costs, but that in itself would be a
big help in case of a big fire.
Fixing
damages
In
fixing damages, there is no question that all affected structural supports
should be replaced. Walls, bases, frames—all these should be restored to full
strength to avoid further damages, related or unrelated to the fire that
occurred. Some of the furniture and smaller objects may be recycled, as long as
they are properly cleaned from any smoke contamination so as to avoid further
health hazards.
Looking
at the damages, one must also focus on the source of the fire and improve on
that aspect of the building’s plans.
Any
local construction companies would know what to do after the fire inspector’s
assessments on the condition of the structure. Also, in fixing fire damages,
one must take into consideration the reality of preventing such fire accidents
from happening again. Sometimes fires are caused by bad locations, an example
of such would be living beside flammable structures without having safety walls
between you. In such instances, perhaps moving altogether or building all the
necessary precautions should be done. Other times, fires are caused by living
habits of the occupants of a building, such as leaving appliances on.
Spacing
of structures and buildings are important so as not to spread fires easily.
There are laws on minimum distances between structures, which should be
followed by all. Also, it would be best to have non flammable marks or
separators on your property, separating it from nearby structures, and
therefore lessening the possibility of catching fire from neighboring houses.
One
must never try to tackle fire damage problems alone. This will risk accidents
and further damage done. In going inside damaged property, one must wear thick
clothing to avoid unwanted contact with burnt and contaminated materials, but
at the same time allow for enough mobility to move effectively through the
place.
Avoiding
further damages and fires on your property
In
medicine, it is well known that prevention is better than cure. The same can be
said in fire-proofing your home. First of all, it starts with the thinking and
making of building plans. For example, the kitchen should be made up of the
least flammable materials. Having flammable materials (especially appliances)
in the kitchen is unavoidable, so to compensate, for example, tabletops should
be made of steel or plastic. Also, smoke detectors and, if your budget permits,
sprinkler systems should be installed to be warned if and when a fire does
start inside your home.
Another
precaution would be to strategically place fire extinguishers in and around the
house, just to have peace of mind in case of a fire breaking out. Also,
fireproofing your home and appliances will make them more resistant to catching
fire. These can be requested to specialists in the filed or some construction
companies.
Little
things such as not leaving appliances on, and even unplugging appliances when
not in use should be developed. Leaving them on/plugged can cause over heating,
(and consequently fires) to break out. Also, absolutely no open flames are to
be left alone. Be it the fireplace in the living room or the stove in the
kitchen, they must be supervised at all times.
It
is also important to make sure that all the inhabitants of the house or
building know where the exits are, and what to do if a fire does break out.
Although seemingly unimportant and overly simple, following taking these simple
preventive steps will greatly prevent fires breaking out in your living space.
Other
safety measures
Apart
from the measures to be taken in and around your home or living space, here are
a few that should not be overlooked as well:
* Take
time to know the phone number of the fire department nearest you. Make sure
that the number is memorized or posted near the telephone so that it is there
when it is needed.
* Notify
your neighbors, and tell them to do the same when they have cookouts and
bonfires and their yards (or any activity that uses fire such as playing with
fireworks).
* Organize
a meeting place outside and away from your house with your family in case a
fire breaks out.
