Fire & Smoke Damage Repairs
A house after a fire is rarely as simple as the burnt part. Smoke goes everywhere, water from putting it out goes everywhere else, and the job is not finished until the place stops smelling like it happened.
What We Deal With
Fire claims come in three layers, and the one people forget is the middle one.
The burnt part is the obvious damage — charred framing, collapsed linings, destroyed joinery, melted services. It needs structural assessment before anything else happens, and often it needs propping or securing the same day.
The smoke is the part that catches people out. Smoke travels through the whole house, into wall cavities, through the roof space, into the ducting, and it settles as an acidic residue that keeps working on surfaces long after the fire is out. Rooms that look untouched can need the ceilings sealed, the linings replaced, or the whole cavity cleaned before they stop smelling.
The water is what the fire service used. It has gone into floors, ceilings and insulation, and if it is left it turns into a mould problem on top of a fire problem.
What the Work Usually Involves
- Making the property safe and secure — propping, boarding up, temporary weatherproofing where the roof has gone
- Structural assessment, and demolition and strip-out of what cannot be saved
- Soot and residue cleaning, and sealing surfaces that hold odour
- Odour treatment through the affected areas and roof space
- Drying out the water damage from the fire fighting
- Framing, roofing and cladding repairs
- New linings, insulation, electrical and plumbing reinstatement
- Kitchens, bathrooms, joinery, flooring and decorating
- Final clean and handover
Why We Start with the Smoke
Because the biggest complaint on a badly done fire job is not the carpentry — it is that eighteen months later, on a warm day, the house still smells. Getting the residue out and sealing what cannot be replaced is the difference between a house that is repaired and a house that feels normal again.
Contents Versus Building
We repair the building. Contents — furniture, clothing, personal belongings — usually sits under a separate part of your policy and is often handled by a specialist restoration company. We work alongside them regularly and will coordinate access so the two do not trip over each other.
Fire and Smoke Damage — Common Questions
Can I go back in and get my things?
Only once the fire service has cleared the building, and even then be careful — floors and ceilings can be compromised in ways that are not obvious. If the power has been isolated, do not turn it back on until it has been checked. Tell us what you need to retrieve and we will make sure it is safe to do it.
Everything smells. Will that ever go away?
Yes, but only if the residue is dealt with rather than painted over. Odour lives in porous surfaces and in cavities. That means cleaning what can be cleaned, sealing what cannot, replacing what is beyond either, and treating the roof space rather than just the rooms. Anyone who tells you a coat of paint will fix it is going to be back in a year.
Does a small fire really need all this?
A contained kitchen fire can still put smoke through the entire house. The visible damage might be one wall; the claim might be six rooms. We scope what is actually affected, not just what is blackened, because a scope that misses it means you are living with it.
Do we need to move out?
For a serious fire, usually yes, at least for part of the work — there is no power, no kitchen, and the air is not pleasant. For a contained one, often no. Temporary accommodation is a policy question for your insurer; we will give you a straight answer about what the work will be like to live through.
How long does a fire rebuild take?
A contained fire in one room might be four to eight weeks once approved. A house that has lost its roof is a rebuild, and rebuilds run in months. The honest answer is that we can give you a real timeframe once the scope is approved and we know what is being replaced.
When It Can't Wait Until Morning.
Answered and managed by our own team — not an outsourced answering service. We get there, make it safe and stop the damage getting worse.