Soot Damage Cleaning & Odour Neutralisation

Objective

Our client is the owner of a 3000 square foot unit that had suffered soot and smoke damage throughout after a fire in the neighbouring unit. The insurance company who were involved were being slow in dealing with the case and our client was suffering from a loss in productivity as the store was forced to close. Our client chose Ideal Response to provide soot and smoke remediation because of their ability to respond quickly and delivery the service over the weekend. Ideal Response would restore the business to a safe and fully functional operation in a significantly shorter time than quoted by other companies.

Our Briefing

Soot and smoke damage from the neighbouring fire had forced the store to close, this was having a significant impact on the business. Our brief was to decontaminate the environment by removing all traces of soot and smoke, thoroughly de-grease and complete the process with a treatment to remove all odour caused by the fire damage. A fire in the neighbouring industrial unit had caused deposition of particulate matter throughout the unit. Walls, floors and ceilings as well as fixtures and fittings were coated with a layer of soot.

The Technical Part

As a fire progresses, it produces different types of smoke which each create and deposit their own unique residue. They type of smoke and residue created is determined by the speed at which items are burned but also the types of items being burned. Smoke or soot damage can seem like an easy problem to solve. Soot residues can also sometimes
be hard to notice, others can be dry, wet or even sticky. Soot is hazardous to health and becomes acidic and corrosive when mixed with water causing damage to substances it contacts. It is crucial that you act quickly to minimize secondary damage caused by soot especially if the structure contains post-fire moisture left by the emergency services.
The methods used to decontaminate a structure and its content after a fire varies based on the nature of
the surface being cleaned.

HEPA rated air scrubbing machines were installed to remove all particulate matter from the air leaving it purified. All surfaces including fixtures and fittings were cleaned with HEPA rated vacuums and thoroughly degreased removing all traces of the soot.The procedure was completed with an extensive BioSweep ® treatment, our high performance air and surface decontamination solution that completely removes all malodours. Our specially trained technicians will conduct a full assessment of the site and structure to highlight any potential health risks. This inspection is also essential to allow our technicians to perform the necessary calculations to determine the total number of BioSweep® reactors and the length of the treatment that will be required. The size of a structure, type of odour and damage caused are all factors that directly affect the amount of time required to carry out an effective
treatment.

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During the deodorisation process the entire building must be free of any occupants, plants and animals. Our team will seal off the property with regular monitoring for any openings or cracks that could allow vapour to escape. It is essential that the building is properly sealed so that we are able to maintain a relative humidity (RH) of at least 45% and a minimum indoor airtemperature of 21˚C to ensure the best possible outcome. Ideal Response provided a 100% odour removal guarantee certificate for our client.

Client Review

Ideal Response’s client described our technicians, “Efficient, safe conscious, very friendly”, the client also praised the “good communication” throughout the process. “Everyone was very friendly and efficient, kept us up to date and very professional and generally very helpful.