How SERVPRO Restored a Wilmington Home After Grease Fire Damage

8/18/2022 (Permalink)

Grease fire damage is very hard to clean.This photo shows where SERVPRO technicians have cleaned and what remains to be cleaned.

Recovering from a Grease Fire Damage in Wilmington

Kitchen fires are most commonly experienced in Wilmington, producing greasy protein-based soot that sticks tightly to walls and ceilings. No surface or fixture is immune to the residues. Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification (IICRC) trained Fire and Smoke Remediation Technicians (FSRT) are ready to use their skills and specially formulated cleaning products to remove the soot. 

After experiencing fire damage, a Wilmington family sought our help. A dinnertime mishap resulted in an intense but short-term blaze in their kitchen. The fire was hot enough to distort a sheet metal panel above the stove. An oily coating of soot is deposited throughout the room and elsewhere in the home. 

Using dry sponges as a first step, SERVPRO technicians work up the wall, carefully removing the residues completely but without smearing. Examine our progress mid-project in the photo. The apparent line of soot-free space on the affected surface illustrates the difference our skilled crew members make. We avoid the long-term disruption and excessive expense of demolition and rebuilding with our cleaning success. The rest of the wall and the light fixture similarly responded when we continued the cleaning process, making the formerly blackened surfaces and fixtures “Like it never even happened.” 

The most pervasive effect of the fire cannot be pictured. Grease fires are notorious for creating noxious odors, the stench moving throughout the house on air currents, and possibly via HVAC ductwork. SERVPRO Odor Control Technicians (OCT) employ strategies to trap or neutralize odor-bearing airborne residues. Valuable techniques to eliminate odors include running a negative pressure air scrubber during the soot removal phase. The scrubber captures airborne particles carrying the smell and improves the general air quality for safety. 

We pursue odors that linger even after clean-up is complete. The approaches we follow include judicious use of SERVPRO proprietary deodorizing products applied in locations where the odors continue to be troublesome. Innovative technologies that neutralize odors at a molecular level are also available and applied or operated by our certified technicians, including: 

• Ozone machines
• Hydroxyl generators
• Thermal foggers 

Have confidence in the highly-qualified fire damage recovery team at SERVPRO of Brandywine / Wilmington. Call us at (302) 762-8080 and see the difference in our training and carefully curated products and equipment delivery.