What fire restoration includes
- Emergency board-up and tarping — securing openings the fire or the firefight created.
- Water extraction and drying — firefighting water soaks everything below and beside the fire area.
- Smoke and soot removal — different soot types (dry, wet, protein) require different cleaning chemistry; using the wrong one sets stains permanently.
- Odor elimination — hydroxyl or ozone treatment and sealing, because smoke odor doesn't wash out.
- Contents cleaning — pack-out, cleaning and storage of salvageable belongings.
Even small kitchen fires spread smoke everywhere
A stovetop fire contained in minutes can still push smoke through the HVAC into every room. Soot settles on walls, inside electronics, into closets and HVAC ducts. If your house smells like smoke days later, it needs treatment — the odor compounds are physically present in porous materials.
Insurance note: fire is a covered peril on essentially every homeowners policy, and carriers expect professional restoration. Don't start discarding burned items before documentation — photograph everything, then let the crew inventory as they work.