After a house fire, these suggestions can help you rescue and clean many of your belongings.
Clothing
Washing can often lift soot and smoke smell out of clothes. For fabrics that are safe to bleach, this mixture usually works well:
- 4 to 6 tablespoons of trisodium phosphate (TSP)
- 1 cup of household chlorine bleach or a disinfecting cleaner
- 1 gallon of warm water
Stir the solution thoroughly and soak the clothing in it, then rinse in clean water and let everything dry completely.
Keep in mind that TSP is a caustic cleaning chemical. Handle it carefully, wear rubber gloves, follow the label directions and store it where children and pets cannot reach it.
For mildew, wash fresh spots with soap and warm water, rinse, and let the item dry in the sun. If the mark remains, try lemon juice with salt or a weak solution of household chlorine bleach.
Cooking Utensils
Wash pots, pans and silverware in soapy water, rinse them, and then shine them with a finely powdered cleanser. Copper and brass respond to a commercial polish, to salt sprinkled on a lemon slice, or to salt on a cloth soaked in vinegar.
Electrical Appliances
Do not run any appliance that was soaked or exposed to steam until a qualified repair technician has checked it. That goes double for electrical items. Steam can also strip lubrication from moving parts. If firefighters shut off your gas or electricity, contact the utility company to have service turned back on. Never try to restore it yourself.
Food
Clean canned and jarred foods with detergent and water. When a label comes loose, use a grease pencil to mark the contents directly on the container. Throw away any can that is swollen, dented or rusty.
A freezer that has quit can still protect frozen food for a while if you keep the door shut. Most freezers are insulated well enough to keep food frozen for at least a day, and sometimes for two or three. Another option is to store the food temporarily in a neighbor's freezer or a rented freezer locker, or to wrap it in newspaper and blankets or pack it in insulated coolers. Never refreeze food that has already thawed.
To get rid of odors inside a refrigerator or freezer, wipe it down with baking soda dissolved in water, or with one cup of vinegar or household ammonia mixed into a gallon of water. An open box of baking soda or a piece of charcoal left inside will help soak up lingering smells.
Flooring and Rugs
Water trapped beneath linoleum can create odors and warp the wooden subfloor. If that happens, take up the whole sheet. Brittle linoleum can be warmed with a heat lamp so you can roll it up without cracking it. Linoleum that comes up in one piece can be glued back down once the floor underneath has dried completely. To fix small bubbles, poke a hole with a nail, thin the linoleum adhesive enough to pass through a hand syringe, inject it through the hole, and weigh the spot down with bricks or boards. Loose tiles of nearly any kind can usually be glued back in place, but wait until the floor is fully dry first.
Rugs and carpets also need to dry all the way. Once they are dry, throw rugs can be beaten, swept or vacuumed and then shampooed. Dry rugs as fast as you can by laying them flat where warm, dry air can circulate; pointing a fan at them speeds things up. Make sure they are dry all the way through, because dampness left at the base of the fibers can rot a rug quickly even when the top feels dry. A carpet dealer, installer or professional carpet cleaner can advise you on cleaning and preserving carpet.
Mattresses and Pillows
Restoring an innerspring mattress yourself is very hard and often not possible. A company that makes or repairs mattresses may be able to recondition it. If you have to keep using the mattress for now, set it in the sun to dry and then wrap it in plastic or rubber sheeting. Smoke odor is nearly impossible to remove from pillows, because feathers and foam hold on to the smell.
Leather and Books
Wipe leather items with a damp cloth and then a dry one. Stuff shoes and purses with newspaper so they keep their shape, and leave suitcases open to air out. Dry leather away from direct heat and sunlight, and once it is dry, clean it with saddle soap. Suede can be brushed with a suede brush or steel wool. Leather and suede jackets can be rinsed in cold water and then left to dry somewhere cool and shaded.
Act quickly with wet books. The most effective way to save them is a vacuum freezer, which draws out moisture without harming the pages. If it will take time to find one, put the books in an ordinary freezer in the meantime.
Locks and Hinges
Take locks apart, especially iron ones, wipe the pieces with kerosene and oil them. If a lock cannot be removed, squirt machine oil into the keyhole or bolt opening and turn the knob to spread it around. Clean and oil hinges thoroughly as well.
Walls and Furniture
For soot and smoke residue on walls, floors and furniture, mix:
- 4 to 6 tablespoons of trisodium phosphate
- 1 cup of household chlorine bleach or a disinfecting cleaner
- 1 gallon of warm water
Wear rubber gloves while you work. After washing each item, rinse it with clean warm water and dry it well.
Walls can be washed while they are still damp. Use a mild soap or detergent and clean one small section at a time, starting at the floor and moving upward. Rinse each section with clean water right away. Save the ceilings for last, and do not repaint until walls and ceilings are thoroughly dry.
Wallpaper can often be saved. Reattach loose edges or sections with a commercial wallpaper paste, and ask your wallpaper dealer or installer about cleaning products. Washable wallpaper can be cleaned like a regular wall, but avoid soaking it, and work from the bottom up to keep streaks from forming.
Keep wet furniture out of the sun, which can warp and twist the wood. Use a stiff brush and cleaning solution to scrub away mud and grime. Another approach is to rub the surface with fine (4/0) steel wool dipped in liquid polishing wax, wipe it with a soft cloth and buff it. Pull out the drawers and let them dry completely so they will not stick when you put them back. Damp wood can rot and grow mold, so give it plenty of time to dry: open doors and windows for ventilation, and run your heating or air conditioning if needed. If mold appears, dissolve borax in hot water, dip a cloth in it and wipe down the wood. White spots or a cloudy film can be rubbed away with a cloth dampened in equal parts household ammonia and water, a half cup of each; dry and wax the surface afterward. Another option is a cloth soaked in equal parts turpentine and linseed oil, again a half cup of each. Use caution, because turpentine is flammable.
Replacing Damaged Money
Touch burned currency as little as you can, and wrap each bill or piece of a bill in plastic wrap to protect it. If at least half of a bill is still intact, you can bring what remains to a Federal Reserve Bank to be replaced; your own bank can tell you where the closest one is. You may also send burned or torn currency to the U.S. Treasury Department's mutilated currency office by first-class registered mail. Ask your bank or check with the Treasury for the current mailing address.
Coins that are damaged or melted can be taken to a Federal Reserve Bank or sent by first-class registered mail to the U.S. Mint for redemption.
If U.S. Savings Bonds were damaged or destroyed, contact the U.S. Treasury Department's savings bond office to ask for replacements. Include the names shown on the bonds, the approximate date or period when they were bought, their denominations and roughly how many of each you had.
Fredville is a demonstration city built by Talk to Fred. Names, numbers and details on this page are sample content.