Fire Damaged Indoor Environments

During a fire damage heat, smoke, and the depletion of oxygen interact, exerting themselves as serious hazards. Smoke alone consist of particles (such as soot), gases (such as carbon monoxide), Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) of a variety of complexities, aerosols, and free radicals that can have an effect on the building and occupants' health long after the fire is extinguished.                    

Something else to consider is water and its contributing affect on poor indoor environmental quality during fire damage. Water is a product of combustion. During a fire water droplets can serve as a vehicle of transport for absorbed acids, such as hydrochloric acid, making it a contributor toward smoke-inhalation injuries. Additionally, residual moisture, left behind during the fire-extinguishing processes, can contribute toward the development of microbes, such as mold and bacteria, when not processed quickly and adequately enough.

So, as you can see the pollutants found in fire and smoke damage can be numerous, and can come in any chemical state (solid, liquid, gas, or vapor), including but not necessarily limited to:

• "Particulate Matter (PM)"

• gases

• humidity

• "Bioaerosols"

"Particulate Matter (PM)" is a term used for a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets found in the air. Some of these PM are large or dark enough to be seen, like the soot and smoke concentrations you see settled onto your furniture and building components, while other PM are so small they can be detected only with an electron microscope. PM can be organic (carbon based matter like baseboards and door and window components) or inorganic (such as fiberglass and asbestos).

Some of the gases associated with fire and smoke damage are carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulphuric oxides, and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs). Many of these gases can be colorless and odorless; thereby, unnoticed during the fire and smoke damage, its cleaning, or reoccupation.

"Bioaerosols" is a term used to describe airborne PM that are living or originate from living organisms including microbes, fragments, toxins, and particulate waste products. Bioaerosols are very small and range from one micrometer (0.00004") to one hundred micrometers (0.004"). Bioaerosols are easily manipulated, transported by air currents, insects and moisture.

Health consequences vary with the size, mass, concentration and other contaminants which interact with one another. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that respirable particles at concentrations of 250 to 350 micrograms per meter increase respiratory symptoms in compromised individuals. What this means for you is that when faced with a fire damage it is important to make sure qualified people are contacted to identify and remedy any potential pollution hazards in your home or office.

"Where can you find a qualified fire-damage restoration technician to clean and repair your home?" I'm only familiar with one organization that trains, evaluates, and certifies cleaning and restoration technicians in this area. While there may be more, the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification (IICRC – www.iicrc.org) is the one I am familiar with. For inspection most especially concerning the indoor air quality look for a Council-certified Indoor Environmental Consultant or Council-certified Indoor Environmentalist, such as SOLUTIONS Indoor Environmental Consulting, either at the Indoor Air Quality Association's website www.iaqa.org or the American Indoor Air Quality Council's website www.iaqcouncil.org.

As with any damaged environment understanding the condition of that environment is key to providing for the health and safety of occupants as well as restoring the structure to its safe and sound structural integrity and normal ecology. Sometimes the damage goes beyond what you can see. Sometimes cleaning isn't enough. In those cases or in cases where you and/or your doctor suspect a pollutant that may be triggering symptoms in you or another occupant, contacting us can help you and your doctor make decisions on treatment based on our inspection, testing, and analytical report. We can also help write a scope of work that will reduce and/or eliminate the pollutant(s).

For additional resource material on understanding hazards associated with fire and smoke damage we would like to recommend this book, "Fire and Smoke: Understanding the Hazards". There you will find more specific information on some of the pollutants discussed on this page.

The American Red Cross has a good resource as well: "PICKING UP THE PIECES AFTER A FIRE".