When an electrical fire gutted the attached garage of a single-family home in Everett, WA, the family needed fire damage restoration fast. Our team at PuroClean of Redmond/Woodinville secured the home and cleaned smoke and soot from nearly every room. Then we brought the family’s restored belongings back home. Here’s how it happened.
A Fire That Started in the Wiring
The call came in after firefighters had done their job. The garage was gutted to the trusses. A vehicle parked inside was a total loss. Flames had even broken through the laundry room ceiling next door before crews stopped the spread.
Burn patterns on the garage utility wall pointed to faulty electrical wiring as the likely cause. That detail is sobering. Wiring fires give almost no warning. One evening everything is fine. The next morning, a family stands in the driveway wondering what happens now.
Here’s the part that surprises most homeowners. The fire stayed on one side of the house, but the smoke didn’t. Soot traveled through the kitchen, down the hallways, and into the bedrooms. It settled on nearly every item the family owned.
The first set of photos shows what we walked into.
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Securing the Home and Assessing the Damage
Our first job was making the property safe. We boarded up the openings left behind by the fire and the firefighters. That keeps out weather, animals, and anyone who shouldn’t be wandering through. Emergency board-up is one of those services nobody thinks about until they need it at 2 a.m.
Then came the slow, careful work. In full protective gear, our technicians moved through the home room by room. They documented the damage and sorted what could be saved from what couldn’t. The IICRC S700 standard for fire and smoke damage restoration guides how we judge materials and contents. Our team is IICRC certified for exactly this kind of loss.
The laundry room ceiling showed how close this came to being a whole-house fire. You can see the breach in the photos below, along with the containment we set up after selective demolition.
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How Contents Cleaning Saved the Family’s Belongings
This is where the story turns. Most of what this family owned was coated in soot. But coated isn’t the same as ruined. Through our contents cleaning after a fire process, we listed every item worth saving. Then we wrapped it, packed it, and moved it off site for special care.
Different items need different methods:
- Housewares went through ultrasonic baths. Sound waves in a cleaning solution lift soot out of tiny gaps a hand wipe would never reach
- Furniture, artwork, and keepsakes got HEPA vacuuming followed by detailed hand cleaning
- Items too damaged to save were photographed and listed to support the family’s insurance claim
Inside the house, we ran hydroxyl generators. These machines break down smoke odor at the source instead of masking it. We also handled the water left behind by the firefighting effort, since water damage mitigation is part of nearly every serious fire loss. Fire trucks don’t bring small hoses.
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The Result: A Clean Structure and Belongings Back Home
By the end of the project, the structure was clean, dry, and ready for the next phase of the family’s recovery. The garage was restored. The smoke odor was gone. The family’s cleaned belongings came home. Even severe fire losses can be brought back. We see it happen all the time.
If you ever face a fire, the USFA’s After the Fire guide is worth reading before you go back inside. And whatever you do, don’t start wiping soot off the walls yourself. The wrong method can grind soot in for good. We covered why in our post on professional vs DIY fire damage cleanup.
Why Homeowners in Everett and Snohomish County Call Us
Our team at PuroClean of Redmond/Woodinville has served the Greater Eastside and Snohomish County since 2009. We bring more than 45 years of combined team experience, plus a 2019 PuroClean Franchise of the Year award on the shelf. We’ve handled everything from a total contents loss after a neighboring unit fire in Redmond to stubborn odors, which we tackled in our guide to smoke odor removal techniques that actually work.
Fire Damage in Your Everett or Eastside Home?
Our IICRC certified team responds 24/7 with free estimates, emergency board-up, soot and smoke cleanup, and contents cleaning. We work directly with your insurance company so you can focus on what matters most.Contact Our Team Now
Available day or night, every day of the year. Give us a call and we’ll be on our way.
