01
Make it safe
Board-up partners the same day so the house is not open to weather or theft.
Fire & smoke · Chicago
Board-up, soot, odor, then rebuild — one file.
24/7 · a person answers
Fire damage restoration Chicago, IL
The fire is out. You are in the driveway and everything you own smells like the night. We board up, source-clean soot, dry the firefighting water, and rebuild under one file so you are not coordinating three contractors after a bad night.
Board-up
Same day partners
Soot
Source cleaning
Rebuild
In-house
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After the department leaves
The fire is out. The house is not done.
Your house
The fire is out. The house is not done.
The windows are open. Everything you own smells like the night. Soot is on the walls. Water from the fight is in the floors. You are standing in the driveway wondering who is allowed to go in — and who actually puts a house back, instead of a wipe-down that off-gasses for months.
Why this shop
How Big Shoulders handles this file.
01
Make it safe the same day
Board-up so the house is not open to weather or theft. Then soot, odor, and firefighting water as one file.
02
Clean the source, not the look
Residue that stays is still a job. We do not call a wipe-down restoration.
03
One shop through rebuild
You should not juggle three contractors who will not own the file. Extract, dry, rebuild here.
02
Source-clean soot
Wipe-down is not restoration. Residue that stays off-gasses and stains.
03
Dry the water
Firefighting water is a water loss inside a fire file. We treat both.
When to call
After the fire department leaves
After the department leaves, the house is still a job — soot, odor, and firefighting water.
- Visible soot on walls, ceilings, or contents
- Smoke odor that cleaning products do not touch
- Water from firefighting in floors and insulation
- Heat-damaged framing or melted finishes
- HVAC that ran during the fire
- A unit fire next door and smoke in your space
Until we arrive
Do these. Skip the rest.
- 01
Do not occupy until the property is cleared as safe.
- 02
Do not smear soot — that spreads contamination and hurts the claim.
- 03
Photograph before you throw anything out.
- 04
Call the carrier and us once it is safe to enter.
After the fire
What a fire loss actually needs
01
Smoke and soot remediation
Smoke does not stay where the fire was. It penetrates walls, rides the HVAC, and settles into porous surfaces. Soot residue keeps damaging the longer it sits.
02
Smoke odor removal
Standard cleaning does not reach odor embedded in structure and contents. We neutralize at the source rather than masking it.
03
Water from firefighting
The water used to knock down the fire is a second loss. Flooring, insulation, and framing need extraction and drying like any other water event.
04
Full fire buildback
When fire takes rooms, we frame, hang, finish, and paint in-house so you are not coordinating a separate GC after mitigation.
What is at stake
Fire damage goes deeper than the burn.
Heat weakens materials that still look intact. Smoke residue keeps off-gassing. Soot that is not fully removed stains, corrodes metal, and ruins contents long after the visible burn is gone.
The job is soot, odor, firefighting water, and rebuild — not a cleaning crew and a hope. IICRC fire restoration addresses the layers, not just the black walls.
Process
Before, during, after
01
Before
The property has fire, smoke, soot, and water. You are dealing with shock and insurance questions. This is when you call.
02
During
We assess, coordinate emergency board-up, remove firefighting water, contain and remediate soot, eliminate odor, and start rebuild — with the insurer in the loop.
03
After
Structurally sound, smoke-free, restored to pre-loss condition. One team walked the file the whole way.
Field view
See the crew on a Chicago job.
Contents and structure
Pack-out when it saves the claim. Source-clean what can stay. Replace what cannot.
Adjacent units
Smoke rides shared HVAC. We treat the unit that did not burn if the odor and soot are there.
Timeline
Stabilize and dry firefighting water immediately. Soot and odor work is days to weeks. Structural rebuild is weeks to months. You get a written timeline after assessment.
What drives cost
Driven by how far smoke traveled, whether HVAC is involved, and how much assembly needs rebuild. Itemized. Coordinated with the adjuster.
Insurance
Fire, smoke, soot, and rebuild are typically covered. We document the full path so the file matches the house.
Questions
What homeowners ask first.
What should I do immediately after a fire?
Call your insurer and a restoration company once the property is cleared as safe. Do not smear soot around before it is assessed — that can spread contamination and complicate the claim.
Will homeowners insurance cover fire restoration?
Most policies cover fire, smoke, soot, and rebuild. We document the full scope so the file matches the house.
Can smoke odor be fully eliminated?
Yes, with professional deodorization that treats embedded sources in materials — not just the air.
How long does fire restoration take?
Smoke-only work can be days. Structural rebuild can be weeks to months. You get a real timeline after assessment.
Do you handle the rebuild after remediation?
Yes. Framing, drywall, flooring, and finishes stay with us.
Related
Keep it in the same shop.
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(773) 900-8407Request a callback
Get a crew moving.
A real technician from this shop answers. Not a bot. Not an outsourced call center.