How Long Does the Fire Damage Restoration Process Take?

Whether at your home or business, a fire can disrupt your life. It’s expected that you will want to put the whole thing behind you and get your life back to normal as soon as possible. 

But how long does it take for fire damage restoration? That depends on how severe the fire damage was. That will determine how much we need to do to return the building to its prior condition and make it fit for occupancy or business use. 

How Long Does Minor Fire Damage Restoration Take 

Fire damage is defined as minor when it is localized in time and space. The fire burned in only one room, and it didn’t burn long enough for smoke to permeate the entire building. Minor fire damage also means that extensive water wasn’t used to extinguish it. 

Minor fire damage restoration can take a few days to a week. Minor repairs and cleaning are required. Smoke damaged walls will have to be treated, cleaned, and possibly repainted. Smoke odor removal is necessary in the room. Removal of smoke odors alone can sometimes take days. 

How Long Does Moderate Fire Damage Restoration Take 

Moderate fire damage is still localized to one room, but it grew throughout the room and burned for a long time. In this situation, it’s likely that firefighters arrived to extinguish the blaze with significant amounts of water. 

For moderate fire damage, full restoration can take several weeks. Water extraction alone can take several days. Fires of this size typically require some level of demolition, which can also take days. The building will likely need structural repairs, which can take days or weeks. The floor, ceiling, and even roof may have suffered significant damage. Damage may also extend to the electrical and/or HVAC systems. These types of repairs often need to be done sequentially: one type of work can’t start until another is finished. This is one of those situations where working with a single company for all the segments can significantly cut down on the time required. Instead of having one contractor finish work, then contact the next contractor who might come by tomorrow or the next day, contractors can set their schedules together so one will start work immediately after the other finishes. 

Meanwhile, a larger and longer-burning fire means more smoke and soot. Even if the fire stayed in one area, the smoke or soot probably didn’t. Removing more extensive smoke and soot from the house takes longer, and sometimes items will have to be removed from the property to a specialized facility to get smoke odors out of them. Other times, drywall, insulation, carpet pads, and other parts of the house can be so saturated with smoke odors that they need to be removed and replaced. 

How Long Does Severe Fire Damage Restoration Take 

Severe fire damage describes a fire that raged throughout the entire house. This fire damage restoration can take many weeks to six months or even more to complete. 

When fire damage is this severe, you might want to evaluate the structure to decide whether you want to preserve any of it, or if it makes sense to tear it down and rebuild from the start. 

You will also have to triage all the contents of your house, deciding what is worth restoring and what is best to replace. 

Again, this is a situation where you will benefit from working with a restoration company that can handle all the steps in-house. The diversity of skills required for severe fire damage restoration is essentially the same as for a complete build, even if you are preserving some parts of the original structure. The restored building will need extensive construction, including framing and the installation of systems like electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and more. In addition, the finishing parts of construction will need attention, including finish carpentry, painting, carpet installation, and more. Delays caused by having multiple contractors can multiply, adding days or even weeks to the restoration timeline. 

HRS Restoration Can Help

If you have suffered any level of fire damage to your home or business, HRS restoration is ready to help. Not only do we have the tools and expertise to handle fire damage and water damage, but we have more than 50 years’ experience as well as one of the best reputations in the business. HRS Restoration offers 24/7 emergency response. Call us now and we can be on site ready to work at any time, day or night. 

We are also a subsidiary of Haselden Construction, which gives us access to all of Haselden’s resources as one of the most respected builders in the Denver area and Rocky Mountain Region. This allows us to handle all phases of the restoration process in-house. If you’re concerned about the timetable for restorations, this can save you days, even weeks, on your restoration project. It also helps to avoid complications related to working with multiple contractors, and it allows us to offer competitive pricing. Haselden Construction is a third-generation family-owned company, and our commitment to all our clients is personal. 

Contact us if your home or business has suffered fire damage. Call (720) 664-9001 for emergency fire damage services. 

How Long Fire Damage Restoration Takes: Frequently Asked Questions 

How long does fire damage restoration take?

Fire damage restoration can take anywhere from a few days to six months or more, depending on how severe the damage is. Minor fire damage typically takes a few days to a week to restore, moderate fire damage takes several weeks, and severe fire damage can take many weeks to six months or longer. The timeline depends on how much work is needed to return the building to its prior condition and make it fit for occupancy or business use. 

What is considered minor fire damage? 

Minor fire damage is damage from a fire that stayed in a single room and did not burn long enough for smoke to spread through the entire building. Minor fire damage also means that large amounts of water were not needed to put out the fire. 

How long does minor fire damage restoration take? 

Minor fire damage restoration usually takes a few days to a week. The work typically includes minor repairs, cleaning, treating smoke-damaged walls, repainting if needed, and removing smoke odor from the affected room. Smoke odor removal alone can sometimes take several days. 

What is considered moderate fire damage? 

Moderate fire damage restoration typically takes several weeks. Water extraction alone can take several days, and demolition can take several more. Structural repairs to floors, ceilings, or the roof can take days or weeks, and electrical or HVAC systems may also need repair. Because many of these tasks must be done in sequence, delays between steps can extend the overall timeline. 

Why does smoke damage extend the fire restoration timeline? 

Smoke damage extends the fire restoration timeline because smoke and soot spread well beyond the area that burned, especially with larger or longer-burning fires. Removing extensive smoke and soot takes time. Some belongings may need to be sent to a specialized facility for odor removal, and heavily smoke-saturated drywall, insulation, and carpet padding may need to be removed and replaced.

What is considered severe fire damage? 

Severe fire damage is damage from a fire that spread throughout an entire house or building. Restoring severe fire damage requires extensive construction and can take many weeks to six months or more. 

How long does severe fire damage restoration take? 

Severe fire damage restoration can take many weeks to six months or longer. The process often involves evaluating whether any of the structure can be preserved or whether it should be torn down and rebuilt. It also requires deciding which belongings to restore and which to replace, then completing framing, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and finish work such as carpentry, painting, and carpet installation. 

Should you rebuild or restore a house after severe fire damage? 

After severe fire damage, the building's structure should be evaluated to decide whether any of it is worth preserving or whether demolishing and rebuilding from scratch makes more sense. Even when some of the original structure is kept, severe fire restoration requires essentially the same range of skills as building a new structure. 

How can you speed up fire damage restoration? 

You can speed up fire damage restoration by working with a single restoration company that handles all phases of the work in-house. Fire restoration tasks often have to happen in sequence, and with multiple contractors, each one may have to wait for the next to become available. That can add days or even weeks. A single company can schedule each phase to begin as soon as the previous one ends. 

Who provides fire damage restoration in Denver? 

HRS Restoration provides fire, smoke, and water damage restoration for homes and businesses in the Denver area, with 24/7 emergency response at (720) 664-9001. HRS Restoration is a subsidiary of Haselden Construction, a third-generation, family-owned builder with more than 50 years of experience serving the Denver area and Rocky Mountain region. That affiliation lets HRS Restoration handle every phase of fire damage restoration in-house, which can save days or weeks on a project, avoid multi-contractor complications, and support competitive pricing.