What’s That Smell? Post-Disaster Odors

Sometimes, after a disaster such as flooding or a fire, odors can remain and diminish the livability of the space. Strong and unpleasant odors can linger long after dust, mold, soot, and other contaminants have been cleared from your home or business. These bad smells can make your space uncomfortable and, in some cases, practically unlivable. The longer they stay, the harder it can be to get rid of them. We offer comprehensive treatment for common and persistent smells, using proven methods to address the issue. With nationwide locations, we partner with plumbers, insurance companies, and other professionals, as well as homes and businesses, to deliver long-lasting results. 

Different disasters can cause different smells, so understanding what you’re smelling helps us figure out what the treatment should be. An air freshener can lessen the intensity temporarily or make it worse, so it’s important to find the cause and treat before unleashing a can of Febreze into your home or business.

Mold Smell After Mold is Gone

Mold has a distinct smell, it’s generally described as “earthy”, “damp”, and “musty”. Mold can also smell like wet clothing or wet cardboard, with variation depending on the person and environment. While not a distinct smell, the sensation of the air feeling or “smelling” thick and heavy can also be a sign of mold being present. 

This smell or sensation can linger after mold is treated; a 1-800 WATER DAMAGE expert might use a HEPA Air Scrubber to eliminate this odor once lingering mold presence is ruled out! A HEPA Air Scrubber is not an ordinary air filter, it’s a heavy duty, commercial grade air filtration system meant specifically for hazardous materials such as mold spores or smoke. If you feel as if that mold smell hasn’t gone away after treating, consider calling a professional to remove the odor.

Smoke Smells After Disaster, Restoration, or Cleaning

Smoke is a particularly tricky odor to remove, it sticks to just about anything: furniture, walls, paint, clothes, and anything porous. What’s more is smoke can leech through paint and continue to stain walls, cause odors, and compromise your air quality due to VOC’s (volatile organic compounds). Smoke odors can come from disasters like a fire, but it can also be due to smoking substances such as tobacco or cannabis indoors. Smoke odor is more than just an odor, it’s toxic compounds being released into the air and should be addressed ASAP, especially if there are children, elderly, or otherwise delicate people in the home or business. 

To remove this odor, cleaning alone is often not enough and may require more than one kind of treatment depending on severity, how long the smoke has been there, and the size of the affected space. A HEPA Air Scrubber might help, but may not completely remove the smoke. A 1-800 WATER DAMAGE expert tech might use thermal fogging and hydroxyl generators for homes with smoke odors and damage. Both therapies work by breaking down/ neutralizing odor causing molecules in even the smallest, least accessible places. 

1-800 Water Damage Odor Removal

With some odors, we may need to come back for multiple treatments. If that’s the case for your property, you can count on our commitment to complete odor elimination. 

Persistent odors often require a layered approach, with initial treatments addressing the bulk of the problem and follow-up treatments targeting remaining odor molecules. Our dedication to thorough odor elimination means we don’t consider the job complete until you’re satisfied with the results.

With 1-800 WATER DAMAGE, you never have to worry about hidden costs or similarly unpleasant surprises. We offer upfront, transparent pricing with all our services, including odor removal.

We help you understand what is happening with your home’s odor and what steps make sense for your situation. Enter your zipcode to find a 1-800 WATER DAMAGE location near you and take the next step toward repairing damage in your home.