Structural Fire Damage Cleaning in Corning, CA
The drywall is gone, and now you are staring at blackened studs, scorched joists and a charred roof deck. The question is which members can be cleaned, which need a sister, and which have to come out. Unify Fire Solutions connects you with independent, licensed and insured contractors in Corning who clean the framing, masonry and steel itself.
- Soda, dry ice and hand cleaning of framing
- Every stud and joist probed for char depth
- Sealer applied to lock in residual odor
What Makes Framing Work Different
Close up the walls over dirty framing and the smoke odor bleeds right back through the new finish. This stage decides whether your rebuilt rooms smell fresh or smell burned for years.
Licensed & Insured Independent Pros
The contractors we connect you with are independent businesses carrying their own license and insurance. Verify both, and ask whether the crew follows the IICRC S700 standard for fire and smoke work.
Upfront Written Estimates
Media blasting depends on square footage, the media used and how hard the space is to get into. Ask for a line-item written estimate before the first bag of media is opened.
Rapid Local Dispatch
A real person answers around the clock, and the search for a crew begins on that call. How fast someone arrives depends on availability and distance, often within the same day.
Blasting Rigs and Probing Tools
Structural crews bring soda blast pots, dry ice units, big compressors, HEPA vacs, air scrubbers and a sharp awl to test every member.
Do not climb into a burned attic or walk a scorched roof deck to look for yourself. Weakened joists and burned-through sheathing can give way without warning, and exposed wiring may still be live. Let the crew confirm the structure will hold before anyone goes up, and keep everyone off the floor above a burned basement or crawlspace.
Structural Cleaning Services From Rafters to Slab
Furniture and debris are a separate job. This page is about the framing, masonry and steel that actually carry the load.
Char Depth Probing and Member Decisions
An awl pushed into a charred stud tells the story: if it stops in sound wood after a thin layer of char, the member is usually a cleaning candidate. Deep char that eats into the section of a joist or truss chord means sistering or replacement.
- Members marked clean, sister or replace
- Structural engineer called in for questionable beams, trusses and headers
- Photos of each marked member for the claim
Soda Blasting
Baking soda media knocks soot and surface char off framing while leaving the grain mostly intact. It leaves a fine white dust and some residue, so containment and a thorough HEPA vacuum afterward are part of the job.
Dry Ice Blasting
Dry ice pellets hit the surface and turn straight into gas, so there is no media left behind to sweep up. It suits cramped attics and areas around wiring, but it runs louder and pricier than soda.
- Hearing protection and ventilation required
- Good choice when residue would be a problem
Wire Brushing and Sanding
For a few blackened studs or a small closet fire, wire brushes, sanding discs and a HEPA-shrouded grinder may be all it takes. Hand work is slower but sensible where a blast rig would be too much.
Brick, Block, Concrete and Steel Beams
Fireplace surrounds, block foundation walls and concrete slabs hold soot in their pores, and alkaline cleaners, scrubbing or blasting pull it out. Steel beams and columns are cleaned of soot and checked for warping or sag, which goes to the engineer.
Encapsulation and Attic Insulation Removal
Even well-blasted wood can hold faint odor in its pores, so crews roll or spray a pigmented shellac-based or specialty encapsulating sealer over cleaned framing. Attic jobs start by vacuuming out the smoky blown-in or batt insulation so the rafters and roof deck can be reached.
Crawlspaces get the same treatment on a smaller, dirtier scale: floor joists, sill plates and the underside of the subfloor are probed, blasted where needed and sealed. A smoke-stained or wet vapor barrier usually comes out and goes back new.
Ask your contractor which method they recommend for each area and why. It is common to see soda in open walls, dry ice in the attic and hand sanding near the electrical panel on the same job.
Plan for containment, because blasting throws soot and media into every corner it can reach. The crew hangs poly over doorways, masks off the HVAC returns and runs air scrubbers under negative pressure while they work. Ask how they will protect finished rooms and windows that were not damaged.
Bare Framing Covered in Soot and Char?
Phone our dispatchers and they begin searching for a structural crew close to Corning. It costs nothing to call.
Call +1-833-336-1630The Path From Charred Framing to Sealed Wood
- 1
Phone the Dispatcher
Say which parts of the structure are open now, such as walls, attic, crawlspace, masonry or steel. Mention if a roofer, engineer or adjuster has already been out.
- 2
Mobile Crew on Site
The contractor arrives with a compressor, blasting equipment and containment materials. They check that the roof and floor are safe to walk and that power to the open walls is off.
- 3
Probe, Mark and Quote
They test each stud, joist and rafter with an awl, tag it, and flag anything doubtful for an engineer. You get a written, line-item quote listing square footage, method, sealer and insulation removal before any work starts.
- 4
Blasting, Sealing and Walkthrough
Once the wood is blasted, vacuumed and sealed, the crew lead walks you through the open structure. Smell the space on a warm day and get photos of each tagged member before anyone hangs drywall.
Notes From People We Connected
After the attic fire, the rafters were black and the blown-in insulation was a wet mess. The crew pulled the insulation, dry ice blasted the rafters and rolled sealer on everything. Two rafters were cut deep enough that they called in an engineer, and those got sistered.
My contractor brother-in-law said all the black studs had to go. The crew lead probed each one with an awl and showed me that most were just surface char. Soda blasting and a coat of sealer saved most of the wall.
Our basement fire blackened the block walls and the steel beam over the family room. The contractor cleaned the block and the beam, then had an engineer check the steel for warping. No smell now, even with the windows shut.
Your Structural Fire Cleaning Questions Answered
How do crews decide if a charred stud can stay?
The test is simple: they probe it. Push an awl into the char, and if it hits solid wood after a shallow layer, the stud is usually a cleaning job. Deep char, cracks or a reduced cross section mean sistering or replacement, with a structural engineer making the call on anything questionable.
What is the difference between soda blasting and dry ice blasting?
Soda media is mild on the grain and helps with odor, though it leaves a white dust that needs a full HEPA cleanup. Dry ice leaves no media behind and works well near wiring, but the equipment is noisy and the job usually costs more. It is common to see both on one job.
Why seal the framing if it has already been cleaned?
Wood is porous, and smoke molecules sit deep in the grain where no blasting can reach. A shellac-based or specialty encapsulant locks that residual odor in so it cannot off-gas through the new drywall. Sealer only works over clean framing, never as a shortcut over soot.
Does the attic insulation have to come out after a fire?
In most cases where smoke got into the attic, it does. Blown-in and batt insulation trap smoke and soot like a filter, and many get soaked by hose water too. It is vacuumed out with an insulation vac so the rafters and roof deck can be probed, blasted and sealed before anything new is blown in.
Can soot be cleaned off brick and concrete block?
Most of the time, but brick and block hold soot in their pores and need more than a wipe. Expect alkaline detergents and scrub brushes for light staining and media blasting for thick deposits. Heat-cracked or spalled block and brick should be looked at by an engineer or mason.
Do I need a structural engineer for fire-damaged framing?
Not for every job, but for anything load-bearing that looks questionable, yes. Trusses, beams, headers, steel and heavily charred joists are where an engineer's letter protects you and helps the claim. The building department may ask for it before signing off on the rebuild.
Charred Framing Cleaning Across Corning and Beyond
Our dispatch line covers Corning and the nearby communities around it, from older homes with plaster and solid-sawn joists to newer builds with engineered trusses. Attics, crawlspaces, basements, garages and small commercial buildings are all in scope.
- Attic fires
- Electrical fires
- Furnace puff-backs
- Chimney fires
- Lightning strikes
- Neighbor's fire spread
If the first crew we connect you with is not the right fit, call back and a dispatcher will connect you with another. Get the bones cleaned before anyone hangs new drywall.
