Fire Damage Restoration

What This Is

Fire damage restoration addresses the structural and material destruction caused by fire, including charring, structural compromise, heat warping, and the secondary damage from firefighting water. It is distinct from smoke and soot cleanup, though both typically occur in the same event and are often a single insurance scope. IICRC S700 governs the standard for professional fire and smoke restoration. Fire damage restoration is one of the most complex residential insurance claims because it involves structural engineering questions, code-compliance requirements for rebuilds, and the intersection of fire, smoke, and water damage in a single event.

When You Need This Service

• ✓Any portion of the home has experienced active fire — kitchen fire, electrical fire, chimney fire that spread to framing
• ✓The fire department has extinguished a fire and cleared the scene for re-entry assessment
• ✓Structural elements — framing, rafters, floor joists — show visible charring or burn-through
• ✓The roof, exterior wall, or other structural assembly has been breached by fire
• ✓Firefighting water has caused secondary water damage throughout the home
• ✓The insurance carrier has issued an order to secure and stabilize the structure before assessment

Every Hour Costs You

A fire-damaged structure is not simply dangerous — it is actively deteriorating. Charred framing that has lost structural integrity can collapse without warning. Firefighting water soaking into a compromised structure begins the moisture damage and mold clock immediately. Exposed framing and roofing are vulnerable to the next weather event — a single rain on an open burn site can cause more water damage than the fire itself. Beyond the physical deterioration, insurance adjusters typically expect the homeowner to have taken steps to secure and stabilize the structure within 24–48 hours of the event. Revolve deploys emergency board-up and tarping on the same day we're called, securing the structure before any of these secondary damage vectors can develop.

Our Restoration Process

1. 1

   Emergency Structural Stabilization

   Board-up of all openings created by fire, firefighting operations, or structural failure. Roof tarping over any burn-through or compromised areas. This stops secondary weather intrusion and secures the structure for safe assessment.

2. 2

   Structural Engineering Assessment

   For any fire involving structural framing, a licensed structural engineer assessment determines what must be replaced versus what can be repaired. This assessment is required for permits and for insurance scope documentation.

3. 3

   Demolition of Unsalvageable Material

   Charred framing, burned drywall, melted insulation, and fire-damaged roofing are removed systematically. Salvageable structural members that have been cleaned and verified are marked separately from replacement material.

4. 4

   IICRC S700 Smoke and Soot Cleanup

   HEPA-vacuuming, dry-cleaning sponging, chemical sponge cleaning, and thermal fogging address smoke penetration throughout the structure — including areas not directly burned. Soot is acidic and continues damaging surfaces it contacts after the fire is out.

5. 5

   Odor Remediation

   Thermal fogging, hydroxyl generation, or ozone treatment (in unoccupied structures) address smoke odor in framing, HVAC systems, and remaining materials. Odor remediation is typically required before any new drywall or finishes are installed.

6. 6

   Structural Rebuild

   Revolve rebuilds all fire-damaged structural elements — framing, sheathing, roofing, exterior cladding, interior finishes — to current Missouri building code. All permits are pulled and all inspections scheduled through Revolve.

7. 7

   Final Inspection and Insurance Close-Out

   Certificate of occupancy (or equivalent final inspection approval) is obtained. Revolve provides a complete close-out package including all inspection records, permit final, and post-rebuild documentation for your insurance file.

Insurance Coverage

Insurance Note

Fire damage is among the most thoroughly covered perils in standard HO-3 homeowners insurance — it is one of the 'named perils' that virtually all policies include without exclusion. The challenge in fire claims is scope documentation: insurance carriers routinely issue initial estimates that underestimate structural replacement requirements, code-upgrade obligations (bringing rebuilt elements to current code is typically required and typically covered), and the true extent of smoke penetration. Revolve meets your adjuster on-site, provides a comprehensive scope document, and manages all supplemental claims when the initial estimate is insufficient.

Why Fire Damage Claims Are Consistently Underpaid at First Estimate

Fire claims are among the most complex in residential insurance, and the initial adjuster estimate is routinely incomplete — not necessarily by bad faith, but because fire damage has layers that are not visible on a walkthrough. Smoke penetrates far beyond the burn zone, traveling through wall cavities, HVAC ductwork, and attic insulation. Structural framing that appears intact above a burn line may have lost load capacity and must be evaluated by an engineer, not eyeballed. Firefighting water damage extends throughout the home and must be addressed as a concurrent water damage scope.

The Ordinance or Law coverage issue is the most commonly underpaid component. Most homes in St. Louis were built under earlier building codes. A fire that destroys 50% of a structure may trigger a requirement to bring the entire rebuilt structure up to current code — electrical, HVAC, insulation R-values, egress window sizing. These code upgrades are covered by Ordinance or Law coverage, which most policies include but with a sublimit (commonly 10% of dwelling coverage). Knowing the sublimit and advocating for it requires someone who has processed fire claims before.

Revolve has been navigating complex insurance claims in St. Louis for 17-plus years. We don't accept the first estimate as final. We build a complete scope from the structural engineer's report, the IICRC S700 smoke assessment, and our own rebuild takeoff — then reconcile that scope against the carrier's estimate line by line before any work begins.

The Smoke Damage You Can't See Is the Problem

Even in a fire where the burn zone is confined to one room, smoke and combustion byproducts migrate throughout the entire structure within minutes. Smoke follows air pathways — wall cavities, ceiling voids, HVAC return ducts, attic spaces — and deposits soot on every surface it touches. Soot is acidic. Left in contact with drywall, insulation, framing, and HVAC components, it continues corrosive activity after the fire is extinguished.

IICRC S700 defines the cleanup protocols for fire and smoke restoration: HEPA vacuuming, dry cleaning sponge application, wet cleaning, and thermal fogging are not optional steps that can be skipped to reduce cost. They are the minimum protocol for preventing ongoing soot corrosion and eliminating the smoke odor that, if not treated before rebuild, will permeate every new surface installed on top of it.

This is why smoke damage often carries its own separate insurance scope line even within a fire claim — the extent of smoke penetration in an area not directly burned is different in kind from the structural repair scope. Revolve's coordinated IICRC S700 crews assess the full smoke penetration zone before we set the rebuild boundary, ensuring we're not installing new drywall over untreated smoky wall cavities.

Missouri Code Requirements and the Rebuild Process

Missouri building code is administered at the local jurisdiction level — St. Louis City, St. Louis County municipalities, and surrounding county jurisdictions each adopt and amend the International Building Code on different cycles. The practical effect is that a fire-damaged home being rebuilt in Kirkwood may face different code requirements than the same home in Florissant. Revolve pulls permits in every jurisdiction we work in across the St. Louis metro, and we know which jurisdictions have adopted recent code cycles and which are still on earlier editions.

For fire rebuilds specifically, permit requirements are non-negotiable. Any structural replacement, electrical work, HVAC replacement, or plumbing repair in a fire restoration must be permitted and inspected. Insurance carriers require a final inspection or certificate of occupancy for claim close-out, and any un-permitted work discovered during a subsequent sale creates a real estate disclosure liability. Revolve manages the permit process from application through final inspection as part of every fire restoration project.

Missouri does not currently have a state-level contractor licensing requirement for general contractors — but St. Louis County, St. Louis City, and most incorporated municipalities do require contractor registration and licensing. Revolve maintains all required local registrations and carries the liability insurance and workers' compensation coverage required by Missouri law. This matters for your insurance claim: your carrier will verify contractor licensing before releasing final payment.

Do Not Do This

Do not enter a fire-damaged structure without clearance from the fire marshal. Charred floor joists and roof framing can fail under foot traffic without warning. Structural collapse is the leading cause of post-fire injury to homeowners returning to assess damage. Wait for the scene release and for a contractor or engineer to conduct the initial walk-through.