Why SERVPRO Fire Damage Specialists Rely On Hydroxyl Generators

7/26/2019 (Permalink)

SERVPRO of Abilene wants to assure our customers that we always use the most efficient methods when mitigating fire damage.

During a house fire, firefighters douse the interior of the home with thousands of gallons of water. This water soaks into walls, floors, and your belongings. After they put the fire out and no signs of hot areas pose additional threats to reignite the fire, the fire department’s personnel return to the station. Their job never includes removing the water or foam soaking into your residence.

The presence of so much water is why SERVPRO uses specific machinery to mitigate fire damage from homes in Abilene. One of these choices involves our options regarding deodorizing equipment. Initial efforts to help make the air safer to breathe while we work on your home have the potential to bring about unexpected effects.

Ozone can cause permanent changes in the color of damp carpets, furniture, and other furnishings. Plants can also suffer drastically when ozone generators fill an area. We must wait until after one of our employees turns off the machine and then a bit longer to clear the air of ozone before we can enter the home. However, we do have a safer alternative with very few drawbacks.

We can safely use hydroxyl generators while we work, as well as in damp conditions. If you see us wearing masks or respirators as part of our personal protective equipment (PPE) while we work on mitigating the fire damage in your dwelling, this is because of the soot hanging in the air. Hydroxyl generators push hydrogen peroxide molecules into the air where they can interact with odor-causing particles at the molecular level.

The extra oxygen molecule turning plain water into hydrogen peroxide has a fragile bond with the water molecule, allowing the oxygen to form bonds with other substances. Our desiccant machines pull the water molecules produced by the breakdown of H2O2 as we remove the water hosed in during the fire. Ozone does not give us the flexibility to work as efficiently as hydroxyl generators provide.

SERVPRO of Abilene wants to assure our customers that we always use the most efficient methods when mitigating fire damage. Call us at (325)672-5661, so we can restore your property, “Like it never even happened.”