Category: Restoration (Page 7 of 8)

The Restoration of Cleveland’s West Side Market

September 19, 2013 /
Inside Cleveland's West Side Historical Marketplace
Inside Cleveland’s West Side Historical Marketplace

On January 30th, 2013, just after Cleveland’s West Side Market celebrated its 100th anniversary, a fire broke out totaling 2 of the 164 vendor stalls and spreading damaging soot throughout the massive structure. This beautiful public marketplace is operated by the City of Cleveland. It was built by the same architects that built the Cleveland Museum of Art, Benjamin Hubbel and W. Dominic Benes. Rising above all the glory stands the 134 feet tall clock tower. The local community depends on the diverse variety of goods that the market offers. News of the total loss of paper products and all food items from the fire was an absolute tragedy.

A local restoration company called RestorX MD had the winning bid and began working around the clock to restore the building. The restoration company reported soot up to an inch thick on top of the overhead lights. The first step for the technicians was to dry clean the dusty soot from any and all surfaces where it collected. This was the most important step taken during the restoration. Had they began cleaning the soot with a liquid cleaning agent, the soot would have actually been set and all of the stainless steel damaged.

After the dry cleaning and a quick soak in a specially formulated cleaning solution, the power washing began with high pressure hot water. Although the building had existing drains, more drainage was required to keep up with the amount of water being used for washing. RestorX MD used the truck mounts from their carpet cleaning division to extract the soot ridden water and haul it away.

Within the soot cleaning process there is always the step of fine detailing. After a fire, no soot can be left behind. Even the smallest amount settled in the cracks between the glass and it’s stainless casing will later cause problems with the steel and persistently harbor a strong odor. Everything must be disassembled, thoroughly cleaned, and reassembled. This is by far the most tedious part of the fire restoration process.

With every restoration, there is a beauty that can be found after the tragedy with the completion of the project. In the case of Cleveland’s Historic Market, vendors restocked by February 18th for the reopening and they were able to resume service in an absolutely pristine building. All of the grime that built up over the 100 years that the building existed had been washed away with all of the soot. Finally, visitors and employees alike were able to again marvel at the beauty of the massive ceramic ceilings and distinct tile details. Thanks to the quick turnaround of an efficient restoration company, the community was able to continue their dependence on the beautiful market, hoping to do so for another 100 years.

Photo courtesy of Landscape Voice

TOP 10 HOME FIRE PREVENTION TIPS

August 14, 2013 /

TOP 10 HOME FIRE PREVENTION TIPS

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  1. Test smoke alarms. You’ll find this on almost every one of our handy household maintenance check lists. Batteries in smoke detectors should be replaced once a year and each unit should be tested often.
  2. Check your fire extinguisher expiration date. Not everyone realizes that these actually do expire. You don’t want to find this out when you actually need it. Add a helpful reminder and program the expiration date into your smartphone or online calendar.
  3. Clean your dryer vents! You should clean the entire dryer and ventilation system at least once a year. The flammability of lint is highly underestimated. Need some guidance? YouTube has a few great video tutorials for “dryer cleaning”, or contact the manufacturer of your machine. Make sure to not only clean the screen, but clear debris from the back of the dryer, and check that the exterior vent is also clear.
  4. INSPECT. This is another repetitive goodie. As with any prevention, regular inspection is key to detecting a problem before it becomes a disaster. Check all exposed wires, interior and exterior, for any loose areas or damage. Check for soot marks or damage to your electrical panel. Act immediately if you find a strong odor around your gas connections. Check any pilot lights and don’t forget about places like your attic where animals could chew wires. Make sure circuits aren’t overloaded and that all areas around major appliances are clear of dust and debris. The coils under that heater aren’t going to clean themselves.
  5. Clean your range hood, stove, and oven. Buildup of grease and cause a nasty kitchen fire. If you do experience a grease fire, remember not to use water! You must either extinguish it or smolder it.
  6. Maintain your heating sources. No matter the heat source, be it a furnace, fireplace, or space heater; be sure to have it properly maintained. Furnaces and duct work should be cleaned and the filter changed. Space heaters should be properly used within safe distances of flammable items, and their chords should be in perfect condition. Fireplaces should be cleaned and chimneys swept.Check for cracks and other hazards around the hearth. Be careful what you burn in there! Some woods pop excessively, like cedar.
  7. When cooking, stick around. Unattended cooking is of the most common causes of house fires. If you are going to leave the room, turn off your burners. The same goes for outdoor grilling.
  8. No smoking in bed! Or laying down anywhere for that matter. If you must still smoke, stay standing and prevent yourself from falling asleep.
  9. Install additional protection such as a sprinkler system and a lightning protection system. Sprinkler systems are great extra protection while you are there and peace of mind when you are not. These systems combined with smoke alarms will increase the value of your home and give you a greater chance of surviving a fire. A lightning strike on a property can ruin the entire electrical system and blow every connected electronic device in it. Lightning protection systems provides a safe route for the electrical current to follow, rerouting it from the sensitive routes within your home. You could take it a step further and add additional surge protection to prevent scenarios such as a small surge in the power lines from starting a fire in your electrical panel. If you are experiencing a storm capable of producing lightning, it is best to unplug all outlets, especially large electronics such as computers, televisions, and dyers.
  10. Consult a professional if you find that something is flickering frequently or if certain fuses blow often. This could be signs that there is a deeper hidden problem you’ll want to fix right away.

Please consider all of these tips strongly for the safety of your property. For the day you’ll spend checking them off, you’ll save yourself thousands of dollars and years of worry. Experiencing so many things that we can’t prevent such as major storm systems, tornadoes, and floods, gives us all the more reason to prevent the things we can.

Why We Are Still Talking About Hurricane Sandy

July 16, 2013 /

It was last fall that Hurricane Sandy battered the east coast, but we are still seeing pictures today of the damage inflicted and reading about Sandy Relief Fund donations. Pictures portray areas that have hardly been touched since the super storm hit. Community assistance and volunteers are still widely needed and funding is still an issue. Why are we still buzzing about Sandy? Thank Katrina.

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Much of the hundreds of millions of federal dollars provided to the residents of Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina cannot be accounted for. Funds were provided for the homeowner’s to elevate their homes above floodwater threat levels with a deadline of 3 years to complete the elevation. Here we are years later seeing the level of homes unchanged. The mass search of receipts to prove where exactly the funds were spent is a headache of a mess. Trying to collect the funds back from non-compliant homeowners is going to be difficult if not near impossible.

By the time Hurricane Sandy devastated New Jersey, those with the power to grant the funds learned from what happened in Louisiana. Planning to release the finds in installments was part of the process of avoiding the mess. This plan involves more support including but not limited to production management, inspections, confirmation of work completion, and then collection. Where more support is required, more funds are required to cover that support. More time is required for the communication between each support system. An estimated 26,000 homeowners will benefit from federal programs upon approval, but these limited funds are approved for specific repairs and it is necessary to ensure that they are used properly.

Even in some of the average covered losses I see within the year, this installment process is present. The urgency to repair after a widespread catastrophe cannot compare, but the steps on how to collect can. If the funds are approved and released upon an agreed scope of repairs, you would divide the services by the payments required to complete them. Once one percentage of the project is complete, application for the payment is submitted. The work is inspected to confirm completion, and then funds are released. In doing this, someone, contractor or homeowner, is covering the cost and then maybe being reimbursed by the insurance company. Although this is a longer process, it protects policy holders from the dangers of fraud. In a large catastrophe situation, it protects disaster relief depletion due to those who don’t intend to spend the small amount of available funds as instructed.

Of course, there are other reasons we are still seeing incomplete restorations. These are not limited to insufficient insurance coverage, funding, and property view debates. There were homeowner’s blindsided to find that their basic insurance didn’t cover flood loss. Neighbors are arguing about view obstruction from house elevation. Many owners have now come to find that they need to completely tear down their homes and rebuild from scratch. Any unattended homes by now that still had water damage would be ridden with mold.

We also still get to witness the beauty within all the devastation. Even back after Hurricane Katrina hit, the growth in the presence of community is grand. With each large disaster, there are still thousands of people willing to help. Disaster relief committees learn from the last catastrophe to more effectively restore from the current. All the talk we still hear and pictures we still see about Hurricane Sandy are a great reminder that homeowners and renters not only need to learn from what happened, but also apply it. This 2013 hurricane season starts on a canvas perfect for another large storm. Plan ahead, review your coverage, and be aware of your risk.

Participating in National Home Safety Month

June 14, 2013 /

June is recognized as the month for National Home Safety. Participate with us by committing to being prepared, informed, and living well.

Grill Safety TIps

A popular part of living well in June is enjoying the great weather! Breaking out the grill is one of my favorite ways to celebrate the coming of summer. Remember before kicking off a great barbecue:

  • Propane and charcoal grills are for outdoor use only!
  • Avoid grilling close to your house, railings, or overhanging branches. Smoke damage can be quite an extensive project to tackle. Read more about smoke damage clean up.
  • Maintain a clean grill by proper heating, scrubbing, and cleaning the grease tray often.
  • Make sure to never leave the grill unattended while in use, and don’t forget to shut the propane off when you’re done.
  • To check for leaks in the tank hose, use a light soap and water mix. If you see bubbles after applying the solution to the hose, don’t light that grill! Have it serviced first.
  • Always let coals cool completely before disposing of them in a metal container.
  • Of course, accidents do happen, so have a plan in place for prompt response if you have an emergency. If you are local on Cape Cod, read about Whalen Restoration’s emergency response services.

This June, work on preventing household injuries by addressing factors in and around your home.

  • As included in most of our safety tips, have an emergency safety plan. Keep it simple so that all ages of your home will know what to do, but include enough to cover most of the common disasters your area may encounter in a year.
  • Keep an emergency kit handy in the event of a natural disaster and/or loss of power. Make sure you have the essentials to last a few days including water, first aid, flashlights with extra batteries, and nonperishable food. More in depth details of what you should have and how to assemble a kit can be found at http://www.ready.gov/build-a-kit
  • Replace the batteries in your smoke alarms yearly, and test them often. Make sure there is one on every floor of your home and near fire hazards.
  • Be sure to have emergency telephone numbers handy for accidents. Poison control and other emergency contact numbers are great to have posted on the refrigerator for quick access.
  • Make sure any toxic products and medications are stored in childproof areas.

With those safety and prevention tips in mind, another very large part of home safety is making time to care for you. Nothing should interfere with having a balanced diet and good exercise habits. That doesn’t mean you can’t indulge in strawberry short cake at the cookout or take a day’s rest from the gym, but it does mean that you should be regularly eating clean, getting sufficient exercise, and regular sleep. Luckily, the urgency to adapt these great habits is becoming one of today’s most popular topics, creating an amazing variety of options to suit everyone’s needs. By caring for yourself you’ll be preventing household injury by keeping a clear mind and stronger body.

Pledge to honor this National Home Safety month and reap the benefits all year long. I wish you all a safe, happy, and healthy Summer.

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