What Is Personal Property Restoration?

No one expects to deal with a devastating problem like a house fire or a flood. Even a few inches of water infiltrating a house from a burst pipe or severe storm could be significant enough to cost thousands of dollars in property damage and time away from home while professionals from a content cleaning company work on the property. 

Content cleaning professionals are essential in restoring properties with fire, smoke, or water damage, but what is personal property restoration? The purpose of personal property restoration is to rehabilitate items to avoid replacing them. It's especially beneficial when damage occurs to irreplaceable belongings. 

What Is Personal Property Restoration?

Personal property restoration refers to the process of cleaning, repairing, and restoring a person's belongings after a fire, flood, storm, or another damaging event.

Unlike real property, which refers to land and whatever has a permanent attachment to it, personal property is anything on the property that's transportable. For example, a house is real property because it is immovable, yet furniture and clothing are moveable, making them personal property. 

In some cases, buildings can be personal property. For example, sheds, trailers, and tiny homes without a permanent foundation can be movable. 

When someone needs personal property restoration, their items will undergo a multi-step process to bring them as close to their original conditions as possible. The process begins by taking everything off-site to a secure facility where the content cleaning company will begin working on them. Movable items that are hard to transport, like carpeting, may receive on-site restoration services. 

What Is the Difference Between Personal Property Restoration and Contents Restoration?

Personal property and content restoration are essentially the same processes, but they do have a few differences. For example, personal property restoration is for residential damaging events, while contents restoration serves commercial properties after a fire or flood. 

Commercial properties aren't exempt from catastrophes that can halt businesses without warning. Businesses need contents restoration to salvage office material, inventory, sensitive information, business equipment, and other essential items. 

During content restoration, the content cleaning company will secure the building. Then, its technicians will inventory all items receiving care before moving them to a secure facility where they will clean, repair, and restore as much as possible. Depending on the damaging event, they may also sanitize and deodorize items to eliminate smoke odors and prevent mold growth. 

What Items Can Content Cleaning Services Repair and Restore?

It's often surprising to learn how much a content cleaning company can salvage. Qualified technicians have the tools and techniques to restore textiles, documents, furniture, electronics, and priceless heirlooms like family photos and moments. 

Below are examples of the types of items that may be salvageable with personal property restoration:

• Photos
• Fine art and children's artwork
• Dining tables, desks, and chairs
• Leather furniture
• Books, journals, and legal documents
• Video game consoles
• Televisions and telephones
• Computers
• Bed linens
• Carpets and area rugs
• Clothing
• Stuffed animals
• Toys

Finding a full-service restoration company is crucial for restoring as many personal items as possible. With a full-service content cleaning company, the technicians can restore the property after a damaging event and tackle damaged personal property according to industry standards. Some restoration companies only focus on real property restoration services. 

What Steps Should a Person Take Following a Catastrophe at Home?

The first step in handling the immediate aftermath of a natural catastrophe, like a hurricane or tree falling on top of the house, or a human-made event, such as an accidental fire, is finding safety. Sometimes the damage is only in one room, but in other cases, the damage can extend throughout the building and create hazards.

When everyone is safe, call the insurance company to file a claim. Next, find a full-service content cleaning company and request a quote. Some restoration companies help with the insurance claims process to make it less stressful for the customer. 

The insurance agency and restoration company will need to agree on the estimate to provide personal property restoration and other services like mold remediation to restore the property and its contents to their original conditions.

Learn More About Personal Property Restoration From the Professionals

The important thing to remember about dealing with an unfortunate incident at home or inside a commercial building is that a qualified content cleaning company can help restore belongings as long as property owners act fast. ABC Environmental Contracting Services is a leading damage restoration company serving St. Louis, MO, and the surrounding communities. 

Its professional and certified technicians respond quickly to personal property and contents cleaning requests. Customer service representatives are available 24/7, so call (314) 668-1509 or fill out their online contact form to request a quote.