Handling Smoke Damaged Electronics

10/26/2020 (Permalink)

Electronic damaged by smoke

When an electrical fire engulfs your commercial building in Deer Park, OH, almost none of your possessions are safe. Vital electronic devices, such as computers, appliances, hard drives and other items are no exception. In most cases, you do have to either contact professional assistance, or replace the devices altogether. However, you might still be able to save your possessions if you use the following steps.

Types of Smoke Damage

There are several different ways that smoke damage can affect your electronic devices:

Corrosion from Smoke Acidity: Soot is acidic in nature, which can easily corrode your devices. Ultimately, this drastically reduces your devices' lifespans.
Magnetization: Many people don't realize that smoke actually carries a magnetic charge. The unfortunate truth is that this charge can easily short circuit your electronics.
Black Film on Insulation: When smoke seeps into your computers, hard drives or other devices, it leaves behind a black film. This affects the devices' insulation abilities, ultimately causing them to overheat. In some cases, this event can release toxic fumes, or even lead to another electrical fire.

Cleaning Smoke Damaged Electronics
Calling professional help is your best chance at success when it comes to computer cleanup. However, if you still wish to tackle the issue yourself, you can follow these steps:

• Cut the power to your electronic devices. This may involve removing the batteries or disconnecting the power outlets. Leave them completely shut off until the cleaning process is complete.
  
• Use a soft rag to gently wipe off any soot you discover on the exterior of the device.
  
• Use an air compressor to gently blow smoke out of the device's outlets, air vents and ports.
  
  

If these steps are unsuccessful, you might want to check your devices' warranties to see whether smoke damage is covered.
An electrical fire can wreck havoc on your commercial building, damaging your devices and halting business endeavors. Business cannot continue until your computers, hard drives and appliances are back in working condition. While the steps above can help, your best course of action is to contact fire remediation experts.