Fast, Reliable Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Across Old Fig Garden
Fire damage in Old Fig Garden is different from fire damage anywhere else in Fresno. The homes here were built between the 1910s and 1940s, and their original lath-and-plaster walls, multi-coat decorative ceilings, and old-growth wood floors absorb smoke and soot in ways that modern drywall simply doesn’t. We know because we’ve worked these streets long enough to recognize the difference. If you’re standing in a smoke-damaged home right now, call Wade at (855) 915-0646. He’ll answer himself, and he can have a crew at your door in Old Fig Garden faster than most companies can get you past an answering service.
Why Wade’s Restoration of California Is Old Fig Garden’s Preferred Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Company
Wade Ferris has been running this company since 2007, and his name is on the truck, the contract, and the phone line. That’s not marketing. That’s accountability. When a homeowner on Van Ness Boulevard or East Rialto Avenue calls us after a kitchen fire, they’re not getting routed to a call center in another state. They’re getting Wade, who lives in the Valley and understands exactly what a 1920s Craftsman’s plaster walls need after a smoke event.
Our Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration team has worked Old Fig Garden long enough to know the neighborhood’s peculiar restoration challenges. The original lath-and-plaster construction here isn’t a nuisance to us. It’s the reason we’ve invested in specialized equipment and training that most franchises never bother to consider. We use thermal fogging, dry-chem sponge techniques, and HEPA vacuum protocols designed specifically for porous historic plaster, because the standard ozone-and-paint approach fails on these homes. It leaves odor behind in the plaster, and that odor comes back on every humid San Joaquin Valley afternoon.
Our response time to Old Fig Garden runs between 45 and 90 minutes on most days, depending on where in the neighborhood you are and what time of day you call. Wade heads out himself for the initial assessment. Not a phone rep. Not a trainee. The guy who wrote the 90-Day Done Right Promise, which is in writing on every fire job we take in Old Fig Garden.
Key Takeaways:
- We specialize in fire restoration for 1910s-1940s plaster, Saltillo tile, and old-growth wood homes
- Wade Ferris answers the phone himself, day or night
- Every fire job includes our 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing
- We handle insurance adjuster communication directly so you don’t have to relay anything
- Response time to Old Fig Garden: typically 45-90 minutes
Our Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Services in Old Fig Garden
Smoke & Soot Removal
Soot in an Old Fig Garden Tudor Revival doesn’t sit on the surface the way it does in a newer drywall home. The pressurized soot from a fire gets driven deep into the porous lime and gypsum plaster. We use HEPA-vacuuming first, then dry-chem sponge techniques that lift soot from the plaster without smearing it deeper. On original fir floors, we use gentler approaches that don’t open the grain and trap carbon permanently. Our crew is IICRC-certified, and we follow RIA protocols on every job.
Odor Removal & Deodorization
This is where most of our Old Fig Garden work happens. Smoke odor in thick plaster walls doesn’t respond to drugstore sprays or ozone machines run for a few hours. We use Dri-Eaz thermal foggers that push deodorizing vapor into the same pores the smoke entered. In a 1930s Spanish Colonial Revival near the Fig Garden Loop, that might take two or three fogging passes over several days. Rushing that process is how you get a home that smells fine in January and like a campfire again in August.
Contents Cleaning & Pack-Out
When a fire hits an estate home in the 93704 zip code, the contents are often irreplaceable: original built-ins, inherited furniture, decades of family records. We do careful, documented pack-out and content cleaning. Every item gets photographed before it moves, logged, and tracked. That photo log is part of what we hand to your insurance adjuster, and it’s part of why adjusters in Fresno County work well with us. You’re not going to get a vague inventory from Wade’s crew.
Fire Damage Cleanup
Before any restoration starts, we remove the charred debris, stabilize the site, and document everything. In minimally insulated 1920s homes, that step matters more than people expect. An exposed lath-and-plaster wall after a fire is a moisture sponge waiting for the next winter atmospheric river. We get the site cleaned and drying properly within the first 24 to 48 hours whenever possible, so a fire doesn’t quietly become a mold problem behind original plaster.
What happens when you call
- 1
A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
- 2
You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
- 3
A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
- 4
You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Old Fig Garden
We run professional-grade equipment from Dri-Eaz and Phoenix on Old Fig Garden jobs, and we’re IICRC-certified, RIA-affiliated, and IFA-recognized. That’s not a sales pitch. It’s the difference between a thermal fogger that’s calibrated for plaster depth and a rental machine that just moves air around. We stock parts and consumables locally in Fresno, which means we’re not waiting on a shipment when your home needs a second fogging pass or a specialized sponge on short notice.
Common Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Problems We See in Old Fig Garden Homes
- Persistent smoke odor in original plaster walls. Standard odor-neutralization methods designed for drywall don’t reach soot embedded in thick lath-and-plaster. The odor resurfaces on humid days or when the heat kicks on.
- Damage to original Saltillo tile and old-growth fir floors. Aggressive chemical cleaners that work on modern porcelain tile will etch or discolor Saltillo installed in the 1920s and 1930s. Once that happens, it can’t be reversed.
- Delayed board-up and tarping in minimally insulated homes. Old Fig Garden’s 1920s homes have little insulation and original wood windows. When rain from a winter atmospheric river or the foggy season hits a fire-damaged interior, secondary water damage and mold take hold fast behind original plaster.
- Contents damage from improper packing. Antique furniture, original built-ins, and custom textiles from these estate homes need climate-aware packing and cleaning. Throwing them into a storage unit in Fresno’s 100°F summer heat causes warping and finish failure that the fire itself didn’t cause.
Pricing for Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Old Fig Garden, CA
Here are the real ranges we see on Old Fig Garden jobs. Smoke and soot removal on a single room with original plaster walls typically runs $2,800-$6,500, depending on square footage and how deep the soot penetrated. Full odor removal with thermal fogging for a whole 1920s home usually lands between $6,000-$14,000. Contents cleaning and pack-out runs $1,500-$8,000 depending on volume and fragility. Emergency board-up and tarping starts around $450-$1,200 and is often a same-day job. Structural fire repair is scoped and priced in writing, like a remodel, not a cleanup.
A free estimate tells you exactly where your job falls. Call (855) 915-0646 and Wade will walk the house with you. If you already have a written estimate from another company, we’ll give you a free second opinion. And if you’re a senior or veteran, there’s a permanent 10% discount, no expiration date.
We Also Serve Cities Near Old Fig Garden
Our crews regularly respond to fire and smoke damage calls in Fresno, Clovis, Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos, and Fowler. Same crew, same equipment, same 90-Day Done Right Promise. If your home is in one of those areas, the process is identical, and we’ll be there just as fast.
Serving Old Fig Garden, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Old Fig Garden area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Old Fig Garden
Because the original lath-and-plaster in these homes is far more porous than modern drywall, so smoke and soot particles get driven deep into the lime and gypsum layers. Standard ozone treatments or surface sprays only address the top layer. A proper fix requires thermal fogging, which pushes deodorizing vapor into the same porous structure where the smoke settled. That takes multiple passes over several days in many Old Fig Garden homes. Call (855) 915-0646 and we’ll tell you honestly whether thermal fogging is the right call for your walls.
Yes, but only with the right chemistry and technique. Original Saltillo tile from the 1920s and 1930s is softer and more porous than modern tile, and aggressive chemical cleaners can permanently etch or discolor it. We use pH-neutral cleaners and low-pressure methods tested on Saltillo, then document the results so you and your adjuster both know what happened. The wrong approach leaves a tile floor that looks worse than it did right after the fire. The right approach can make it look undisturbed.
Don’t throw anything away yet. Original built-ins, old-growth wood furniture, and textiles from a 1910s Craftsman home are usually cleanable, especially if we get to them before improper storage or heat exposure sets in. We do a careful pack-out with photo documentation, move contents to climate-appropriate storage, and clean each item to IICRC standards. What we’ve seen is that the secondary damage from a hot storage unit or a careless pack-out causes more permanent loss than the fire itself. Call (855) 915-0646 and we’ll walk you through what’s salvageable.
We cut and fit plywood boards to the exact arch profile rather than forcing a rectangular board over the opening. That means no new holes in the original stucco or wood framing around the window. On these 1920s and 1930s Spanish Colonial Revival homes, the window surrounds are often as historic as the windows themselves. We take measurements, cut on-site, and fasten in ways that can be removed cleanly when repairs begin. It’s slower than nailing up whatever’s in the truck, but it’s the only way we’ll do it.
Because the fire suppression water and the original plaster walls create ideal mold conditions if the home isn’t dried properly and quickly. In summer, Fresno’s heat accelerates mold growth behind thick plaster walls where moisture meters and thermal cameras read differently than in modern construction. In winter, the fog and atmospheric river rains keep things damp for weeks. That’s why our fire restoration process always includes a moisture assessment, not just soot and odor work. A fire job that skips drying becomes a mold job inside three weeks.
Call Wade’s Restoration of California Today
If your Old Fig Garden home has fire or smoke damage, don’t wait for the odor to settle in or the plaster to absorb more soot. Call (855) 915-0646 now. Wade answers. He’ll come out, walk the house with you, give you an honest assessment, and put the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. Estimates are free. Seniors and veterans get 10% off, always. If you’ve already got a written estimate from someone else, bring it. We’ll give you a free second opinion, and we won’t charge a trip fee inside the county. No voicemail, no answering service, no runaround. Just Wade.
Written by Wade Ferris, Owner at Wade’s Restoration of California, serving Old Fig Garden and the surrounding Central Valley since 2007.