Fast, Reliable Reconstruction & Cleanup Across San Marino
Reconstruction after fire, water, or smoke damage in San Marino is not a standard drywall-and-paint job. The homes here, most built between 1920 and 1950, carry horsehair plaster, old-growth oak floors, and custom millwork that cannot be swapped for off-the-shelf material. We know that because we have worked inside these houses, matching three-coat lime plaster, navigating the Architectural Design Review Board, and documenting everything for insurance. The direct answer: full reconstruction in San Marino typically runs $18,000 to $85,000 depending on square footage and finish matching. Cleanup-only after smoke infiltration runs $2,800 to $9,500. Call (855) 915-0646 and Wade will talk you through what your house actually needs.
Our Reconstruction & Cleanup team serves the 91108 and 91118 ZIP codes, from the estates off Huntington Drive up to the hillside properties near Lacy Park and the Eaton Canyon drainage corridor. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from our Los Angeles office, but the crews working in San Marino are local to the San Gabriel Valley and we get to your property fast, usually within the hour for active water or smoke emergencies.
Why Wade’s Restoration of California Is San Marino’s Preferred Reconstruction & Cleanup Company
Wade Ferris started this company in 2007 and put his name on the truck. He answers his own phone. When a San Marino homeowner calls at two in the morning because a pipe let go or ash is still drifting through a cracked window sash, Wade is the person who picks up. Not a call center, not a national franchise’s dispatcher in another state. That matters here, where reputation travels block by block and nobody wants a crew they will never see again working inside a 1920s Spanish Colonial Revival.
The homes in San Marino are not like anything in Alhambra or Temple City. They are architect-designed estates with original finishes. We treat them that way. Our crews carry IICRC certification and RIA affiliation, but the credential that matters most to our San Marino customers is that we have fixed houses on their street before. Ask anyone near Lacy Park or along St. Albans Road. They know us.
Wade personally walks every San Marino reconstruction job before work begins. He writes the scope, he maps the moisture readings with a Dri-Eaz meter, and he hands you the daily log at the end. No subcontractor roulette, no vague “we’ll figure it out as we go.” You get a written plan before demolition starts, and the 90-Day Done Right Promise stamped on the contract. If it is not done right, he makes it right.
Our Reconstruction & Cleanup Services in San Marino
Full-Service Reconstruction
Reconstruction in San Marino means more than replacing drywall. A water loss that soaks an original horsehair plaster wall cannot be patched with a Home Depot panel and texture spray. We coordinate plaster restoration specialists who match the exact lime and sand ratio of your original three-coat finish. We match custom crown molding profiles, rebuild original door casings from salvaged or milled-to-spec lumber, and restore old-growth Douglas fir floors that modern flooring companies will tell you to tear out. Our Reconstruction & Cleanup crews document existing finishes before demolition so nothing is lost.
Drywall & Flooring Repair
Most San Marino homes have some areas of true drywall, typically in later additions or utility spaces. Where drywall is original or appropriate, we cut, float, and finish to a smooth, paint-ready surface. For flooring, we work with both solid and engineered hardwood, tile, and stone. If your oak floors buckled after a supply line failure near the kitchen, we assess moisture content before deciding what can be saved. Wade will not sell you a full replacement if targeted repair does the job. He will tell you the truth, even when the truth is a smaller invoice.
Contents Restoration & Pack-Out
Ash and soot do not care how old your furniture is. After the January 2025 Eaton Fire, we packed out and cleaned antiques, family papers, oriental rugs, and upholstered pieces from homes throughout San Marino. Contents restoration means inventorying every item, photographing it, cleaning it with appropriate methods, and storing it safely until reconstruction is complete. We document pack-outs for insurance and coordinate directly with your adjuster so you are not the middleman relaying information.
Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning
Post-construction dust and fine ash lodge into carpet fibers and upholstery in ways surface cleaning misses. We use HEPA vacuums and hot-water extraction, which pulls embedded particles out instead of pushing them deeper. For San Marino homes with original wool carpets or delicate upholstery, we test cleaning agents on an inconspicuous area first. Nobody experiments on your grandmother’s Persian rug.
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.
Common Reconstruction & Cleanup Problems We See in San Marino Homes
- Ash in unsealed plaster ceilings. The Eaton Fire pushed fine ash into attic spaces and through original plaster that has never been sealed. Standard moisture-focused restoration misses this entirely. We HEPA-vacuum attic vents and ceiling cavities, then air-scrub with commercial air movers before reconstruction starts. Skipping this step means smoke odor returns weeks after the project is “done.”
- Clay tile roof and parapet leaks during winter rain. San Marino sits at the mouth of Eaton Canyon. When winter storms follow a burn scar season, debris-laden runoff and saturated soil push water into older foundations and under clay tile. Reconstruction must account for drainage and flashing, not just interior repair. We coordinate with roofing specialists who understand these 1920s-to-1950s systems.
- Contractors who ignore Architectural Design Review Board rules. A stop-work order on exterior reconstruction costs weeks and fines. We file the paperwork, walk the project through review, and build the permit timeline into the schedule from day one. You should not have to explain historic district requirements to your contractor. We already know them.
- Delaminated horsehair plaster after “quick” drywall fixes. We have been called in after another company hung drywall over water-damaged plaster and called it done. The old plaster delaminates behind the new sheet, then cracks appear. That repair has to be torn out and redone properly. We do not create that problem, and we fix it when someone else does.
Pricing for Reconstruction & Cleanup in San Marino, CA
Real numbers, not vague estimates. A smoke-cleanup-only job in a 3,000-square-foot San Marino home, including attic vent HEPA cleaning, air scrubbing, and surface wipe-down of walls and ceilings, runs $2,800 to $6,200. A water-loss reconstruction involving plaster repair, flooring replacement, and repainting in one or two rooms runs $9,000 to $28,000. A full fire reconstruction in a pre-WWII estate, with plaster restoration, custom millwork matching, and flooring throughout, runs $40,000 to $85,000 or more depending on the original materials. Carpet and upholstery cleaning after construction dust runs $350 to $900 per room set. Contents pack-out and restoration runs $2,500 to $12,000 depending on volume and fragility.
What moves the number: whether the Architectural Design Review Board review adds time (it does not add direct cost for us, but it extends the schedule), whether original plaster can be preserved or must be replaced, and how much custom millwork must be milled to spec. We do not charge a trip fee inside Los Angeles County. We offer a free second opinion on any written estimate, and seniors and veterans get 10% off, always. Call (855) 915-0646 for an exact quote. Wade will come out, walk the property with you, and write a scope with prices before anything is signed.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Marino
Our crews work across the San Gabriel Valley. That includes San Gabriel, East San Gabriel, Alhambra, and East Pasadena. Same owner, same onsite presence, same written scope before work starts. If you are in one of those cities and facing smoke, water, or fire reconstruction, call the same number: (855) 915-0646.
Serving San Marino, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Marino 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 - Reconstruction & Cleanup in San Marino
Yes, for most exterior work. The San Marino Architectural Design Review Board requires approval for exterior restoration changes, including roofing, siding, stucco repair, window replacement, and any modification to street-facing facades. This applies even when the work is repairing existing conditions. We handle the application, drawings, and review coordination as part of your reconstruction scope. Plan for the review to add one to three weeks to the schedule depending on the board’s meeting calendar. If you skip approval, the city can issue a stop-work order, so we never skip it. Call (855) 915-0646 if you need help figuring out whether your specific project requires review.
We remove the surface soiling first, using HEPA vacuums and dry-cleaning sponges, then assess whether the plaster is structurally sound. If it is, we consolidate any weak areas, re-key loose plaster to the lath, and skim with a compatible lime-based finish rather than gypsum compound. If the plaster is too far gone, we bring in a plaster restoration specialist who matches the original three-coat lime system. Drywall is only used when the original wall was already drywall. Replacing lime plaster with drywall changes the wall’s sound, moisture, and thermal characteristics. In San Marino, that is not restoration; it is devaluation.
Cleanup-only after smoke infiltration in a San Marino home takes three to seven working days depending on square footage and whether contents require pack-out. This includes attic vent cleaning, ceiling and wall wiping, air scrubbing, and HVAC filter replacement. Full reconstruction adds six to sixteen weeks, and more when the Architectural Design Review Board is involved. We give you a written timeline before work starts, and Wade updates you personally if anything shifts. Call (855) 915-0646 after your adjuster has seen the property, or before, and we will map the sequence.
We document every original material before demolition with photos, measurements, and written descriptions, then submit a scope that distinguishes standard line items from custom or historic items. For original plaster, millwork, or flooring, we quote true like-for-like restoration and flag the gap between that cost and a standard drywall replacement so the adjuster sees it in writing. Wade deals with the adjuster directly. You are not stuck translating between us and your carrier. We have done this on dozens of San Marino estate homes and the adjusters who work this area know our documentation holds up.
Yes. Post-construction cleanup in San Marino includes HEPA vacuuming of all surfaces, wet-wiping walls, ceilings, trim, and fixtures, cleaning interior and exterior windows, detailing cabinets and closets, cleaning HVAC vents and registers, and final floor care appropriate to your flooring material. We also clear all construction debris and run an air scrubber before you walk back in. This is standard at the end of our reconstruction projects, not an add-on. If another contractor left your house dusty, call us. We will make it livable. (855) 915-0646.
We Know San Marino Homes Because We Have Worked in Them
After the January 2025 Eaton Fire, our crew worked on a 1920s Spanish Colonial Revival estate in the 91108 ZIP, where fine ash had settled into unsealed plaster ceilings and original oak floors. We used Injectidry drying mats to protect the old-growth flooring while HEPA-vacuuming ash from attic vents, then coordinated with a plaster restoration specialist to match the three-coat lime finish exactly. That job taught us what hundreds of San Marino homes were going through: the mature oak and pepper tree canopy had trapped fine ash against rooflines and in attic vents, concentrating smoke infiltration in homes with original, unsealed plaster ceilings. Standard moisture-focused restoration protocols completely missed it. We did not, because we opened the ceilings and looked.
That is the difference. We do not show up to San Marino with a generic playbook from a national training manual. We show up having worked on your neighbor’s house, knowing what the city’s review board requires, knowing what the plaster is made of, and knowing where ash hides. If you need Reconstruction & Cleanup, call (855) 915-0646. Wade will answer.
Written by Wade Ferris, Owner at Wade’s Restoration of California, serving San Marino and the San Gabriel Valley since 2007.