Free visual inspection and a written scope of work before any mitigation begins - photos, moisture readings, and drying logs go in your claim file
The scope we write is the scope we bill. Anything new gets shown to you, in writing, before we touch it.
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AfterTrusted Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration for Long Island City Homeowners
Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Long Island City typically costs between $3,200 and $36,000 depending on the square footage affected, how far soot traveled through the ductwork, and whether structural framing needs replacing. Most homes in the Hunters Point and Court Square corridors can be boarded up and assessed within 90 minutes of your call. Floodline Restoration Co. has served Long Island City for over 42 years, and every job is backed by the 90-Day Done Right Promise, given in writing before we start. Call (716) 452-0798 and a live dispatcher answers, day or night.
We start at the floodline, the honest mark the damage left behind, and we do not hand the job off. Extraction, drying, soot removal, and rebuild stay under one roof with the same certified crew. That matters when your Long Island City co-op board wants daily progress updates and your insurance adjuster needs a moisture log and a line-item scope. Curt Bowman built this company around a dispatch board, not a sales desk, and it still runs that way.
What Our Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Service Includes
Fire Damage Cleanup
Fire damage cleanup is the removal of charred building materials, standing water from fire suppression, and debris left after the flames are out. In Long Island City’s older prewar buildings, this often means pulling lath and plaster that soaked up water from the sprinkler system or FDNY hoses. Our crew separates salvageable structure from what has to go, documents every layer with photographs, and keeps a running inventory so your adjuster sees exactly what was removed and why.
Smoke & Soot Removal
Soot is acidic and begins etching glass, metal fixtures, and painted surfaces within hours. In Long Island City, where many units have exposed brick and ducted HVAC, soot travels through vents and settles in places you will not see for weeks. We clean surfaces with dry-chem sponge techniques first, then HEPA-vacuum framing and cavities, and finally wash sealed surfaces with the right alkaline cleaner for the material. The goal is to stop the etching before it becomes permanent staining.
Odor Removal & Deodorization
Smoke odor lives in porous surfaces: drywall, insulation, fabrics, and the space behind baseboards. Masking sprays do not remove it. We run hydroxyl generators and thermal fogging equipment, and in stubborn cases we seal cavity spaces with an odor-blocking primer before rebuild. Our technicians use Phoenix and Dri-Eaz air movers to push treated air through the same paths the smoke traveled, so the odor does not come back after the first warm day.
Contents Cleaning & Pack-Out
When a Long Island City apartment fills with smoke, the contents often need more careful handling than the structure. We pack out salvageable belongings, catalog each item, and clean them off-site or in a controlled on-site space depending on what the adjuster approves. Textiles, books, electronics, and kitchenware each get a different treatment. Everything is photographed before it is touched, because your claim depends on proof of condition.
Emergency Board-Up & Tarping
After FDNY leaves, the opening where a window or door used to be is an invitation to weather, pests, and trespassers. We board up openings with plywood cut to fit, tarp damaged roof sections, and secure the property the same visit. In Long Island City’s mixed-use buildings, this also protects neighboring units from further exposure. Board-up is a temporary measure, but it should be done right, because it holds until structural repair begins.
Structural Fire Repair
Once the site is clean and dry, the rebuild starts. This is framing repair, drywall replacement, flooring, paint, and finish work, scoped and priced in writing like a remodel, not an emergency. Floodline keeps the same crew from day one, which means the person who read the moisture map on day one also knows which studs were burned and which were just wet. In Long Island City, where many buildings are masonry with wood joists, that continuity prevents a rebuild crew from guessing wrong about what is behind the wall.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Brands We Service for Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration
Our technicians train to IICRC, RIA, and IFA standards, and they arrive with equipment we know cold: Dri-Eaz dehumidifiers and air movers, Phoenix desiccants for large commercial spaces, Injectidry systems for wall cavities, and XPOWER air scrubbers. We run Dri-Eaz and Phoenix units on nearly every Long Island City fire job because they hold a consistent dry standard in the humid months when brick buildings hold moisture. The equipment is only as good as the person reading the daily log, and that person is on-site, not remote.
We service standard residential ducted and ductless systems, and we have worked extensively in Long Island City’s converted industrial buildings where HVAC layouts follow no modern plan. Whether the smoke traveled through a central riser, a PTAC sleeve, or open stairwells, our crew maps the path and treats every surface along it. Whether your building has Carrier, Trane, Mitsubishi, or any other make, the restoration process is the same: clean, dry, verify, and document.
Signs You Need Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Right Now
- Soot on walls or ceilings beyond the burn area. Soot can travel through stud cavities and electrical chases and appear in rooms nowhere near the fire. That means the fire smoldered long enough to pressurize the space, and the residue is inside the wall assembly, not just on the surface.
- Smoke odor that comes back after cleaning. If you scrubbed the walls and the smell returns within days, it is coming from inside the framing or insulation. Surface cleaning will not reach it. You need cavity treatment and possibly odor-blocking primer before repainting.
- Staining or yellowing on paint, trim, or plastics. Soot particles bond to painted surfaces and plastics like switch plates and appliance housings. The longer they sit, the deeper the chemical bond, and the less likely a cleaning will restore the original color. This is a clock problem, not a preference problem.
- Water damage beneath the fire area. Everything the FDNY sprays soaks downward. If the floor below the burn is cupping, swelling, or staining, the structure is wet. Wet wood plus soot equals a corrosion problem behind the drywall. This needs extraction and drying, not just a mop.
- Rust or corrosion on metal fixtures in other rooms. Soot is acidic. When it lands on doorknobs, hinges, light fixtures, or appliance surfaces in rooms away from the fire, it starts corroding metal within 72 hours. If you are seeing orange bloom on metal that was not near the flames, the smoke spread further than the visible damage suggests.
Our Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Process - Step by Step
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Emergency response and board-up. We answer the phone with a live person, and a certified crew reaches your Long Island City property the same visit. We secure openings, shut off utilities if needed, and photograph the entire site before anything is moved. That photo record is the foundation of your insurance claim.
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Assessment and moisture mapping. A certified technician maps every affected surface with moisture meters and thermal imaging to find water the eye cannot see. We document the dry standard for your building type, and that number becomes the target we log against daily. No guesswork, and no ending a job while wood is still wet.
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Soot and residue removal. We clean surfaces in order of porosity, from sealed surfaces like glass and metal to porous ones like drywall and brick. HEPA filtration runs the entire time so we are not redistributing soot into finished areas. This is slow work, and doing it fast ruins finishes that could have been saved.
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Structural drying and deodorization. Dri-Eaz and Phoenix equipment runs around the clock, and we take daily readings until the entire affected area meets the dry standard. Once the framing is dry and clean, we treat cavities for odor. The moisture log goes to you and your adjuster, the same log we use internally.
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Reconstruction and final verification. The same crew that pulled the wet drywall replaces it. We rebuild to the original footprint, prime with odor-blocking sealer where needed, and finish to match. Before we call the job done, we walk it with you, confirm the dry standard held, and put the 90-Day Done Right Promise in your hands in writing.
How Much Does Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Cost in Long Island City?
A contained kitchen fire in a Long Island City co-op with soot cleanup and repainting in one room typically runs $3,200 to $7,800. A larger fire that fills a two-bedroom unit with smoke and requires pack-out of contents, full repainting, and duct cleaning runs $9,500 to $22,000. A structural fire that burns through framing and requires rebuilding a room or floor runs $25,000 to $36,000 and up, depending on whether the building’s masonry or steel needs engineering review. These are real numbers from jobs we have scoped in Hunters Point, Court Square, and the surrounding blocks.
What moves the price: how far soot traveled through ductwork, whether contents need off-site cleaning, whether asbestos or lead abatement is triggered by the building’s age, and whether your co-op or condo board requires a board vote before structural work begins. The best way to avoid overpaying is to hire the Best Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Long Island City, NY - one that does not also profit from inflating the rebuild. We give you a written scope before work starts, bill your carrier directly, and do not change the number unless the adjuster approves a change order. The estimate is free, and it comes from a technician who has actually walked the damage, not a salesperson reading from a price sheet.
| Scenario | Typical Cost in Long Island City |
|---|---|
| Contained kitchen fire, one-room soot cleanup | $3,200 - $7,800 |
| Smoke damage throughout a two-bedroom unit | $9,500 - $22,000 |
| Structural fire requiring rebuild of one room | $25,000 - $36,000+ |
| Contents pack-out and cleaning, typical unit | $1,800 - $6,500 |
| Emergency board-up and tarping | $500 - $1,500 |
Two offers apply to fire and smoke work: $50 off any repair over $250, and the Senior & Veteran 5% discount, always. Both can be applied to the homeowner’s portion of a bill after insurance. Call (716) 452-0798 and ask for a walkthrough estimate. It costs nothing and locks in written pricing.
Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Near Long Island City - Our Service Area
We work throughout Long Island City, from Hunters Point and Court Square to the industrial blocks near Maspeth, and we cross the Pulaski Bridge into Greenpoint and Williamsburg regularly. Our Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Greenpoint and Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Williamsburg pages cover those neighborhoods in detail, and we also serve Murray Hill, Upper Manhattan, Astoria, Midtown Manhattan, the Upper East Side, Midtown West, Washington Square, and Ditmars Steinway. Most board-up and assessment calls in Long Island City are answered within 90 minutes. See our home page for the full picture of what we handle across the borough.
Serving Long Island City, NY - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Long Island City area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked Questions - Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Long Island City
24 Hour Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration in Long Island City, NY is the full process of cleaning, drying, deodorizing, and rebuilding a home after a fire. It includes board-up, soot removal, odor treatment, contents handling, and any structural repair needed to make the home safe and livable again. Floodline Restoration Co. handles every phase with the same certified crew so nothing is lost between a cleanup company and a separate rebuild contractor.
A contained fire with mostly smoke and soot damage can be cleaned and deodorized in 4 to 7 days. A structural fire involving rebuild work takes 3 to 8 weeks depending on materials, co-op board approvals, and adjuster sign-offs. The moisture and drying phase is the hardest to rush because wood must reach the dry standard before drywall can cover it.
Expect $3,200 to $7,800 for a contained kitchen fire with soot cleanup, and $25,000 to $36,000 or more if structural framing must be rebuilt. Insurance covers the vast majority of fire claims, and we bill your carrier directly. Call (716) 452-0798 for a free walkthrough estimate with line-item pricing in writing.
We serve Long Island City top to bottom, from Gantry Plaza State Park to the Maspeth border. We also cover Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Astoria Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration, Murray Hill, Midtown Manhattan, the Upper East Side, Midtown West, Washington Square, Ditmars Steinway, and Upper Manhattan. A live dispatcher takes the call and gives you a straight answer on response time.
Yes. Our live dispatch line answers at any hour, and a certified crew can reach most Long Island City addresses within 90 minutes to secure openings and begin the assessment. Board-up and tarping are always part of the emergency response, not a separate visit you have to schedule later.
Every job is backed by the 90-Day Done Right Promise, also known as the Keystone Standard. If anything we did is not right within 90 days, we make it right, in writing, with no paperwork battle. Curt Bowman put that guarantee in place in 2010, and it has held on every fire job we have completed since.
Do not enter the property until the fire department and your restoration company say it is safe. Do not wipe soot off walls or run your HVAC system, because soot drives deeper into porous surfaces and ductwork. Secure the property, call your insurer, and then call (716) 452-0798 so we can get board-up and assessment started the same visit.
Schedule Your Fire & Smoke Damage Restoration Service in Long Island City Today
Call (716) 452-0798 now and you will speak with a live dispatcher, not a recording. We will answer your questions straight, give you a written scope before any work begins, and bill your carrier directly. The estimate is free, the crew is certified, and the work is backed in writing. If it is not done right, we make it right. That is the deal Curt Bowman built this company on, and it applies to every job in Long Island City.
Written by Curt Bowman, Owner at Floodline Restoration Co., serving Long Island City since 2010.