Is the smoke smell you're smelling really there?

8/31/2023 (Permalink)

When we perform fire restoration and cleaning services, especially when heavy amounts of smoke and soot were involved, dealing with the odor is often the most difficult piece of the puzzle. 

The primary reasons for this are based in reality. Smoke and soot can travel to all sorts of unexpected places within a home, especially if the home is not dealt with properly in the immediate aftermath of the fire. Soot can often be broken down into microscopic particles that are invisible to the naked eye, which means it can be next to impossible to exactly pinpoint.

But past that, we often find that people suffer "olfactory hallucinations," or "phantosmia," after fires, especially house fires.

These hallucinations cause them to smell fire and smoke even when no one else can, simply because the trauma of the event is so ingrained in their memory.