House Fire

[bphaynes]

We just moved to Winston-Salem from King and our new house needed a good bit of work just to move in. We needed all new floors so on the main level I wanted white oak hardwoods. I was not happy with the installation. They did not put wood filler in many areas with gaps, knots, nail holes, etc. I thought that was standard, but I made him redo some of that. Then, after we picked out stain (3 part Natural to 1 part Early American) and they put on one coat of poly, I got a call at 4am when I still lived in King from the Winston FD that there was a fire at my new house. I jumped out of bed and drove down here and the floor idiots had left a trash bag full of sawdust, stain and poly (probably some rags and various items) outside my front door on pine needles. The FD thought it spontaneously combusted, it was the only explanation. Thankfully they put it out before it went inside, but it burned up a few bushes and completely melted/destroyed the new composite handrail that the previous owner custom ordered and installed last year. Plus the FD had the break my door open so door jamb was completely busted and the front door is compromised. I cannot believe that guys who work with wood for a living and finish hardwood floors no less do not know that you cannot do what they did. Why even leave it outside my front door and on pine needles? I'm so thankful for the FD and the fast response and my neighbors who have reached out. It's just another reminder to me to be careful in my shop especially when working with chemicals and flammable substances. The GC is fixing the damage and I filed with the Sub's insurance so it seems like it will work out, but not exactly what we wanted to deal with in our first couple of weeks. Anyway, now we're settled and I'm on to the hundreds and small and big projects starting with the ones my wife wants of course. I keep trying to tell her I need my shop up and running before I can build her what she wants...

 

[Martin Roper]

Wow. That could've ended up muuuch worse. Good luck with all your repairs.

 

[Graywolf]

I’m sorry for your troubles. I am glad it’s going to work out for you. This is a great example of how easy it is for anyone to let their guard down, this could have been avoided with diligence and care by the workers.

 

[bowman]

Just WOW! Glad it was contained to the outside

 

[chris_goris]

The same thing happened to a family friend on a new build in colorado. The crew left a bag of rags etc on the outside and it combusted, and completely burned the side of the LOG HOME!. I think it was about $120k in damage, to remove the logs and redo the one whole side. Many topcoat products have labeling this can occur and recommend mitigation for rags etc (like soaking in water) Sorry for your troubles and be thankful your house is brick!

 

[ssmith]

Unfortunate the contractor used poor judgement, or maybe just was unaware of the danger. Really glad to see you had minimal damage. Worse is not fun.

 

[bainin]

When I have mixed refuse (chemicals, sawdust, etc) I usually flood it with water and then set it out on some patio bricks for a few days.
Besides seprating all this stuff, is there a better way to ensure it wont combust on its own?

b

 

[Tarhead]

Sorry this happened! We lost our house from a countertop installer smoking while he was applying contact cement when I was a kid. My mom was in a back room with my infant brother and was lucky to get out.

 

[Bill Clemmons]

As we often hear, "Good help is hard to find". Probably more so today than at any time in my life.

 

[Gotcha6]

When I have mixed refuse (chemicals, sawdust, etc) I usually flood it with water and then set it out on some patio bricks for a few days.
Besides seprating all this stuff, is there a better way to ensure it wont combust on its own?

b

A sealed self closing trash can like used in automotive shops would work best. If not that, then an all metal small garbage can with a sealing lid. Cut off the oxygen supply. It may still spontaneously combust, but it will be contained.

 

[CaptnA]

Sorry you are having to deal with such. I wish it was a rare type occurrence. Seen many quite similar incidents and far too many caused by construction, DIY, and hobby efforts. Dust can quite literally explode under the right circumstances, is highly flammable due to the surface area, and can be an effective insulator to hold heat. Some adhesives and many finishes are very flammable, organic compounds on rags can spontaneously ignite under the right circumstances, malfunctioning tools can overheat when they aren't thought to even be working - the list goes on way to long. You are fortunate to have had someone catch the fire early and report it. Smoke detectors save lives - and early detection of a fire can reduce damage. Fire extinguishers are a cheap investment - IF someone has an idea how to properly use them.

Bill my dad used to day -
"Bad help is worse than no help" (I didn't realize when I was very little he was often talking about me!!) Now it is hard to find someone willing to truly help, and if you do you may spend longer explaining what you need them to do than actually doing it will take.

 

[Skymaster]

Those contractors MUST HAVE INSURANCE BY LAW!!!!!!!!! SUE. Also if this is a new build and you havent closed sue the builder.

 

[Paul Joseph Hilchey]

We just moved to Winston-Salem from King and our new house needed a good bit of work just to move in. We needed all new floors so on the main level I wanted white oak hardwoods. I was not happy with the installation. They did not put wood filler in many areas with gaps, knots, nail holes, etc. I thought that was standard, but I made him redo some of that. Then, after we picked out stain (3 part Natural to 1 part Early American) and they put on one coat of poly, I got a call at 4am when I still lived in King from the Winston FD that there was a fire at my new house. I jumped out of bed and drove down here and the floor idiots had left a trash bag full of sawdust, stain and poly (probably some rags and various items) outside my front door on pine needles. The FD thought it spontaneously combusted, it was the only explanation. Thankfully they put it out before it went inside, but it burned up a few bushes and completely melted/destroyed the new composite handrail that the previous owner custom ordered and installed last year. Plus the FD had the break my door open so door jamb was completely busted and the front door is compromised. I cannot believe that guys who work with wood for a living and finish hardwood floors no less do not know that you cannot do what they did. Why even leave it outside my front door and on pine needles? I'm so thankful for the FD and the fast response and my neighbors who have reached out. It's just another reminder to me to be careful in my shop especially when working with chemicals and flammable substances. The GC is fixing the damage and I filed with the Sub's insurance so it seems like it will work out, but not exactly what we wanted to deal with in our first couple of weeks. Anyway, now we're settled and I'm on to the hundreds and small and big projects starting with the ones my wife wants of course. I keep trying to tell her I need my shop up and running before I can build her what she wants...

The very same thing happened to the house next to us. A contractor bought the house to renovate and turn into a Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO). His work crew installed White Oak flooring and left a box of sawdust on some leaves that were between the front door and a very nice (and expensive) Japanese Maple tree that is less than 15 feet from the door. The fire cooked one side of the tree and some paint on the porch. It was about 9:30PM when I smelled smoke (the very distinctive smell of white oak) and called 911. That was a year ago. They repainted the porch; but, the tree has not recovered. The VRBO has become a noisy party place. Maybe I should have let it burn down.