Trying to repair your home to its pre-loss condition can be incredibly difficult after a house fire. Even if you replace charred drywall or rebuild entire rooms, it’s easy to end up with repairs that look awkward and out of place, especially if you don’t have a restoration specialist handle the reconstruction for you. Keep reading to learn proven ways to blend the old materials with the new construction to preserve the home’s original character and visual appeal.
Matching Materials and Paint Colors for a Cohesive Look
The materials that get used to rebuild the home need to match the ones already in place. For example, if the fire ruined a section of hardwood flooring that uses red oak planks, the restoration experts will source the same material to do the repair. This level of precise matching ensures the newly installed flooring perfectly blends with the rest of the hardwood. You won’t have to stress about mismatched materials disrupting the room’s appearance or a certain part looking as if it’s an obvious replacement.
Using Custom Finishes to Recreate the Original Appearance
Perhaps the fire completely burned up built-in bookshelves and custom fireplace mantels. If you try to replace them with unfinished new materials, it’ll make the room appear out of balance and the replacement piece look newer than the surrounding features. When you use custom finishes that match the rest of the room’s decor and pre-fire architectural design, it produces a much more cohesive look.
Relaying the Floor Without Creating Obvious Transitions
There’s a special technique for getting new flooring to seamlessly weave in with a room’s existing layout, and it’s called lacing or tooth-in installation. The restoration experts start by removing the damaged flooring and then interlocking the new planks directly with the surviving, original wood. This ensures there aren’t any obvious, distinct borders between the new and old materials. You’ll have one smooth, beautiful surface across the entire room that looks like it did before the fire (or even better).
Matching Trim, Molding and Architectural Details
Does your home have custom crown molding or old-school trim that got burnt up in the fire? There’s a good chance your local hardware store doesn’t keep that exact same type in stock. If you do repairs with modern molding or trim without updating the rest of the woodwork, the result will be a complete eyesore. As soon as you walk into the room, you’ll notice inconsistent profiles and mismatched architectural details. Restoration specialists have a network of suppliers and manufacturers to source custom trim pieces and molding profiles from specialty mills.
Just because a fire damaged your home doesn’t mean you have to settle for obvious repairs or mismatched finishes. Taking time to carefully plan the reconstruction and source the correct materials is an important investment in preserving your home’s original character and appearance. And the best way to do this is to partner with a reputable restoration company. When you need fire damage services in Hickory, NC, contact United Water Restoration Group of Hickory.