Cleaning up your house

Following a disaster, such as flooding or a fire, it is critical to clean your house as quickly as possible to protect the health of the occupants and prevent further damage. 

Before beginning the clean-up process: 

• Check to ensure there is nothing hazardous in your house before entering. More specifically, verify that there is no risk of electrocution or dangers associate with the building’s structure or the presence of hazardous materials.
• Prepare an inventory of all damages, including photos or videos. Your municipality, insurance company or the financial institution where you have your mortgage could ask you for this list.
• You can opt to carry out the clean-up yourself or rely on a company that specializes in such services. In the latter case, select an enterprise that is renowned for its evaluation and clean-up services.
• Avoid cleaning up your house when vulnerable persons (children or people with asthma or allergies) are present.

During the clean-up process: 

• Wear the personal protective equipment required to safeguard you from dirty water, microbes, particles on the ground or chemical product waste, including:
  • a  respiratory protection device (in French only) (such as an N95 mask or respirator with an N100 filter);
  • rubber gloves and boots;
  • long clothing (e.g., pants and a top with sleeves);
  • safety glasses or goggles.
• Take regular breaks to avoid getting tired or injuring yourself, and never hesitate to ask for help with the work that needs to be done.
• Wash your hands often, either with soap and water or an alcohol-based antiseptic.
• Avoid eating, changing your contact lenses or smoking at the site of clean-up activities.
• Put the clothes worn during the clean-up in a closed bag or other container, and wash them separately from other clothing.

Should there be water accumulation in your house due to a broken pipe, flooding or a sewer backup, clean and dry all of the affected items and surfaces.

Throw away all items made of porous materials or which cannot be properly cleaned, i.e.:

• materials such as carpeting, insulation or gypsum plasterboard (gyproc) which are humid or that came into contact with the water;
• objects whose stuffing material got wet (e.g., mattresses, bed pillows, decorative or furniture pillows/seats, stuffed animals or toys), to prevent mould or exposure to certain viruses or bacteria;
• beauty products, bathroom items and medication that could have come into contact with the water.

Also throw out any food items that got wet. For further details, go to the page entitled Keeping or throwing away food after a power outage or flood.

Using  ammonia-free soap and clean hot water, wash all non-porous objects and surfaces (e.g., items made of metal or glass) which could have come into contact with dirty water. These items and surfaces must be thoroughly brushed and cleaned with a soft soap, then dried off.

Pay special attention to all objects that could come into contact with food items or people’s mouth (including toys and other objects that children can attempt to put into their mouth).

Clean and disinfect the surfaces and objects that could come into contact with food items. You can use a commercial disinfectant or make your own as follows: 5 ml (1 teaspoon) of bleach for 1 litre of water. Be careful to never mix bleach with ammonia or other cleaning products.

Make sure your house stays in excellent condition by looking over the guidelines found in a document produced by the Société d’habitation du Québec: Quoi faire pour votre maison à la suite d'une inondation (PDF - 262 KB, in French only).

Clean and dry everything as soon as possible after experiencing water damage, notably within 24 to 48 hours.  Waiting longer than that could result in the appearance of mould. Check out the page Finding and eliminating mould from your home for further information on how to proceed with the clean-up.

Inspect all of the rooms in your house. Take careful note of anything that smells like mould, earth or alcohol, and be on the lookout for greenish or blackish spots on walls, ceilings or in closets.

Ventilate all rooms adequately during a few hours to get rid of all odours, by opening the windows and using portable fans to exchange/replace the air.

Remove all dust and soot with soap and water, making sure to wear gloves.

Never use a broom or vacuum cleaner, both of which make dust move around rather than removing it.

Thoroughly clean children’s toys and all other items that you use often.

Wash all clothing items that smell like smoke.

Throw out any items that got wet when the fire was being put out (such as gypsum plasterboard or glass wool) and check all wood to make sure its moisture content is less than 15%.

If necessary, clean the ventilation systems and all of their parts. Replace filters when needed and turn the ventilation systems back on.

Call on the services of a company specialized in cleaning clothing and textiles to have them take care of fabric items (such as couches, mattresses, toys and stuffed animals) which are very soiled or give off a strong odour.