Your house just caught fire.
Here's what to do next.
A free, step-by-step guide built by an Arizona contents restoration team that has helped hundreds of families recover their belongings after a fire.
Available 24/7 · All services covered by your homeowner's insurance
You're going to get through this.
My name is Matthew, and I run 1-800-Packouts of the East Valley. If you're reading this page, there's a good chance you just experienced one of the worst days of your life. I want you to know something right away: your belongings are probably more salvageable than you think, and you have more support available to you than you realize.
Most families I work with are shocked by how much can be professionally cleaned, restored, and returned to them — even items that look destroyed. Smoke damage is deceiving. Things that smell terrible and are covered in soot can often be brought back to pre-loss condition. That's what our team does every day, and your insurance covers it.
I built this site because the first 48 hours after a fire are overwhelming, and most of the information out there is either too generic or written by people trying to sell you something. Everything here is free. No forms to fill out, no emails to hand over. Just the same advice I'd give a friend who called me after their house caught fire.
If you're reading this at 2 AM the night of your fire:
You don't need to figure everything out tonight. Get your family somewhere safe, get some sleep, and come back to this guide in the morning. The most important thing right now is that everyone is okay. Everything else can wait.
6 Steps to Start Your Recovery
Fire recovery is a process, not a single event. These six steps will take you from the first hours after the fire through full recovery. Each one links to a detailed page with everything you need.
Get Safe
Make sure everyone is accounted for, find a place to stay tonight, and handle the most urgent needs first.
See the full checklistCall Your Insurance Company
File your claim as soon as possible. Your policy likely covers temporary housing, contents restoration, and more than you think.
Read the insurance guideDocument Everything
Take photos and video of every room before anything is moved. This protects you during the claims process and ensures nothing is missed.
Documentation checklistUnderstand Who Does What
Restoration involves multiple companies with different roles — the general contractor, contents team, adjuster, and more. Know who handles what so you don't fall through the cracks.
See the breakdownUse These Free Tools
We built free tools to help you track your belongings, understand your estimate, and stay organized through the entire process.
Open the toolsFollow the Timeline
Fire recovery takes weeks to months. Knowing what happens in week 1, month 1, and month 3 helps you stay ahead and reduces surprises.
View the timelineWhat most people don't know after a fire
The fire department leaves, and suddenly you're standing in your front yard with no idea what happens next. Here are the things I wish every homeowner knew from day one:
- Your insurance covers more than you think. Most homeowner's policies include contents restoration, temporary housing (called Additional Living Expenses or ALE), and professional pack-out services. You don't pay out of pocket for any of it. Read the full insurance guide.
- Don't throw anything away. Items that look ruined — smoke-damaged clothes, soot-covered furniture, electronics that smell like smoke — can often be professionally restored. Let a contents restoration team assess everything before you toss it.
- You have the right to choose your own restoration companies. Your insurance adjuster may recommend vendors, but under Arizona law, you choose who handles your belongings. Learn who does what in the process.
- Document everything before it's moved. Photos, videos, written notes — capture the condition of every room and item before any cleanup or pack-out begins. This protects your claim.
- Recovery takes longer than you expect. A typical fire restoration takes 3 to 6 months. That's normal. Having a clear timeline and checklist makes it manageable.
Important timing note:
The first 48 hours after a fire are critical for contents salvage. Smoke and soot continue to damage belongings the longer they sit. The sooner a professional pack-out begins, the more items can be saved. If you're within this window, call us now.
Who We Are
1-800-Packouts of the East Valley is a local Arizona contents restoration company serving Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, Scottsdale, Tempe, and the greater Phoenix area. We specialize in one thing: taking care of your belongings after a fire or water loss.
Pack-Out
We carefully inventory, pack, and remove your belongings from the damaged property so structural repairs can begin.
Contents Cleaning
Professional smoke and soot removal for clothing, furniture, electronics, kitchenware, and personal items using industry-standard methods.
Secure Storage
Climate-controlled, insured storage in our facility while your home is being repaired. Your items are safe until you're ready for them.
Pack-Back
Once repairs are done, we return everything to your home, unpacked and placed where it belongs. You walk into a home that feels like yours again.
This is covered by your insurance.
Contents restoration — including pack-out, cleaning, storage, and pack-back — is a standard part of your homeowner's insurance claim. You pay nothing out of pocket. We work directly with your insurance company and adjuster to handle everything.
Free Resources
We created these guides and tools because navigating a fire loss shouldn't require a degree in insurance. Everything here is free and based on what we've learned helping Arizona families through this process.
Fire Damage Insurance Claim Guide
A plain-English walkthrough of the insurance claim process from start to finish — what to expect, what to ask for, and how to avoid common mistakes.
Fire Recovery Checklist & Timeline
An interactive checklist you can print or use on your phone. Covers everything from the first 24 hours through final pack-back, with a realistic timeline for each phase.
Who Does What After a Fire
The adjuster, general contractor, contents team, mitigation company — who are all these people and what do they actually do? A clear breakdown of every role in the process.
Free Recovery Tools
Inventory trackers, estimate calculators, and document organizers built specifically for fire recovery. No sign-up required.
Not sure where to start? Call us. We've helped hundreds of Arizona families through exactly this situation — and we'll walk you through every step.
Call 623-400-6771Available 24/7 · Insurance-covered services