A few of you have asked some questions relating to my last post. Primarily you have expressed interest in what exactly is the problem with blood that has been cleaned up or meth lab residues.

Blood may contain pathogens that can live dried in bodily fluids for varying lengths of time. To kill those pathogens you must treat them with the proper products AND follow the directions for those products. The trick is that rarely does any novice and even some pros follow the directions.

Meth lab residues are very difficult to remove and proper protocols MUST be followed. Even most guidance documents will tell you they do not guarantee the efficacy of the guidance. In lay mans terms, they don't know if it will work.

So it is imperative that you use only the best crime scene cleanup companies for your work. Ask for their credentials and make them verify them. There are a lot of amatures in the crime scene cleanup industry.

Is Your New Home Safe?

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:44:00 -0500

Many loan companies require homes to be tested for mechanical fitness. They require the title to be checked to make sure its clear and free. They sometimes ask for Radon testing and well water certification. They do this to protect their investment.

But what do they not require that could cost you your health and your home? They do not require a home be tested for meth lab or blood contamination. So if you are thinking about purchasing a home, call a professional crime scene cleanup company to check it out for you. For about $500.00-$1000.00 you could save your health and your investment.

For Property Managers / Owners

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:24:00 -0500

In the field of crime scene cleanup, liability is one of the most important factors for the property manager. And when it comes to liability there are plenty of ways you can get into trouble. Clients personal effects, employees OSHA work rules, neighbor safety.... It all ads up to trouble if you don't take it seriously.

I recently advised a property manager of an apartment to have the deceased's family sign a statement and release of liability regarding the property in the unit. The family wanted to take the stuff, the manager thought it was a great idea to save those disposal fee dollars. Win. Win. Wrong !!!!

The family cleaned the couch and sold it to the neighbor. The neighbor later found out what had happened and is now threatening to sue the complex. The manager wants to know what to do. Lesson: If the company you want to hire can not advise you on OSHA regs and precautions to take for your employees safety, liability issues and precautions to take to protect the other residents and the company....find a different crime scene cleanup company.

Insurers Accused of Collusion

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 19:50:00 -0500

According to www.therestorationforum.com, the Attorney General of Louisiana has filed suit against some of the largest insurance companies in the nation such as Allstate, Farmers and Travelers. Why, might you ask, is that important to the field of crime scene cleanup. Here is the simple answer.

The truth is that some insurers utilize less than honest means to reduce claims. Those insurers the AG named above have in my experience been far more aggressive than others in attempting to lower my invoices. So I feel a sense of understanding with the AG's position.

What I have found to be most disturbing about the processes I have faced is that a particular adjuster will present an alternative estimate that is far lower than mine. I will research the company that has presented the estimate and discover they have absolutely no background or limited background in the field of crime scene cleanup. At best, they may be a very small inexperienced company that is, in my opinion, clearly trying to win favor with the insurer.

When I present my findings to the adjuster, make any adjustments in relationship with his original objections and submit my amended invoice, I get silence. There is almost always no response to my response from those adjusters who appear to be shorting the claim. They simply ignore my presentation and pay what they like, leaving the homeowner to settle the matter with me.

Keep an eye on this lawsuit at www.therestorationforum.com.

Crime Scene Cleanup Employment Opportunity

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 00:20:00 -0500

I need some crime scene cleanup techs in Orlando Florida and Washington DC. This job requires an individual that is detail oriented and has a very flexible schedule. Because the calls come at any time day or night, you must be available at most times.

Many of my better crime scene cleanup techs are early retirees, police and fire personnel or single Mom's. Early retirees like a job with no set schedule but where they can earn a decent hourly rate a few times a month. Police and fie persons usually have a partner who may want to work the opposite of their shift if they do a 12 on 12 off type of schedule. Single Mom's may not have a full time job and get child support or live with a family member. Because of this they only need an extra $800 per month or so. With this job, their hourly rate is high enough they can earn that in just a few days.

At any rate, you must have a flexible schedule. People with full time jobs or full time school, need not apply unless you are available at least three to four consecutive days a week.

Click on one of the links in this blog and goto my home page. Read about the company so you have an idea about your interest in what we do. Crime scene cleanup is not any easy job. Then send me a resume by clicking on the info link. We do not respond to all inquiries. We pick the best resumes for a phone interview and then the best three or four for an in person interview. Good luck.

Failing to Follow My Instructions

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 00:09:00 -0500

The odor of death or human decomposition odor, is nothing to play with or take lightly. I have a client who recently failed to seal a concrete floor as I instructed. The result was that the odor came back out of the concrete and resaturated the home.

We had treated this concrete quite thoroughly. We removed some of it, saturated it with multiple steps of remediation product and then recemented the removed area. The next day, after the new cement had dried, we instructed the client to encapsulate the entire floor with the appropriate sealer.

Unfortunately, the client waited to seal the floor for several weeks. In the mean time, the dust that remained in the unit from the concrete removal process had made the unit stink again. It still contained human decomposition odor. Had the client followed the steps timely, the dust would have been removed prior to sealing the floor. This error could be a costly one. So please, follow the instructions when dealiong with the odor of death.

Cat Urine Odor

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0500

I get so many calls for pet urine odor that it makes me crazy. The thing is, insurance will not pay a crime scene cleanup company to remove pet urine odors because the damage is self inflicted. And when people find out how much this type of thing costs to fix, they would just rather live with the stench.

If you have this problem, let me save you some cash. DO NOT and I repeat, DO NOT try to cover the odor by removing the carpet, sealing the floor and then putting in new carpet. If you do this, the odor will almost always come back.

Bite the bullet. Pay the professional IICRC odor certified company to do this work for you. The costs are high, but hey that animal is like family right?

Why You Can't Be Home for a Suicide Cleanup

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 21:22:00 -0500

Why does the crime scene cleanup company want you out of the way when they are working? Good question. While doing a really bad suicide cleanup recently, we had a heck of a disaster happen.

We had already decontaminated the floor and walls and were working on the ceiling. In walks the detective, turns on the ceiling fan and whammy....stuff flys all over the place. We had to do it all over again.

So please, when you are asked to stay away, listen. Crime scene cleaners know what they are doing.

Suicide in an Auto

Thu, 29 Nov 2007 04:03:00 -0500

Is auto insurance supposed to cover a suicide cleanup in a car? Well, yes in a word. It is common for an insurer to cover a claim of this type. This week we ran into a case where the insurer refused the claim saying that it was detailing.

I asked the adjuster if it were his car would he really feel that a suicide cleanup or homicide cleanup was detailing? Would he not feel a need to remove the bodily fluids from the seats, cushions and carpet to ensure he came into no cantact with potentially harmful viruses? Would he feel comfortable tracking those residues into his home where his children play on the floor?

He finally allowed that he would discuss it with his supervisor. My guess; they cover it as they should. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving.

Cement is Porous

Mon, 19 Nov 2007 16:00:00 -0500

We had a suicide cleanup job the other day that was quite interesting. Another company had been called in to handle a suicide cleanup where the body had lain for eight days. After a short time, they were kicked off the job for not following proper protocols.

After we did an extensive four day cleanup, the odor was still hanging around. It was coming up from the cement floor. The owner of the property was surprised. He thought that because it was a finished polished type cement there would be no odor.

The bodily fluids had soaked into the cement which is porous, and were out of reach for removal. After several applications of different products, it was clear the odor was there to stay. We ended up having to remove about two inches of thickness from the floor. That did the trick. Odor gone. Suicide cleanup successful.

Busy Month for Crime Scener Cleaners

Sat, 17 Nov 2007 15:21:00 -0500

What a month. So far, we have had nine crime scene cleanup jobs in nine days. Holy smokes. The holidays have been busy traditionally, but it looks like we are getting an early start on it. We have had several suicide cleanups and several unattended death cleanups. I hope your families do not have to deal with a situation like this these holidays. Good luck and talk to you soon.

Beer Can House

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:39:00 -0500

We did a crime scene cleanup recently that was, shall we say, a bit unusual. The best we could tell, it looked as if the fellow drown himself in a HUGE pile of beer cans. That's right, not the beer itself, but the empty beer cans. It was akin to falling out of the boat, drinking all the water in the lake because you can't swim and then hitting your head on a rock to end it all.

It was a really weird scene to observe. I was thinking, a few more customers like this and Budweiser won't need to sell stock. Anyway, the crime scene cleaning business has some interesting situations occur. So if you are planning on getting into the crime scene cleanup line of work, you better have a strong constitution.

Homicide Cleanup - Ghosts in The Room ?

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 18:30:00 -0500

Please do not mistake this article in any way as a slight to the dead. At my company, we respect the dead and their relatives. We empathise with their grief. But sometimes stuff happens that is just plain funny. Even in the business of crime scene cleanup.

We had a job where an individual had been killed by a villain. While surveying the home to determine the scope of work for the homicide cleanup, the lights began to flicker in the hallway. My operations manager stopped and looked at the light. But it came right back on so he kept walking. A few steps later the light flickered again. This time he turned to the employee behind him to see why he was messing with the light.

The employee was gone. So he walked back towards the room they had just been in to see what was up. When he entered the room, the lights flickered again. The employee jumped and screamed at the same time. The whole crime scene cleanup crew laughs about it to this day.

I guess it just goes to show, even though some of us may see the most terrible things a human being can do to another, we still have our fears. Who would've thought one could cleanup the things we see but still be afraid of ghosts.

Halloween for Crime Scene Cleaners

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 13:46:00 -0500

I took my son to the nations number one rated haunted house for Halloween. It was pretty cool, I must admit. The funny thing is though, I wasn't scared. In fact, I reaslized that as I saw each scene, I mused about the proper way to clean it.

There were some really interesting suicide cleanup scenarios. And of course the murder cleanup scenarios were outrageous. In the end though, the only one that got to me a little was the roach room. I guess we crime scene cleanup people are affected even when we think we are not.

MRSA Staph Infection Cleanup

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 21:34:00 -0500

I have been getting a lot of calls lately about MRSA Staph infection cleanup. You should all know that this infection is contagious through direct physical contact. And just like with any type of contagion, there are different levels of clean. This is where protecting your loved ones gets tricky.

For instance, a level one staph infection cleanup would involve simply spraying the area to be treated with a product that will kill the bacteria or source of contagion. A level two staph infection cleanup would be to apply the product to the affected areas and then wipe them all down. A level three staph infection cleanup would be the above plus treating papers, the inside pages of books and magazines or throwing away all paper goods that are too time consuming to clean.

The thing is, no matter what you do, the only way to guarantee the area is 100% safe is to superheat it to a temperature that would kill the infectious source. So in the end, you just have to pick the level of clean that fits your budget and your conscience. For more thorough and accurate information on MRSA Staph Infection cleanup, visit the CDC web site.

Samuel Jacksons New Movie

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:02:00 -0400

"The Cleaner" is a new movie that stars Samuel Jackson in a crime drama that looks like it's goinmg to be really interesting. Samuel is a crime scene cleaner who does a crime scene cleanup with one problem. The scene has not been released by the police. He gets caught up in an interesting web of deceit. This one ought to be good.

Insurance Can Be Tricky

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 16:45:00 -0400

Most of the time, an insurance policy that covers crime scene cleanup will be called a Homeowners Policy. The ones that will not cover crime scene cleaning would be a Standard Fire Policy.

I just ran accross a State Farm Fire Policy that they called a Homeowner Policy. As the homeowner unfortunately discovered, she is stuck with the bill. Make sure you purchase a policy that will cover crime scene cleaners.

Dick Gordon Show Interview via MP3: Crime Scene Cleanup

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:37:00 -0400

Here is an interview that ran on the dick Gordon Show. It was broadcast across the nation. Although it talked a good bit about meth lab decon, it also talked about the owner, Jerry Turner, and crime scene cleanup.

From Entreprenuer Article About Crime Scene Cleanup

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:30:00 -0400

Here is an article about crime scene cleanup in the online version of Entreprenuer Magazine. It's pretty neat as it is about ten dirty jobs. Crime scene cleanup ranks at the top of the list, so I guess it's pretty dirty. LOL.

Crime Victims Assistance Program In The U.S.

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:23:00 -0400

In the United States, this program is usually called the "Crime Victims Assistance Program". Typically the local District Attorney handles this program in house with a staff advocate. Most states provide between $1000.00 and $1500.00 dollars for the victim of a crime. This applies to crime scene cleanup of course. They usually have other items besides crime scene cleanup that they will help pay for as well.

Does insurance pay for Crime Scene Cleanup?

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:00:00 -0400

Mon, 15 Oct 2007 01:39:00 -0400

Helping crime victims in all situations in important. Crime scene cleanup services really are the "behind the scene" services that help the community in a very unique way.

For instance, funding has been given to help victims of the most violent crimes.

Caledon/Dufferin Victim Services has received funding to administer the Victim Quick Response Program. The Ministry of the Attorney General, Ontario Victim Services Secretariat, recently established a new program to provide timely assistance to victims of the most violent crimes. Caledon/Dufferin Victim Services was awarded the program funding to help victims of crime in both the Caledon and Dufferin areas.

Crime scene clean up
Meth lab cleanup
Death scene cleanup