Fire Damage Residue Testing in Sydney

Who responds to fires in Sydney and across NSW

Fire and Rescue NSW is the state agency responsible for fire, rescue and hazmat services in cities and towns across NSW. The Audit Office of NSW, in its February 2023 report on bushfire equipment, says the NSW Rural Fire Service is responsible for bushfires across 95% of the state. Fire and Rescue NSW covers the remaining five per cent, mainly the cities and townships where 90% of the population lives.

Those agencies deal with the fire itself. What settles on walls, ceilings, ducts and contents after the trucks leave is a separate question, and it is the one residue sampling answers.

The 2019–20 bushfires and Sydney’s smoke-affected year

The NSW Bushfire Inquiry progress report records 11,774 fire incidents in the 2019–20 bush fire season, with 2,476 homes destroyed and 1,034 damaged. Sydney felt the season through its air. The NSW Legislative Council’s Report 54 on air quality cites Asthma Australia’s evidence that Sydney had 81 days of poor, very poor or hazardous air quality in 2019, more than the combined total of the previous ten years.

NSW Health explains on its bushfire smoke page that smoke contains fine particles that can irritate the eyes, nose, throat and lungs. A home far from any flame can still take in smoke and ash through gaps, vents and air conditioning. The guide to bushfire season contamination covers what owners can record before and after a smoke event.

Bushfire history and NSW rental disclosure

A NSW landlord or agent must not knowingly hide from a prospective tenant that the property has been affected by bushfire or by flooding from a natural weather event in the last five years. It sits among the material facts on the NSW Government page about what tenants need to be told about a rental property.

The wording refers to bushfire. It does not mention fires that start inside a building, and it sets no residue level. Where smoke or soot is part of a tenancy question, a residue report gives the landlord and tenant measured results to discuss. This is general information, not legal advice.

Sydney units, shared ducts and fire residue requests

In an apartment building, smoke does not stay in the unit where the fire started. It can move along corridors, risers and shared ducts into neighbouring lots that saw no flame.

Common requests include:

• an owner whose unit sits above or beside a kitchen fire
• an owners corporation checking corridors and stairwells after smoke spread
• a loss adjuster or insurer who needs residue results before scoping a claim
• an owner deciding which contents to keep, as covered in the contents salvage guide

Tell us whether cleaning has started and whether air conditioning has run since the fire, because both change what sampling can show. The fire damage insurance claims guide explains how residue results fit a claim. Whether a tribunal, court or insurer relies on a report is a decision for them. If a fire scene also raises drug questions, see drug residue testing in Sydney.

How Sydney fire residue is sampled and reported

Suitably qualified occupational hygienists take surface wipes or tape lifts for soot, char and ash from affected and less-affected areas, logged under chain of custody. Analysis for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) or other combustion products is added where it fits the question, as described in PAH testing after a fire. The report names the laboratory and states any accreditation that applies. Test Australia itself is not NATA-accredited.

Each result is compared with a criterion the report names, with the reason for choosing it. Reports are available within 5 business days of the laboratory results being received. The national fire damage testing page and the fire contamination assessment guide cover the method in full, and our methodology page explains how scopes are set.

Fees and independence for Sydney fire assessments

The fee depends on the size of the building, how many units or rooms are involved, whether PAH analysis is included, whether sampling is needed before and after cleaning, and travel beyond Greater Sydney. You get a written fee proposal for the Sydney site before a date is set. Test Australia does not clean, restore or recommend anyone who does, and the reasons are in why we don’t remediate. See the types of assessment work we take on. If water from firefighting has left damp behind, see mould inspection in Sydney or bacteria testing in Sydney.

From smoke event to signed report in Sydney

1. Tell us about the fire. Send the Sydney address, the date of the fire or smoke event, whether it was inside the building or bushfire smoke, and any cleaning done since.
2. Agree the sampling scope. The fee proposal sets out the rooms or units, the sample types, any PAH analysis and the dates on offer.
3. Residue sampling on site. Suitably qualified occupational hygienists collect wipes or tape lifts from affected and less-affected areas under chain of custody.
4. Results against a named criterion. The laboratory analyses the samples. Reports are available within 5 business days of the laboratory results being received.

Sydney fire and smoke questions