Questions about steps to take when I return home from wildfire evacuation. Not sure what to expect.

First of all, I'm sorry that you've had to go through this. It is devastating overall, and especially to your own mental health. I've lived in wildfire zones, and it is scary coming up to summer every year.

I do secondary impact assessments, so I look at things outside of structural. More things that look at public health concerns: Mould, food, smoke damage (to food, limited air assessment), septic systems.

How long has it been since power was out?
- All perishables will likely have to go

Heat and smoke damage:
- Some pantry foods will have to go as well, even the canned goods. Excessive heat can affect the integrity of the packaging, and smoke could have penetrated non-vacuum sealed items as well.
- Smoke and ash are hazardous to your health. Who knows what else other than wood smoke might have gotten around (plastics, etc.). Definitely wear a well fitted mask when you go in to the house for the first time, or follow guidance of the authorities.

Will clothes, bedding, mattress be salvageable?

- Depends on how smoke-affected they are. This part, I am not 100% sure on, as it would be case by case. If you have insurance, I'd just go with insurance claims. Trying to wash all the particulate matter might not be great for your laundry machine, either. You also can't wash a mattress. Unsure how well a commercial vacuum will handle smoke and ash.

Are there things that 100% should be discarded?

- All food in fridges, freezers
- Clothing, bedding, etc. that may have been left outside, I'd get rid of.

Can the house just be cleaned and aired out?

- This is something that the sanitarian (I think that's what we're called in the US) and air quality specialists can advise you. The AQ specialist can test the air to see if the house requires further remediation works, or if airing out is fine.

And is there anything specific structurally inside and outside I should look out for that might not be obvious?

- Sorry, I can't help with this one, but are you on septic or community sewer?
- For septic, you'll want a sanitarian and/or plumber to assess any damage. I'd ask the sanitarian if they're going to be out anyway to look at the rest of the place, and you won't have a plumber telling you that you need to fix/replace things that don't needing fixing or replacing. You'll not want sewage anywhere except where it's supposed to go. Plastic tanks and water tanks melt easy - you don't want it in your drinking water.

Things to keep in mind:
- Anything with a fan/condenser may need a proper clean, like fridges, freezers, kitchen exhaust canopies, portable and central AC and heaters, microwave, etc. Not only could it push the particulates around, but they could be accumulating particulates and could be a fire risk.
- Clean all surfaces including walls, ceilings, floors.

I haven't been called out to do SIA's in a while, but these are the things that have come to mind. I'll give it a think over the week and get back to you.