Hoarding cleanup in Bremerton is step-by-step work in which an independent cleanup company helps sort, remove and clean a home where belongings have built up, at a pace the person living there can accept. The first step is making sure everyone is safe and talking with the person before anything leaves the home. Biohazard Network connects you with an independent local company that does this work; it does not clean anything itself, and you hire the company directly.
Feeling overwhelmed is normal, and this page takes the next steps one at a time.
What hoarding cleanup involves
Hoarding is a recognized condition, not a character flaw. The work combines two jobs: sorting belongings with the person, and handling anything that could make people sick. A biohazard is material that carries germs or other health risks, such as rodent droppings, spoiled food, mold, bodily fluids or used needles. Sorting can follow the person’s pace, but biohazards need protective equipment and proper disposal that ordinary household cleaning cannot safely provide.
Respect, pace and what to keep
Where the person can take part, plan with them: which rooms come first, what may leave, and who decides. Ask the company how it handles a day when the person needs to slow down or stop.
Before sorting starts, set aside one box for things that must not be lost: identity and property documents, photos and keepsakes, medicines, keys and phones, and cash or jewelry. Tell the crew where the box is.
Safety first
Clear a path to every exit, then focus on the kitchen and bathroom, because running water, a working toilet and a safe place to prepare food matter for daily health. The Washington State Department of Health1 (DOH) says people can be exposed to hantavirus, a virus carried by deer mice, by breathing dust after disturbing droppings or nests, so do not sweep or vacuum them. Leave needles and syringes where they are for the crew.
If someone has died in the home, the Kitsap County Medical Examiner’s Office investigates all sudden, unexpected, or unnatural deaths in Kitsap County, and cleanup waits until the scene is released, meaning cleared for entry and cleaning. The page on unattended death cleanup in Bremerton explains that path.
How a company works room by room
Ask the company to explain its plan one room at a time. Cleanup workers wear gloves, eye protection and breathing protection to guard against bloodborne pathogens, germs carried in blood that can cause disease. Where biohazards are present, the crew may set up containment, sealing off a work area with plastic sheeting so dust and germs do not spread. Porous materials, ones that soak up fluids such as carpet and mattresses, may have to go if they cannot be cleaned. Disinfection, using products that kill germs on surfaces, follows removal, and odor remediation comes once the source is gone.
Some items may count as biomedical waste, a set list of types in Washington law that includes sharps waste such as used needles, syringes and lancets. In Kitsap County, hauling biohazardous or biomedical waste is regulated by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) and the Kitsap Public Health District2, so ask how the company handles that step. Also ask for photos and a written list of the work for your records.
What may be separate
Repairs, pest control and water, fire or mold restoration may be separate jobs; how biohazard cleanup fits with restoration explains the difference. Repairs that need a permit go through Bremerton’s Department of Community Development, which processes permit applications.
Questions to ask before you hire
Ask how the crew follows OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard3, 29 CFR 1910.1030, and the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup (IICRC is the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification, a non-profit for the cleaning and restoration industries), and look the business up yourself with the Department of Labor & Industries4 (L&I) tool called Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business4. The certifications guide explains what each of these means.
What affects the cost
Each home is different, so ask for a written estimate that shows what is and is not included. The main factors:
- Volume: how many rooms, and how full they are.
- Sorting pace: deciding item by item with the person takes more crew time.
- Biohazards: droppings, mold, sharps or bodily fluids add protective steps and special disposal.
- Hauling: how much leaves the home, and how much of it is biomedical waste.
- Repairs afterward: floors, walls or fixtures damaged over time.
- Travel: a company based in Tacoma may cross the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, which carries SR 16 between Gig Harbor and Tacoma; tolls apply only toward Tacoma.
Can insurance help?
Insurance may cover some related damage, but there is no guarantee. Start with a question rather than a claim: the Office of the Insurance Commissioner5 (OIC) says you can ask your agent or company whether a loss is covered without filing a claim. If floors or walls are damaged, ask about mold, since the OIC says many homeowner policies offer only limited mold coverage, and only when the mold results from a covered loss. If a company asks you to sign an assignment of benefit form, pause first, because the OIC warns it could affect your rights.
Usually covered: Homeowner insurance protects your home and belongings from damage caused by specific risks, says the Insurance Commissioner’s page on how home insurance works. For damage from those risks, dwelling coverage typically covers repairing or replacing your damaged home.
Usually not covered: Standard homeowner and renter policies exclude wear and tear and neglect: insurance covers sudden accidents, not ongoing issues, and you must properly maintain your home, says the Insurance Commissioner’s smoke damage page, which lists what standard policies exclude.
Ask your insurer: “What does my policy cover, and does that include cleanup and repairs after hoarding in my home?” Source: Filing a homeowner insurance claim (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)5
Local help in Bremerton and Kitsap County
The Bremerton page and the Kitsap County page have more.
If animals live in the home
The Kitsap Humane Society is the animal control authority for Kitsap County by contract, and its coverage includes Bremerton. Washington’s animal cruelty law defines minimum care to include an area kept reasonably clean and free from excess waste, garbage and noxious odors. Putting the animals’ food, water and living space early in the plan helps meet that standard. It is also worth knowing, without any accusation, that an officer with probable cause to believe that law was broken may get a warrant, enter, and seize the animal.
If the person is an older adult
Kitsap County Aging and Long-Term Care (ALTC) is the county aging office. If your parent may not be safe, Adult Protective Services investigates self-neglect of vulnerable adults, along with abuse and neglect. Under RCW 74.34.020, self-neglect means a vulnerable adult not living in a facility failing to provide themselves the goods and services needed for physical or mental health, and a vulnerable adult includes a person 60 or older unable to care for themselves. Think of a report as a request for help: it can be made online at any hour, needs no proof, and does not require your name. If the person is in immediate danger, call emergency services.
If the home is reported unsafe
The Kitsap Public Health District2 (360-728-2235, or online) offers a Report a Public Health Concern program. Under state law, a local health officer must prevent, control or abate nuisances that are detrimental to the public health, so a written cleanup plan is useful to share if the district contacts you.
Who to call first
In an emergency, call 911.These official offices may be part of the first steps. They are government pages, not ours.
- Kitsap County Medical Examiner (opens in a new tab)After a sudden or unexpected death, cleanup waits until this office is done.
- Kitsap Public Health District (opens in a new tab)For local health questions, such as a home that was used as a drug lab.
- Kitsap Public Health: permitted waste haulers (opens in a new tab)Cleanup companies that haul away waste here need this permit.
- Washington Crime Victims Compensation Program (L&I) (opens in a new tab)If a crime happened, it may help with some costs, such as funeral expenses. It doesn't pay for cleanup.
- Verify a contractor (L&I lookup) (opens in a new tab)Look up whether a company is a registered contractor before work starts.
- Washington State Department of Health (opens in a new tab)State health rules, such as for drug lab cleanup and hantavirus.