Homicide Cleanup
Once the investigation ends, contaminated materials, blood and tissue are cleared during homicide cleanup.
See homicide cleanupGet blood, body fluids, fingerprint powder and odor removed from a home, apartment, rental or business in East Nashville once police release the property. Most crime scene cleanups take one to three days.
Forensic cleaning, trauma scene cleanup and crime scene cleanup all describe the same work: removing tissue, blood, contaminated materials and body fluids following a violent crime. The property can safely be used again after odor treatment and disinfection.
It starts where the investigation ends. Police, detectives and the medical examiner collect evidence and remove the deceased, but they do not clean. The scene is released to the property owner, the family or the landlord, and the cleanup becomes their responsibility.
Forensic cleaners, also known as a forensic clean up crew or crime scene cleaners, assume that each drop of blood may be infectious. Their work includes finding where it spread, taking away anything that cannot be disinfected, treating and cleaning the surfaces, and removing hazardous materials under medical waste rules. The full process is biohazard remediation and covers cleanup from start to finish.

Documentation for landlords and insurance companies includes pictures, the project scope and waste records to help you move forward.
Phone support is available day and night, while crews use unmarked vehicles to protect your privacy nearby.
Keepsakes, photos and documents are set aside and reviewed with you, never thrown out without asking.
Before work begins, you learn the process and cost factors so your family can choose what is right.
Crime scene cleaning services are needed any time a violent event leaves blood or body fluids behind. Common situations include:
Family members can avoid seeing the scene when cleanup is done privately.
A fall can leave blood on walls and ceilings, with saturation reaching carpet and subfloor.
Fingerprint powder can cover the property alongside damaged doors and glass affected by blood.
Tissue and blood may affect furniture, walls and flooring across multiple rooms.
What you do during the first hours matters to your insurance claim, health and total cost. Take these steps before technicians arrive:
Call (888) 440-9227Published cost guides put most residential crime scene cleanups between $1,500 and $7,500. Most crime scene cleanup companies price by the job, not the hour. A small area of surface blood can cost less, and scenes where blood reached the subfloor or several rooms can pass $10,000. The final price is set after the on-site assessment.
The figures shown are national ranges from published cost guides and are not based on an on-site visit. After an on-site assessment, the price for your property is determined and shared with you before cleanup begins.
Ask about cost: (888) 440-9227Crime scene cleanup coverage is determined by the terms in your renters or homeowners policy. The loss may qualify as sudden and accidental, subject to your deductible.
For common spaces or rented units, crime scene cleanup is generally arranged and paid for by the owner.
Your homeowners or renters policy terms determine coverage following a violent crime. Tell your insurer about the event soon and save the claim number.
Find out whether your policy covers biohazard cleanup, whether a cleanup company is your choice, and which records or images the adjuster requires.
Victims of violent crime can ask the Tennessee Treasury Department's Criminal Injuries Compensation Program about crime scene cleanup, which it can help with when the crime happened in a victim's home. Insurance is usually checked first.
A safe, consistent order guides the remediation process, even though every crime scene differs. From the opening walk-through until final inspection, the crime scene cleanup process follows that sequence.
Technicians walk the scene with you or your representative, photograph it and agree the scope before work starts.
The affected area is sealed with plastic sheeting and negative air, and technicians wear full personal protective equipment.
Soaked carpet, pad, drywall, mattresses and furniture are cut out, bagged and sealed as medical waste.
Every surface is cleaned, then treated with EPA-registered, hospital-grade disinfectant for the full contact time.
Technicians inspect HVAC vents and target the odor source using ozone, hydroxyl generators or air scrubbers.
Paperwork follows each closed container through delivery to a permitted facility for medical waste.
ATP testing can be used to check surfaces, while photographs and records support your insurance claim.
After cleanup, replacement drywall and flooring may be installed by your contractor or the insurance company's vendor.
Phone any hour. A crime scene cleanup specialist answers, explains the steps and agrees a start time with you.
Blood and bodily fluids can be hazardous to your health, and contamination often extends beyond the visible area.
Hepatitis C, HIV and hepatitis B may exist in blood. Despite dry-looking blood, hepatitis B may survive on surfaces for at least seven days, according to the CDC.
Medical waste rules apply to soaked materials. An approved facility must treat them because they cannot be placed with household waste or in a dumpster.
Blood runs under baseboards, soaks through carpet into the pad and subfloor, and settles into grout. Odor and bacteria may return when hidden material remains after a surface wipe.
Can you clean it yourself? For a few drops of blood that are fresh and limited to a non-porous hard surface, use gloves plus an EPA-registered disinfectant. Professional cleanup is needed when you cannot identify the spill edges or when contamination reaches wood, drywall, carpeting or fabric.
Blood-soaked material has to be removed, while material that allows complete disinfection can be cleaned.

Most crime scene cleanup work requires one to three days at the property. A small scene that happened recently may take one day, but a heavy scene requiring structural removal can last two to five days.
| Scene | Typical time on site |
|---|---|
| Light scene, one area | Often one to two days |
| A common scene across one to two rooms | Often one to three days |
| Several affected rooms or a subfloor removal | Often two to five days |
Odor removal starts with removing the source. Spraying fragrance over blood or tissue only hides the smell for a few days.
The cleanup team can address the air after taking out contaminated materials. HEPA air scrubbers capture particles, while hydroxyl generators are safe to operate with people in the space. For persistent odor, ozone treatment can be used in vacant rooms. Thermal fogging reaches fabrics and cavities inside walls, and checking HVAC ducts keeps smell from traveling to other rooms.
The full crime scene cleanup guide covers what is cleaned or removed, odor and air quality work, and the rules that apply in your state.
Read the full crime scene cleanup guide
Planning for access, containment and cleanup can depend on local population, housing and entry conditions.
Vanderbilt University Medical Center is about 1.7 miles from East Nashville, which is useful to know when an exposure or injury needs medical attention.
Nearby communities include Downtown Nashville, Germantown Nashville, TN, and New Heights District, useful geographic references when explaining a property location to a cleanup crew.
A cleanup plan for this neighborhood should account for adjacent homes or units when setting odor control and containment boundaries.
Ask on the call about cleanup options for neighboring communities and ZIP codes.
Once the investigation ends, contaminated materials, blood and tissue are cleared during homicide cleanup.
See homicide cleanup
Careful, private suicide cleanup keeps family members from having to confront the scene.
See suicide cleanup
Following accidents, violence or injuries, trauma scene cleanup addresses the affected area.
See trauma scene cleanup
Carpet, solid floors, walls and furnishings receive blood cleanup that includes safe disposal.
See blood cleanup
Cleanup after an undiscovered death includes odor control and the effects of days of decomposition.
See unattended death cleanup
Death odor removal at the source with air scrubbers, hydroxyl and ozone treatment.
See death odor removal
Deep cleaning, respectful sorting and removal are all part of hoarding cleanup.
See hoarding cleanup
Sewage cleanup removes Category 3 black water from raw sewage, then disinfects and dries the area.
See raw sewage cleanupCleaning crime scenes follows a set cleaning process: seal off the area, remove soaked materials, clean and disinfect every surface, treat odor and dispose of the waste as medical waste.
Your homeowners or renters policy terms determine coverage, and you may have a deductible. Call your insurer, report the event and ask about biohazard cleanup coverage.
Most scenes take one to three days on site. One day may cover a light scene, and up to five days may be necessary for a heavy scene that includes removing subfloor.
Initial access and agreement on the scope require someone to be present. After that, many families choose not to stay while the work is done.
Published guides say most home crime scene cleaning costs range from $1,500 through $7,500. A minor surface job may be cheaper, while extensive or multiple-room cleanup may exceed $10,000.
Some viruses, such as hepatitis B, can survive in dried blood on surfaces for days. Take equal care with blood whether fresh or dried.
Crews carry out respectful, discreet crime scene cleanup, arrive in unmarked vehicles and take calls 24 hours a day.