Don't mean to derail the thread, but I feel this is something I need to learn more about and probably everyone could benefit.
I always wondered, how would I prove the value of everything I own to an insurance company if this ever happened to me.
BTDT, and you really can't prove it, but State Farm treated me better after a total loss house fire than they ever did over roof damage from blow-downs. I even spent 8 months in temporary rentals on their dime.
When our Texas house burned in 2013 (electrical fire after a thunderstorm and power outage), I took a ton of photos of what was left, and I used those in my claim.
Firefighters DGAF. They will destroy everything, but under the circumstances, it's usually stuff that is going to be destroyed anyway. My one year old gas range was in the garage when they were done. I had pics of what remained of the range, washer & dryer, both refrigerators, and the huge lump of charcoal that used to be a pallet of bamboo flooring. (Because I hadn't installed it yet, it was still personal property, not part of the house--thankfully!--and I got back the $4k I had paid for it.)
Molten blobs of toolboxes and tools. Outdoors things like a grill and generator and lawnmower that were destroyed by the heat and water. The springs and frames of beds and living room furniture. Common lawn tools like shovels and rakes. A 32' extension ladder that looked like a soda can in a campfire. A stereo system I'd bought new in 1982 that mostly had sentimental value, but the surge of interest in vintage audio was just starting. The blob of rare vinyl records that couldn't be replaced (I knew the titles by heart).
I took a solid month trying to think of what was in the house. I'd work on it for a couple of hours, close it down, go to work, sleep, then start again.
You can never fully document everything. And if you're looking to replace the house and all contents that you just lost, you're probably out of luck. But, SF did treat me right with a fair offer, especially considering how much they paid for my temporary housing.