Even though house fires claim a great many lives around the world and cause billions of dollars in damage to property, there are a lot of things that you can do to reduce the risk that your home or business will catch on fire. Following a few basic guidelines will do this, as long as you make sure the rest of your home follows them, as well.
Store everything that is labeled as flammable outside the house, preferably in a shed of some kind. This includes items like turpentine, gas, paint thinner, propane, and etcetera. The further away from your home these items are, the better.
You should never clean anything with gas or turpentine in your house. Fumes of a lot of flammable chemicals like this are heavier than air and will settle to the floor. All it takes is one spark from a wall outlet and the whole house will go up in flames.
Any time you do work in the garage or outside and you have rags or paper towels that become soaked with flammable chemicals, you should never throw them in the garbage along with other paper materials. The gas needs to evaporate from these items, not insulate so that it becomes heated.
The space heaters in your home that you use in the winter to keep warm should never be placed near combustible materials. This is one of the worst mistakes you can make, along with leaving the home while the heaters are in operation. You should also never use space heaters to dry wet clothes, even a small pair of socks or mittens.
Appliances like space heaters that emit a lot of heat should never be used with extension cords that are not considered heavy duty. A heavy duty cord that is at least a 14 gauge should be used with these or else the cord will melt.
Extension cords should also never be run underneath a rug or carpet, since this will insulate the heat emitted by the cord.
Your smoke detectors should be tested regularly and the batteries replaced.
Finally, most house fires start within the kitchen, even though a large number of them go unreported simply because they did not do any damage extensive enough to warrant an insurance claim. Never leave anything you are cooking unattended.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Great Ways To Protect Your Home From Wildfires
Wildfires to extensive damage to the natural world and the homes and property of mankind every single year that they occur, but if you own your home, there are some things that you can do to slow down or even completely prevent excessive damage to it. All you have to do is follow a few simple guidelines and wildfire damage to your property will be minimized.
If you live in an old home and not a new construction, you may want to consider having some of the exterior materials of your home replaced with some that are more fireproof. If the outside of your home is wooden or vinyl siding, you may want to have it replaced with brick, stone, or even metal, since these materials resist catching on fire much better than the former two.
The material on the roof of your house also probably needs to be replaced. The shingles that you have on your old home are probably made of asphalt, wood, or even metal. The metal is fine unless it is rusted and leaking, but wooden and asphalt shingles need to be gotten rid of since they will catch on fire fairly easily. The roof is the most important exterior surface of your house, since firebrands carried by the wind can land on it and set it on fire. This is one reason to keep your roof wet when a wildfire is anywhere near your home and to keep dead vegetation away from your house. This means raking up cut grass and dead leaves and getting rid of it as soon as it starts to collect.
You also need to have small windows in your home instead of large ones. Windows that have multiple small panes instead of one large pane in them will radiate a lot less heat and will be less likely to catch drapes on fire or burst and allow wind laced with firebrands into your house.
You should also not have any trees close to your home, especially with branches that hang over the roof. While you can keep the roof and the exterior of your home wet with your garden hose to help protect against firebrands, keeping the tree wet might be a little too difficult.
When evacuating your home because of a wildfire, take only those things that are the most valuable and cannot be replaced. If you are evacuating voluntarily, you may have a little more time to prepare, but if it is mandatory and enforced by local law officials, you might not have much time.
If you live in an old home and not a new construction, you may want to consider having some of the exterior materials of your home replaced with some that are more fireproof. If the outside of your home is wooden or vinyl siding, you may want to have it replaced with brick, stone, or even metal, since these materials resist catching on fire much better than the former two.
The material on the roof of your house also probably needs to be replaced. The shingles that you have on your old home are probably made of asphalt, wood, or even metal. The metal is fine unless it is rusted and leaking, but wooden and asphalt shingles need to be gotten rid of since they will catch on fire fairly easily. The roof is the most important exterior surface of your house, since firebrands carried by the wind can land on it and set it on fire. This is one reason to keep your roof wet when a wildfire is anywhere near your home and to keep dead vegetation away from your house. This means raking up cut grass and dead leaves and getting rid of it as soon as it starts to collect.
You also need to have small windows in your home instead of large ones. Windows that have multiple small panes instead of one large pane in them will radiate a lot less heat and will be less likely to catch drapes on fire or burst and allow wind laced with firebrands into your house.
You should also not have any trees close to your home, especially with branches that hang over the roof. While you can keep the roof and the exterior of your home wet with your garden hose to help protect against firebrands, keeping the tree wet might be a little too difficult.
When evacuating your home because of a wildfire, take only those things that are the most valuable and cannot be replaced. If you are evacuating voluntarily, you may have a little more time to prepare, but if it is mandatory and enforced by local law officials, you might not have much time.
Are You Ready To Prevent A House Fire?
Preventing your house from catching on fire is probably not as difficult as you think it is, even though there are a large number of house fires all around the world every year. These cause an extensive loss of life and loss of property, but knowing a few simple rules and guidelines can save you from most of the risk of this happening to you. After you read this, make sure the rest of your family knows your house fire safety rules and that you are serious about enforcing them.
The first thing that you need is a fire extinguisher on each level of your home and the knowledge of how to use it correctly. It should be at least 5 pounds and there should be one in the kitchen, since this is the main area of the home where fires start. Know that a fire does not always have to be put out with a fire extinguisher, so if you can put out a small fire on the stove that started under the burner with a handful or two of baking soda, go for it. But, do not hesitate to use your fire extinguisher if you think for a minute it is getting out of hand.
All combustible materials need to be kept away from heat sources like furnaces, water heaters, and space heaters.
Space heaters are a problem all to themselves, since their specific purpose is to put out heat and since you have the option of placing them wherever you want them, their level of risk is increased. Never place these items on carpet if you can help it, especially those space heaters that sit low to the floor with short legs. Do not use these to dry any fabric and never use them with extension cords unless the cord is heavy duty. Small extension cords coupled with appliances that use a lot of electricity, especially to produce heat, will melt.
Flammable chemicals need to be kept outside of the house and away from it in a shed, if possible. If you do not have a shed or storage area to put these in, have a neighbor or a friend who does store them for you.
Cleaning items with turpentine or gas should be done outside. The fumes from these chemicals should not be allowed to build up inside the house, since they are heavier than air and will settle on the floor.
The first thing that you need is a fire extinguisher on each level of your home and the knowledge of how to use it correctly. It should be at least 5 pounds and there should be one in the kitchen, since this is the main area of the home where fires start. Know that a fire does not always have to be put out with a fire extinguisher, so if you can put out a small fire on the stove that started under the burner with a handful or two of baking soda, go for it. But, do not hesitate to use your fire extinguisher if you think for a minute it is getting out of hand.
All combustible materials need to be kept away from heat sources like furnaces, water heaters, and space heaters.
Space heaters are a problem all to themselves, since their specific purpose is to put out heat and since you have the option of placing them wherever you want them, their level of risk is increased. Never place these items on carpet if you can help it, especially those space heaters that sit low to the floor with short legs. Do not use these to dry any fabric and never use them with extension cords unless the cord is heavy duty. Small extension cords coupled with appliances that use a lot of electricity, especially to produce heat, will melt.
Flammable chemicals need to be kept outside of the house and away from it in a shed, if possible. If you do not have a shed or storage area to put these in, have a neighbor or a friend who does store them for you.
Cleaning items with turpentine or gas should be done outside. The fumes from these chemicals should not be allowed to build up inside the house, since they are heavier than air and will settle on the floor.
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