While the risk of house fires is an ever present
one, there are innumerable safety procedures you
can follow to reduce the odds of your home
becoming a fire statistic.
Aside from careless smoking, here is a list of
the primary causes of household fires and some
of the ways to fight fire with fire.
ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS:
Sparks from loose connections can ignite nearby
construction materials, sometimes without
blowing a fuse or tripping a circuit breaker
(breakers occasionally "freeze" and fail to
trip).
Loose connections can occur where appliances or
other electric devices are able to move or
vibrate. Mentally and visually survey your
system and make a list of deficiencies for an
electrician to correct. Look under the sink and
make sure the wiring to the trash disposer is
tight. Do the same for the clothes dryer.
Switches or plug outlet devices should be held
securely. If they are loose, have an electrician
secure them. Try to recall if any lights flicker
and have those connections checked.
Do fuses or circuit breakers blow or trip
regularly? This is always a sign of trouble if
it happens consistently and the cause should be
determined and corrected. A blown fuse that
shows black on the glass is a sure sign of
serious trouble as it indicates a short circuit
on the line. A fuse that has burned out due to
an overload on the circuit will simply have a
break in the metal strip behind the glass. Scan
your fuse box for green colored fuses. These are
usually 30amp fuses and should not control the
circuits for your lights. If you have relatively
few fuses but a lot of green ones, it is very
likely that your system is overloaded. Wires
heat up excessively when too much current is
allowed to flow through them.
If you use extension cords and/or adapters that
allow extra plugs to be plugged into a single
outlet, you should consider having extra
circuits run to those areas from the main
distribution panel. This is especially true if
the cords or adapters are used in the kitchen
where heatproducing electrical appliances draw a
lot of current. Never run an extension cord
under a rug or through a wall or floor and never
use an extension cord that is thinner than the
cord for the appliance it leads to. The thicker
the cord on an appliance, the more electricity
it uses, a thin extension cord hooked to a thick
appliance wire (irons, hair dryers, air
conditioners) will almost certainly overheat.
ALUMINUM WIRING:
Aluminum lower branch wiring (used primarily
between 1964 and 1972) creates a fire risk
approximately 40 times greater than copper wire
according to the U.S. Consumer Products Safety
Commission. (This is not typically accepted in
Canada.) The cause seems to be intermittent hot
connections. The remedies are technical and are
best left to professionals who specialize in
this type of remedial work. (The costs are high:
Budget $1,000 and up.)
BASEBOARD HEATERS:
Never allow drapes to overhang electric
baseboard heaters. Always be careful to provide
at least eight inches of clearance. The same
applies to bedding so avoid placing beds too
close to these heaters.
"HI-HAT" LIGHTING:
Light fixtures that are recessed into the
ceiling require surrounding insulation be kept
three inches away. It is often a losing battle
to get insulation contractors to do this. If you
have this type of lighting fixture, the odds are
that it is covered with insulation and is a fire
hazard. Thingauge sheet metal can be bent into a
cylinder and slipped around the upper portion of
the light.
HEAT LAMPS:
If your bathroom has a heat bulb in the ceiling,
check to be sure the door doesn't swing directly
beneath it (a towel placed carelessly on the
door could easily ignite). Move any fixture that
is close to the light; at the very least, inform
family and guests to be very careful.
KITCHENS:
Ranges should never be under windows since
curtains or blinds easily could be ignited. Do
not hang dish towels from oven handles. Be
extremely careful when using plug receptacles on
ranges (it is easy for the cord to stretch over
hot elements or burners). Clean grease filters
and exhaust fans every month. Avoid greasy
buildup on range tops and broilers. Keep baking
soda or an allpurpose fire extinguisher handy.
FIREPLACES:
Clean your fireplace after burning two or three
cords of seasoned hardwood (especially if 1/4
inch of creosote shows in the upper reaches of
the firebox). Examine around the forward face of
the fireplace. Seal any cracks between the face
brick and the fire brick inside the firebox with
refractory cement. Do the same if a crack exists
where the forward hearth apron touches the
firebox. Heavy raised hearths supported by
wooden floors are vulnerable to cracks (these
can be obscured by glass screens, so examine
them carefully).
If your firebox has an ash dump door, make sure
it fits tightly and be certain you know what is
under that door; fire hazards have been created
when basement remodeling interferes with ash
dumps. Check the ash dump cleanout door in the
basement, which should fit and close tightly; if
it doesn't, replace it and be certain to keep it
clear of combustibles.
WOOD STOVES:
Most wood stoves are installed with insufficient
clearance or shielding from combustibles.
Usually the stove requires 36 inches of
clearance while the chimney requires 18 inches
(less if shielding is used). Shielding should be
under the stove as well. Always follow
manufacturers' instructions to the letter. Take
out the proper building permit to ensure that
the building authorities get a chance to review
the installation. Your insurance company will
want to know this, pity you in the event of a
fire and no permit.)
For a practical installation guide, contact the
Wood Heating Education Research Foundation, 1101
Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 700, Washington,
D.C. 20036. Have a chimney sweep clean the flue
servicing a wood stove at least once a season.
KEROSENE HEATERS:
Use only Kl kerosene in your heater. It is
cleaner and far less likely to create a fouled
wick. Dirty wicks sometimes fail to retract if
heaters are knocked over. Naturally you will
keep the heater out of traffic patterns and away
from combustibles.
MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT:
Never place anything against flues from
furnaces, boilers or water heaters. Always keep
the space around them clear of combustibles.
Change the filters often and utilize
professional maintenance contracts.
OIL BURNERS:
Keep your equipment under a maintenance
contract; if done properly, this service will
easily save enough fuel to pay for the cost. Oil
burning gear that is not maintained gradually
will degenerate into a potential fire hazard.
REMODELING:
Check any remodeling that occurs near heating
and water heating equipment. Make sure there is
good clearance from the flues. Enclosed porches
(outside the room with the fireplace) often have
drywall or paneling nailed to the back of the
chimney. The nails penetrate the mortar joints
and lead heat back to the furring strips or
paneling. Never nail into a chimney.
STORAGE:
Never allow greasy or oily rags to accumulate.
Spontaneous combustion does happen. Store paints
and any volatile liquids outside.
HOBBIES:
Stripping paint, refinishing furniture or
flooring, or even assembling a model airplane
should always be done with plenty of ventilation
and never near gas appliances. (Most gas
appliances have burning pilot lights that can
easily ignite a buildup of fumes.)
SMOKE DETECTORS:
Buy them and install them (it is probably
impossible to have too many). Use both electric
and battery operated models; test them
frequently and replace batteries often. Place
them at the top of the stairs (where smoke will
rise) and in the hallways near bedrooms. Don't
be put off by smoke detectors that trip easily
if you burn the toast or steam up the bathroom;
if they become annoying, replace them with a
different brand. Consider installing CARBON
MONOXIDE DETECTORS in homes which utilize fossil
fuels.